ACTIVITY 1 (20 minutes): TECHNOLOGY GRAFFITI

Prior to this activity, hang 3 chart papers around the room with the following titles:

• Chart Paper 1: What are positive and negative effects of being digital consumers?
• Chart Paper 2: What does it mean to be a digital creator? What is your impact as a digital creator? What impact do you have as a digital creator?
• Chart Paper 3: What are the rules and responsibilities of digital citizens?

Review the definition of the term “digital citizens” from the slides. Review the 3 C’s of digital citizenship from the slides. Explain that technology benefits our lives, but it also complicates our lives. In this lesson, we will be reviewing the different roles that we each play as consumers, creators, and citizens in the context of technology.

Have a discussion:

• We are constantly hearing parents and teachers warn about the negative effects of technology use. Why do you think they are so concerned?
• What are some of the most common concerns relating to technology that you have heard about? (EQ)

Using a graffiti discussion strategy, have students visit the 3 chart papers hanging around the room and write down ideas that come to mind about each of the prompts. (Teacher Tip: If your class could benefit from more structure, split students into 3 groups and assign each group a poster to start at. Set a timer for 3–5 minutes to give groups time to respond to the prompt. Once the time is up, have groups rotate. Repeat 3 times until all groups have had a chance to respond to each poster.)

Emphasize that digital tools are powerful when used for positive impact. If time allows, briefly discuss ways technology can make a meaningful difference in the world.

Refer to the papers throughout the lesson activities as a way to access students’ prior knowledge. Add to the posters as students acquire new ideas.

Activity 2: (20 minutes): DIGITAL DISTRACTIONS

Review the infographic and have students estimate how much of their personal time is spent on various apps or websites. Then have students respond to the following journal prompts for 5–8 minutes:

• Which apps and websites do you visit the most?
• How much time do you spend on apps and websites?
• What are the positive and negative consequences of your use of time?

Explain that modern technologies can be wonderful tools, but they can also be great for wasting time. It is important that we balance our screen time with our other needs and interests.

Read the description of the term “opportunity cost” from Gretchen Rubin at Psychology Today. Have a discussion:

• How is opportunity cost connected to screen time?
• Is using technology always a negative thing? Explain.
• How can too much screen time get in the way of you developing important skills? (EQ)

Explore the information about screen time from the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry. Have a discussion:

• How can you tell when you have had too much screen time? (EQ)

Explain that strengthening our well-being includes controlling the content that enters into our mind so we can better facilitate our overall health and happiness.

Give students 3–5 minutes to return to their journal entry and respond to the following prompts:

• Overall, how do you feel about your screen time usage?
• What is 1 goal you have to change or improve your screen time use?

ACTIVITY 3 (30 minutes): POSITIVE PEER PRESSURE AND SELF-IMAGE

Explain that another concern often expressed about technology usage is online peer pressure and comparison. As a class, develop a definition of peer pressure. Have a discussion and brainstorm examples on the board:

• Can peer pressure ever be positive?

Share the definition of self-image from the APA Dictionary and Courtney E. Ackerman from Positive Psychology.

Watch the video, “Small Talk–Peer Pressure–CBC Kids,” by CBC Kids from 0:30 to 2:27. Ask for a show of hands for those who have ever felt peer pressure. Then read the information about peer pressure from the APA dictionary and Crystal Raypole from Healthline. Have a discussion:

• How can you use positive peer pressure with technology to make choices that align with your values? (EQ)
• Who is someone that you have observed using digital media in a positive way? What did you like about their usage?

Have students get into small groups of 3–4 and brainstorm ways to use technology in a way that encourages and uplifts others.

In those same groups, have students create posters as part of a “Cool Is…” positive peer pressure campaign. Students can hand-draw or digitally design posters to post around the school that encourage other kids to be truly “cool.” Encourage students to include important values (e.g., being helpful) in each of their examples, as well as strong pictures or visuals that support their messages. Posters should be relatable for their peers that will see them. Some ideas for groups that are struggling include:

• Finding power in numbers.
• Brushing off negative peer pressure.
• Standing up for others.
• Saying no to things that may hurt or harm.

