How do we help students take ownership of their digital lives?

In a world where digital technologies are ubiquitous for kids from a very early age digital citizenship and internet safety have become fundamental topics in our digital world. How do we teach kids about their digital footprints? How do we convey to them the importance of not talking to strangers on the internet? These questions and more are being posed by the Curriculum Technology Integrators of our District in carefully constructed lessons at all of our elementary schools.

At Manzanita and Ventana Vista Elementary Schools Noah Mickey-Colman begins these lessons in kindergarten to help build a solid foundation in concepts of digital citizenship and internet safety. Students will understand appropriate and responsible use of technology such as choosing strong passwords, recognizing what types of information are safe to share online, how to have balance between digital and in-person interactions, how to show respect for other people's ideas and properly cite their work, and how to avoid and respond to cyberbullying.

These important concepts are stressed anytime students interact with their CTI's and lessons they are doing together in the classroom. Repeated exposure to these ideas and concepts helps ensure deep learning and transfer of these ideas and skills to other areas of their life so students can apply them in real-world, complex problems and situations.