Curriculum

Safety and Security Online: Grades 4-5

Safe Talking in Cyberspace

Download Student Sheet(s) for printout in PDF format.

Read a Letter to Educators about Internet safety and security from CyberSmart!

Overview

Students learn that they can develop rewarding online relationships, but they should never reveal private information to a person they know only in cyberspace without asking their parent or guardian for permission.

Objectives

Compare and contrast cyber pals and face-to-face friends.
Recall that private information should not be given to anyone in cyberspace without the permission of a parent or guardian.

ISTE National Educational Technology Standards for Students © 2007

Source: International Society for Technology in Education

Communication and Collaboration
1. communicate information and ideas effectively to multiple audiences using a variety of media and formats.
Digital Citizenship
1. advocate and practice safe, legal, and responsible use of information and technology.

Home Connection

Download the Home Connection sheet related to this lesson.

Site Preview

An optional strategy for using Web 2.0 tools with your students is recommended under Teach 4.

Materials

Activity Sheets (3)

Introduce

Ask students to share their experiences chatting, instant messaging, and posting on message boards online.
Challenge them to explain the differences between messaging with friends they know from school and people they have never met face to face.
Explain that while you can have what seems to be a close relationship with a cyber pal, they cannot possibly know a person online as well as they know a face-to-face friend.

Teach 1

Distribute Activity Sheet 1.
Have students read the scenario about Sita and CJcool11, answer the questions individually, and then share their responses. NOTE: Postpone discussion until students have read and applied the information on Activity Sheet 2.

Teach 2

Distribute Activity Sheet 2.
After students read It's Okay to Talk Online, ask: Why might it be easier to share school problems with a cyber pal than a face-to-face friend? (It may be easier to share because cyber pals are not from school and so may be able to see both sides and they don't have to worry about what the other kids in school will think.)
After students read Cyber Pals ask them if they have ever pretended to be someone they are not online. Point out that cyber pals might pretend sometimes, too.
After students read Choose Chat and Messaging Just for Kids, point out that monitors may also be called hosts or moderators.
Make sure students understand that they should keep private information private (not give it out) unless they ask their parent or guardian first. If students ask why, you can explain that there are criminals who use private information to pretend to be another person. Then they use that person's name to steal money. This is called identity theft. NOTE: The latest research indicates that pre-adolescent children are generally not the targets of online predators and that the news media-driven idea that predators are piecing together private identity information to abduct a child is not supported. In this lesson, we tackle a broader reason for children not sharing private identity information—because of the risk for identity theft. It is never too early for children to learn about identity theft, as they are often targeted because children have a clean credit history and their parents are unlikely to be alert for signs that someone is using their child's identity. Children who learn about identity theft can also help protect their parents' identities online.

Teach 3

Distribute Activity Sheet 3.
Have students read, discuss, complete, and sign the checklist.
Have students revisit their responses on Activity Sheet 1 and make changes or additions.
Discuss possible answers with students. Sita should answer to “Where is your school?” that “I'd rather not say,” or “That's private. Let's not go there.” Point out that Sita doesn't have to answer at all. She can just log out of the messaging service or Web site or block the person asking the questions.
Students should be reminded that when people persist in asking any question that makes them feel uncomfortable, they can ask a trusted adult to help them report these people to the Web site owners.

Teach 4: Take Action

Have students write a letter to their parents explaining in their own words how they plan to stay safe by avoiding giving our private information when messaging online. Encourage students to identify the specific messaging services they use and the Web sites where they post messages and how they can use the features of each to protect their private identity information and stay safe.

Use Web 2.0 tools to publish students' letters on a school Web page, a blog, or a wiki and invite parents to read them online.

Assess

The following items assess student mastery of the lesson objectives.

Ask: How are cyber pals and face-to-face friends different? (Even when you share personal thoughts with a cyber pal, this person is as much a stranger as someone you meet on the street for the first time. You know face-to-face friends much better. Just seeing them in school or around your neighborhood gives you a lot of information about them.)
Ask:What should you do when a cyber pal asks for private information? (Never give private information without first asking permission of a parent or guardian.)

Extend

Students will benefit by revisiting this lesson each year.
For students who completed this lesson in a previous grade, extend the lesson by explaining that sometimes other people will send online messages that include “sex talk.” Point out that this kind of messaging with people they only know online is not safe. NOTE: Most fourth and fifth graders are not sexually mature and are probably not interested in these kinds of messages. Researchers point out that these children tend not to respond to sexual messages. However, some children in these grades are more physically developed and may be more interested in sexual messages.

Cyber Safety and Security Awareness Activities for Your School, Families, and Community

Extend this classroom lesson with activities that will support a cyber safety and security awareness campaign for your school, families, and community.

includes strategies for using interactive online Web 2.0 tools.

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