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Do you know about Common Sense Media? This FANTASTIC organization provides excellent resources for parents to engage in conversation with your student about a variety of issues including Internet Safety, Digital Citizenship and Social Media.
Check out these Parent Tip Sheets (in English) from Common Sense Media:
- Parent Tip Sheet: Creating with Digital Media
- Parent Tip Sheet: Digital Piracy
- Parent Tip Sheet: High Tech Cheating
- Parent Tip Sheet: Music and Your Kids
- Parent Tip Sheet: Respecting Creative Work
- Parent Tip Sheet: YouTube and Your Kids
Grades K-5
- Boys, Girls, and Media Messages
- Cyberbullying
- Digital Life
- Effective Email Communication
- Evaluating Websites
- Online Research
- Online Security
- Privacy and Digital Footprints
- Respecting Creative Work
- Smart Searching
- Talking Safely Online
Grades 6-8
- Boys, Girls, and Media Messages
- Connected Culture
- Cyberbullying
- Dealing with Digital Drama
- Digital Life
- Online Security
- Protecting and Respecting Privacy
- Research and Evaluation
- Respecting Creative Work
- Safe Online Talk
- Self-Expression and Identity
- Strategic Searching
- Wikipedia
Grades 9-12
Here are some short videos to further encourage discussion for families (you may be asked to sign up for a free account with Common Sense Media in order to view these materials):
- Illegal Downloads: When Sharing Becomes Stealing
- Caught Cheating: New Ways of Breaking the Rules
- Cheating Goes High Tech
- Common Sense Media - A great resource for parents
Common Sense Media is dedicated to improving the lives of kids and families by providing the trustworthy information, education, and independent voice they need to thrive in a world of media and technology.
Can’t find what you are looking for in these resources? Submit your question here and I will get back to you.
Online Safety Resources
- NetSmartzKids
- PBS Kids "Get Your Web License"
- BrainPop Jr - Learn About Internet Safety
- Connect Safely
- FBI Cyber Surf Island
- FBI - Kid Safety
- FBI - Parent Guide to Internet Safety
- Internet Safety - Common Sense Media
- Internet Safety for Parents
- I-Safe, Inc
- Massachusetts Bullying Prevention Resource Wiki
Social Media Resources
Connect Safely is a non-profit, Silicon Valley based company. They are dedicated to keeping kids safe online, while also teaching them how to be empowered when using technology. The Parent Guides and other digital resources listed below will give you the information you need to understand popular social media tools used by kids and teens and help to ensure your child is safe online.
- A Parent’s Guide to Snapchat
- A Parent’s Guide to Instagram
- A Parent’s Guide to Mobile Phones
- Family Contract for Smartphone Use (child & parent pledge)
Many kids and teens love to watch, make, and upload videos to YouTube. The resources below will help parents understand how to keep their children safe and productive members of the YouTube community.
- Parent Resources
- YouTube’s Community Guidelines
- How to Set YouTube Restricted Mode
- Moderating & Reviewing Comments
- Blocking Users from Commenting on Your YouTube Channel
- Family Safety Basics -10 practical tips for busy families about how to keep your children safe online
- Family Link from Google– create & manage a Google account for your child on an Android device
- Advice from Google on how to set secure passwords – An important conversation for all families
- Blocking Explicit Search Results on Google Using SafeSearch
- Google Tips for Families– how to create strong passwords, use content filters, balance screen time, and more
- Cybercrime Prevention– Information on how to avoid scams, online identity theft, malware prevention
- Easy-to-Use Safety Tools – Everything from controlling the ads you see, to reporting inappropriate YouTube comments. Parents can search safety tools by category or by product (see screenshots below)
Family Contracts
- American Academy of Pediatrics - Create a Family Media Plan
- Common Sense Media - Family Media Agreement
- Screenagers - Screen Time Contracts
Additional Resources
- Forget Screen Time: Lean In To Parenting Your Wired Child
- An NPR interview with author Jordan Shapiro, who advocates for parents mentoring their child to have a healthy relationship with tech, rather than a “just say no” approach.
- Media Mentors, Not Media Police
- An international school teacher describes the role of parents as media mentors.
- Dopamine, Smartphones, and You: A battle for your time
- Trevor Haynes, Department of Neurobiology at Harvard Medical School, explains some of the brain mechanisms activated by technology use.
- Why Social Media is Not Smart for Middle School Kids
- The founder of Families Managing Media writes about how middle school development and social media can be a challenging combination.
- I’m 14, and I quit social media after discovering what was posted about me.
- A teenager reflects on the impact of finding out her digital footprint had already been formed -- by her parent’s posts.
- Do Not Disturb: How I Ditched My Phone and Unbroke my Brain
- A NY Times columnist struggles to define and limit his relationship with his phone
- 10 Reasons Teens Have So Much Anxiety Today
- By a social worker contributing to psychologytoday.com.