According to Common Sense Education students in grades 3-5 can think abstractly, make broad connections, and have a passionate interest in morality. They are beginning to be able to understand each other's motivations, and most crucially are beginning to form cliques which test their existing social skills. I have seen all of these traits in my fourth grade students. Because they often struggle with balancing their desire to have tight social friend groups and their desire to be fair to everyone, they need a lot of "effective communication" lessons. My students are also almost constantly connected to social media when they are outside of school and this means that digital citizenship and digital communication skills are also essential for a happy childhood.
In my own class there was an instance where digital communication was used in a hurtful way which disrupted the classroom atmosphere and left several students very upset. I only wish I could go back to that time, knowing what I know now about the importance of digital communication instruction. That being said I am excited to begin teaching my current students about healthy digital communication. The first lesson I would like to carry out would be an introduction to cyber-bullying. I think it is important that students understand why cyber bullying happens, how it is much easier to say something mean to somebody online than it is in person. This will lead to a discussion of why people should never say something to somebody online that they would not say to them in person. Students would be invited but not pressured to share any experiences they had had with cyber-bullying and would then discuss healthy ways of responding to cyber-bullies. The second lesson I would like to teach my students in regards to digital communication is focused on safety. Many of my students have YouTube channels and I recently discovered that many of them do not have their privacy setting restricted at all. I have discussed this with their parents, but many were unconcerned. I, however, worry that people they don't know may try to contact them in some way so I want to make sure they know how to respond in case that happens. We will discuss why it is important to never talk to people whom you have connection to on the internet. Without scaring them, I will make clear to them that that is an excellent time to talk to a trusted adult who can help them evaluate the validity of the person contacting them and appropriate further actions. There is a great game on Interland where students have to identify a phisher in their midst in order to cross a rive. I thought this would be a great fun way to bring the lesson to a close. I would also like to use digital communication to strengthen a positive atmosphere in my classroom. Every Friday my students give each other compliments. They are assigned a person to compliment so that everybody compliments everybody throughout the year, but I would like to create a forum where they could leave each other shout outs. These would be compliments given to a classmate of their choosing. I think knowing that a classmate went out of their way to give them a compliment would be even more rewarding and the digital aspect of the forum would engage those who might be uncomfortable giving a shout out in person. My main take away from this week has been that technology is going to be an integral part of our students lives and to not adequately prepare them for all aspects of that life would be to fail them. I am excited to start talking to my students about digital communication and digital citizenship in general!
6 Comments
Christina Schreiber
2/3/2018 02:16:13 pm
I think it is never too late to teach your current students about these important digital communication skills. You will be preparing them that much better for the next few years of their life. The middle school students that I teach struggle with the same things that your 4th graders are struggling with. They want the social popularity and to stay in the know with what their peers are doing. I was shocked that even students as young as 4th grade are as invested in social media. I think you are absolutely right to be discussing tips with your students' parents about their children's social media account privacy. I think as a teacher we are tasked with not only teaching our students these skills, but also their families.
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Diana Moore
2/3/2018 07:23:58 pm
It sounds like you are doing a fantastic job observing and recognizing the citizenship needs of your fourth graders. As an upper grade teacher as well I know exactly how you feel looking out and seeing all of my students connected to some form of social media. It's so important for our students to make smart choices in regards to what they are posting and sharing in a public forum. Thank you for doing such an amazing job and working with your group to lead them in the right direction.
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Jane Gallagher
2/4/2018 09:54:09 am
I like the idea of using technology to have your students give "shout outs" to other students. A positive use for digital technology to introduce many topics. I am surprised that some of your 4th graders have U-Tube sites. I have middle school children of my own and they do not do that. I wonder how many elementary teachers at your school and in the district are attempting to incorporate digital citizenship into their curriculum. As often as good manners are addressed throughout the school day I guess, to a point, digital citizenship could be as well. You are likely on the forefront.
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Shawn O'Neal
2/4/2018 10:06:40 am
I agree with Diana it sounds like you are doing a fantastic job observing and recognizing your students digital citizenship needs. Just like with everything that we teach our students we need at home supports too. It is unfortunate that many parents did not see the importance in teaching positive digital citizens. You should take pride in the fact that you are exposing your students to healthy online habits. I love your community building that you are creating in your classroom. I think it is wonderful to have your students give "put-ups" instead of "put-downs". Keep up the good work.
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Scott Marsden
2/4/2018 10:37:43 am
I especially like how you've thought of a scope and sequence for your digital citizenship lessons, starting with cyber bullying. I like how you focus on SEL with your students' giving compliments to each other on Friday. Diane Main argues that digital citizenship is just citizenship; the ISTE standards make that connection as well.
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Mayra CIndy De la Torre
2/4/2018 11:49:52 am
I really like the lessons you will teach your students. They are at that age that they are about to turn into pre-teens that most of their free time will be spend using technology. It is very important that they learn about all the consequences of what they might post will have. You are right technology is a great part of students lives and we need to prepare them to use it safely.
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