Activity 4: (25 minutes): SOURCE RATING GUIDE

Explain that we can use our critical thinking skills to help us discern and judge if the sources of technology we are viewing are right or wrong as well as reliable and trustworthy. When we critically think about a source, we ask ourselves the following questions:

• Does this source help me gain new knowledge?
• Does this source help me make connections to important ideas?
• Is this source reliable? How can I tell?
• Does this source present multiple perspectives?
• Is this source relevant and useful?
• Does this source provide opinions or facts?
• Does this source provide facts that I can use to inform my opinions?

Read about digital discernment and have a discussion:

• How can using a discernment rating about the various apps and sources you view help you make informed decisions? (EQ)

Revisit the infographic about the sites most visited by teens. Divide the class into 10 groups and pass out a copy of the Discernment App Rating handout to each group. Assign each group an app from the image to discuss. Have each group critically think about the source and give it a discernment rating. Come back together as a class and have groups share their ratings.

Invite students to create a source rating guide (much like a TV/movie rating guide) for other students, using the following questions to guide their thinking:

• What steps do you take to judge/discern the things you see through media?
• Does your family have a technology plan in place to help you discern or judge what you are seeing?

Extension: Invite students to work with their parents or guardians to create a technology plan that addresses technology use at home and elsewhere. Encourage them to include some personal values in the plan.

Activity 5: (20 minutes): CONSCIENTIOUS CITIZENS

Watch the video, “Make Digital Citizenship about the Do’s, not the Don’ts” by ISTE until 2:14. Review the 5 Competencies of Digital Citizenship by ISTE on the slides.

Have a discussion:

• How have computers and the internet impacted citizenship?
• What is 1 thing that you could do to be a better digital citizen? (EQ)
• What is 1 thing that our school could improve about the digital citizenship at our school?

Ask students to explain what their “digital footprint” is. (Possible answer: Information about someone that exists on the internet as a result of what they do online).

Watch the video, “Teen Voices: Oversharing and Your Digital Footprint” by Common Sense Education from 0:24 to 3:12. Have a discussion:

• How does being conscious of your digital footprint make you a better digital citizen? (EQ)

As a class, brainstorm what students can do to be good digital citizens by being mindful of their digital footprint. Make a list on the whiteboard. Some examples include:

• Not posting personal information such as addresses and phone numbers
• Asking permission to post photos of others
• Not posting something you would be embarrassed about your grandma/ future employer seeing.

Give students 5–10 minutes to take a positive action towards improving their digital footprint, using the ideas on the board for inspiration. Post the extra ideas on the slides, if students need more direction.

Extension: Have students monitor their media use for a week, after making the changes that they decided earlier. Hold a class discussion on how their changes affected their mindset, interactions, and view of themselves and others.

Activity 6: (20 minutes) DIGITAL DISCERNMENT

Explain that not all technology policies and plans can account for every digital situation. You might have strong rules in place at school and at home but you might visit a friend’s house where there are no rules and filters. Have a discussion:

• How can you make choices about what you will do in those situations?

Look at the chart of positive values together. One way to think about digital discernment is to reflect on your own personal values and base your ideal technology usage off of those values. You can ask yourself these questions to see if your media choices align with your values:

• What would a loyal person do if their friend was being made fun of?
• What would a mature person do to protect themselves?
• What would an honest person do if lies were being spread around?

Invite the class to brainstorm a few more sentences using the sentence frame and the values chart: “What would a _______ person do if…”

Review the definition of discernment (the ability to judge well). We can use digital discernment to decide if an app, website, or choice online aligns with our personal technology plan.

Divide the class into groups of 3–4 students. Invite the students to think of a technology scenario in which they will need to discern in the moment as to what is right and wrong. Invite each group to come up with 2–3 solutions and phrases they can use when saying no to technology. Invite the groups to share.

If students need help getting started, share the examples on the slides and discuss solutions and phrases they can use when saying no to technology.

Extension: Invite groups to create posters or technology presentations to share with younger students that helps them learn about digital discernment.