Personal Best Parent Update
...from Donald F. Gately Ed.D.
October 26, 2016 Volume II Number 5
Digital Citizenship
Hi,
I met with the sixth-graders this afternoon in an assembly to talk about the important topic of digital citizenship. With all the technology our kids are using, this is a significant conversation. In my view, digital citizenship is not a separate thing, it’s an aspect of citizenship in general. We want our kids to be good, to be kind, to be generous, to be articulate and mature…. Both in person AND online.
As we've said many times, adolescents are expected to make mistakes; we did when we were their age. Technology can be perilous because the errors that we commit can be permanent and also have a reach beyond anything we were accustomed to when we were their age. This was the discussion I had with the kids today.
I've included below a copy of my presentation slides and the links that I discussed .
If you want to follow-up at home I highly recommend the resources available at CommonSenseMedia.org They provide many helpful links for parents and families to discuss this topic with their children.
My best advice to parents is always get involved with the applications and technology your children are using. We don't teach our kids to swim by sitting on the side of the pool, we get in the water with them. If your child is on Instagram, you should be on Instagram. If they have a YouTube channel, then you should have one too. I just joined Snapchat so I would be involved in what is likely the most popular app for our kids lately.
We'll continue to have these conversations and work to steer the development of our kids in their use of technology. I'm eager to hear your thoughts, feel free to e-mail me or call. I'm always here.
All the best,
Don
Jericho Middle School
Email: dgately@jerichoschools.org
Website: Jerichoschools.org
Location: 99 Old Cedar Swamp Road, Jericho, NY, United States
Phone: (516) 203-2600
Twitter: @JerichoMS