Digital Life Lessons

Overview:

Safe Harbor is developing programming around digital and cyber safety for students, parents, and community members. In response to our 2023 community assessment and due to obvious technology and social media influences on our youth, Safe Harbor plans to raise and allocate funds for new digital safety workshops, speakers, and events.

We completed our first lessons at CCDS in the Spring of 2024 and expanding our program. The DLL consists of a parent education component along with classroom lessons and/or school assembly to ensure a consistent message is shared along with follow up resources to provide ongoing support.

Goals:

• Support students and families to ensure they are informed about digital safety best practices

• To create a positive, safe culture for technology by incorporating digital citizenship as a fundamental part of the student learning experience

• Prepare students to be digital learners, leaders, and citizens to explore, connect, learn, and create in safe ways while recognizing navigating technology comes with challenges

Parental Resources:

Following Session 1, sit down and have a conversation about what your student learned. After the Session 2, revisit the conversation to see what they learned.  Then:

1. Discuss, create, and sign a digital family contract.

• A digital contract will help teach proper technology use and set expectations. They allow you to start an open conversation with your kids and encourage them to be part of the decision making.

• Download your own digital family contract here.

2. Set up a tech planner.

• Use these tech planners to help your kids think through important questions around tech use: what will I do? How much time will I spend? Am I making thoughtful choices?

3. Be curious! Get involved in what your children and your children’s friends are doing in their digital lives.

Additional Resources:

• Here is a TED talk discussing how to ensure your child’s safety online.

• Also, in January Safe Harbor sponsored a screening of “The Upstanders” at CHS. The Upstanders explores all sides of bullying, from the brain science to how it plays out from subtle scenarios to full blown bullying. Social media’s power means that bully behavior is now a 24/7 phenomenon, where even changing schools, jobs and phone numbers, or deleting accounts cannot stop the cycle. Covid has increased the incidence of cyber-bullying by 70%. The Upstanders film program shares safe proven strategies and is rooted in character building. It inspires kindness, honesty, respect, empathy, trust and connection.