Cyberbullying – Minilesson format
Expanding our laptop program down to 6th grade has been great for our students, but finding a way to fit “Wellnology” instruction into the schedule has been a challenge. Fortunately, our 6th grade team has been wonderful about team-teaching weekly sessions rotating during our advisory period mid-morning.
This week and next, we’re discussing cyberbullying. It hasn’t been a problem (at least to my knowledge) in this grade as of yet, so it feels like a just in time kind of lesson.
Here’s what we’re doing:
1. Overview of cyberbullying.
“Cyberbullying” is when a child, preteen or teen is tormented, threatened, harassed, humiliated, embarrassed or otherwise targeted by another child, preteen or teen using the Internet, interactive and digital technologies or mobile phones. It has to have a minor on both sides, or at least have been instigated by a minor against another minor. Once adults become involved, it is plain and simple cyber-harassment or cyberstalking. Adult cyber-harassment or cyberstalking is NEVER called cyberbullying. http://www.stopcyberbullying.org/what_is_cyberbullying_exactly.html
Question: Have you ever seen something online, such as a posted video or a text posting, that you think the person posting it might regret later? Have you ever seen a mean or inappropriate posted in a comment? (Most kids can answer yes to one or both.)
2. Review examples of cyberbullying and context for cyberbullying
- Save the Dolphins – http://www.youtube.com/oceanking97
- StarWars Kid – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPPj6viIBmU
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3GJOVPjhXMY&feature=related
- Numa Numa Guy – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=60og9gwKh1o&feature=related (Has multiple examples of remixes available)
- You Can’t Take it Back – http://www.netsmartz.org/stories/canttake.htm
- Terrible Text – http://www.nsteens.org/videos/cyberbullying/
Discussion of each situation, victims involved, offline correlation, ect.
- Why would someone post a comment like that?
- Why would someone post this video?
- How do you think the person felt when he saw the responses the video received?
- How does it affect the viewer?
- How do the comments make you feel?
Next class – Preventing and dealing with cyberbullying with focus on healthy behaviors and positive use of technology.
- Would you ever put information on a web page that you intend only you and your friends to see? Why or why not?
- What guidelines do you follow to help you decide what information you should or should not post on the Internet?
- Brainstorm what you could do if you found out about a situation where someone put something personal, private, or embarrassing online…
Lots of great ideas can be found at:
http://www.ncpc.org/cyberbullying
and
http://www.stopcyberbullying.org/take_action/stop_block_and_tell.html
My questions for anyone reading this:
- When should the cyberbullying discussion start?
- Whose responsibility should it be?
- How do we get parents involved in the discussion?
- How do we get adults to understand cyberbullying with out scaring them away from using technology?
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