The Parsons Happenings
October 29, 2021
Message from your Proud Principal on Digital Citizenship
Halloween Tips
Trunk or Treat pictures
Quarter 1 Awards Ceremony
Lost and Found
Afternoon Transportation
Student Check Out
Masks are Required
GCPS is Hiring Bus Drivers
Parsons on Social Media
Calendar of Events
PTA Happenings
Business Partners
Message from your Proud Principal
With the recent social media threats that have impacted our schools, I have thought a lot about what we, the adults, can do to ensure we are raising good digital citizens. Not only do I want to share a few of my mom tips with you that I learned along the way, I also want to share an article I found on the stopbullying.gov website.
Like I said, parenting in a digital world is new, and my husband and I lived by trial and error. The first big decision we had to make was determining at what age we would allow our kids to have a cell phone (no advice here because that's a tough one and it's an individual decision). We then sat down with paper and pencil and came up with expectations and consequences for cell phone use. We created a cell phone contract which was an agreement signed by our kids and us stating the care and responsibility for their cell phone use. Here is an example of a cell phone contract...
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Fq67f0YZAhB0RiywDMOHUUNDMcUG8gJ8/view?usp=sharing
As listed in the contract, here's a few things we learned along the way and had in our contract:
1- Cell phones charge in the parents bedroom each night at 8pm.
2- Parents have all rights to review your 'history' of online use (which we did just about every night).
3- No apps can be downloaded without parent permission (we had the same Apple ID).
4- No social media apps would be allowed until age 13. This age limit has been dictated by US law through the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA).
5- You can only text or call people in your contacts that are approved by the parent. Remember all text are reviewed by the parent. This also allowed us to have conversations about their texting communication.
6- Discuss over and over again the importance of our words when we text and the fact that nothing is truly deleted. It can always be retrieved.
7- Discuss over and over again the importance of the type of pictures we take and send to friends. Remembering that nothing is ever truly deleted.
Below is the article I read titled, Digital Awareness for Parents. My hope is that we all realize the important role we play in guiding our kiddos to be positive digital citizens. We are in this together!
Digital Awareness for Parents
The digital world is constantly evolving with new social media platforms, apps, and devices, and children and teens are often the first to use them. Some negative things that may occur include cyberbullying, sexting, posting hateful messages or content, and participating in negative group conversations. If your child posts harmful or negative content online, it may not only harm other children; it can affect their online reputation, which can have negative implications for their employment or college admission.
While you may not be able to monitor all of your child’s activities, there are things you can do to prevent cyberbullying and protect your child from harmful digital behavior:
- Monitor a teen’s social media sites, apps, and browsing history, if you have concerns that cyberbullying may be occurring.
- Review or re-set your child’s phone location and privacy settings.
- Follow or friend your teen on social media sites or have another trusted adult do so.
- Stay up-to-date on the latest apps, social media platforms, and digital slang used by children and teens.
- Know your child’s user names and passwords for email and social media.
- Establish rules about appropriate digital behavior, content, and apps.
Digital Monitoring Apps and Software for Parents
Parents who want to protect their children from cyberbullying, harmful digital behavior, and exposure to adult content can use parental control and monitoring software to help them set up systems that are less invasive to their children.
There are free software options and apps available to help parents restrict content, block domains, or view their children’s online activities, including social media, without looking at their child’s device every day. Most of the free software options provide some features for free, but charge for more robust insight.
A parent should consider a child’s age, device use, and digital behavior when selecting software – what is suitable to restrict for a ten-year old may not be useful for a teenager.
The air is getting chillier, pumpkins are perched on porches, and kids across our community are planning their costumes. Halloween 2020 brought creative ways to trick or treat while minimizing the spread of infection. But scientists have since determined that the risk of transmitting with candy wrappers is low. So if you are one who celebrates the Halloween holiday, keep reading for a few simple precautions.
Parents may be wondering if participating in Halloween fun and games is safe, or if they would be better off staying home this year. Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), said that kids can indeed still enjoy a safe, fun Halloween and here are a few simple precautions that trick-or-treaters can take.
1. Mask Up
Children and parents, regardless of vaccination status, should wear a mask when attending indoor parties or when going door to door due to the close interactions with other people. Those giving out candy should also wear a face mask.
2. Keep Hands Clean
Washing hands and using hand sanitizer remains a priority. Even though the likelihood of spreading COVID-19 via candy wrappers is relatively low, that risk decreases even further when proper hand hygiene is practiced prior to passing out candy. Kids should wash their hands before they eat their candy in case they picked up any germs while out and about. The candy wrappers themselves are not considered contagious, so there’s no need to quarantine the candy before eating it.
3. Stay Home If You Are Sick
Kids who are demonstrating signs of illness should be kept home to rest and avoid exposing others to their germs.
It feels nice to be starting at the beginning of the 2021 holiday season with some semblance of normalcy. While the risk of COVID-19 isn’t entirely in the past, families can enjoy trick-or-treating while taking reasonable precautions.
Trunk or Treat
Trunk or Treat was a night of fun and filled with a whole lot of candy. I think people were ready for a safe, friendly community event and this was evident in the number of participants. A special shout out to PRHS Student Council for hosting this community event and Amy Diaz for hosting a Parsons PTA trunk for all the treaters.
The above pictures capture some of the fun had by our students. I especially love the one of the great candy swap among friends. It's things like this that make childhood memories. If that doesn't give you goosebumps, I don't know what will.
Quarter 1 Awards Ceremony
Lost and Found
Afternoon Transportation
Student Check Out
Parsons on Social Media
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Monday, November 1, 2021
- All Saints Day (Christian)
- National Native American Heritage Month
- 7:30 am ~ Readers Rally
- 9:30 am ~ Learning Through the Arts 4th Grade ~ Simple Machines (Media Center)
- 11:00 am ~ Learning through the Arts 3rd Grade ~ Scientific Process (Media Center)
Tuesday, November 2, 2021
- Election Day
- 3:30 pm ~ Korean Language/Homework Help
Wednesday, November 3, 2021
- 7:45 am ~ Art Club
- 10:00 am ~ Severe Weather Drill (Statewide)
- 12:15 PM ~ 4th grade Orff Ensemble
Thursday, November 4, 2021
- 7:45 am ~ Witzzle Pro
- 11:50 am ~ 5th Grade Orff Ensemble
- 3:30 pm ~ Korean Language/Homework Help
- 3:30 pm ~ i9 Sports
- 4:00 pm ~ Robotics
Friday, November 5, 2021
- 9:15 am ~ Learning Through the Arts ~ Alphabet Soup (Cafeteria) Kindergarten and Pre- K
Scan your BoxTops and get money for our school. Check out this Video: https://youtu.be/v-bNcykyK5Y
PTA Bullying Prevention PTA wants to encourage parents and students to Connect for Respect. Be an UPSTANDER. Be a FRIEND. Team up with the Parsons PTA and talk with your student about modeling respect for everyone at the school. Families who fill out this short form will get a cool blue Parsons' bracelet. https://forms.gle/4fGDB8Y1Ni2KVPZu6
Today is the last chance to get Parsons PTA adult t-shirts for a limited time. Purchase on My Payments Plus by October 29. parsonsespta@gmail.com
Proud Principal Laura Clark
Email: laura.j.clark@gcpsk12.org
Website: https://www.gcpsk12.org
Location: 1615 Old Peachtree Road Northwest, Suwanee, GA, USA
Phone: 678-957-3050