CommonSense Media's - Digital Literacy and Citizenship Curriculum - is a free online based curriculum focusing on helping students use the Internet safely, responsibly, and effectively.
| Grades K - 2 | ||
| Unit 1 | ||
| K-2 | Going Places Safely | Students learn that they can go to exciting places online, but they need to follow certain rules to remain safe. |
| K-2 | A-B-C Searching | Students search for pictures online by clicking on letters of the alphabet. They learn that directory sites with alphabetical listings offer one way to find things on the Internet. |
| K-2 | Keep It Private | Students learn that many websites ask for information that is private and discuss how to responsibly handle such requests. |
| K-2 | My Creative Work | Students are introduced to the concept of having ownership over creative work. They practice putting their name and date on something they produce. |
| K-2 | Sending Email | Students explore how they can use email to communicate with real people within their schools, families, and communities. |
| Unit 2 | ||
| K-2 | Staying Safe Online | Students understand that they should stay safe online by choosing websites that are good for them to visit, and avoid sites that are not appropriate for them. |
| K-2 | Follow the Digital Trail | Students learn that the information they put online leaves a digital footprint or “trail.” This trail can be big or small, helpful or hurtful, depending on how they manage it. |
| K-2 | Screen Out the Mean | Students learn that children sometimes can act like bullies when they are online. They explore what cyberbullying means and what they can do when they encounter it. |
| K-2 | Using Keywords | Students understand that keyword searching is an effective way to locate information on the Internet. They learn how to select keywords to produce the best search results. |
| K-2 | Sites I Like | Students discuss criteria for rating informational websites and apply them to an assigned site. Students learn that all websites are not equally good sources of information. |
| Unit 3 | ||
| K-2 | Powerful Passwords | Students explore reasons why people use passwords, learn the benefits of using passwords, and discover strategies for creating and keeping strong, secure passwords. |
| K-2 | My Online Community | Students explore the concept that people can connect with one another through the Internet. They understand how the ability for people to communicate online can unite a community. |
| K-2 | Things for Sale | Students examine product websites and understand that the purpose of the site is to encourage buying the product. Students learn methods used to promote products on these sites. |
| K-2 | Show Respect Online | Students explore the similarities and differences between in-person and online communications, and then learn how to write clear and respectful messages. |
| K-2 | Writing Good Emails | Students learn how to communicate effectively by email, taking into account the purpose and audience of their message, and the tone they want to convey. |
| Grades 3 - 5 | ||
| Unit 1 | ||
| 3-5 | Rings of Responsibility | Students explore what it means to be responsible to and respectful of their offline and online communities as a way to learn how to be good digital citizens. |
| 3-5 | Private and Personal Information | How can you protect yourself from online identity theft? Students think critically about the information they share online. |
| 3-5 | The Power of Words | Students consider that they may get online messages from other kids that can make them feel angry, hurt, sad, or fearful. Students identify actions that will make them Upstanders in the face of cyberbullying. |
| 3-5 | The Key to Keywords | Students learn strategies to increase the accuracy of their keyword searches and make inferences about the effectiveness of the strategies. |
| 3-5 | Whose Is It, Anyway? | Students learn that copying the work of others and presenting it as one’s own is called plagiarism. They also learn about when and how it's ok to use the work of others. |
| Unit 2 | ||
| 3-5 | Strong Passwords | Students learn how to create secure passwords in order to protect their private information and accounts online. |
| 3-5 | Digital Citizenship Pledge | Students work together to outline common expectations in order to build a strong digital citizenship community. Each member of the class signs a We the Digital Citizens Pledge. |
| 3-5 | You've Won a Prize! | Students learn what spam is, the forms it takes, and then identify strategies for dealing with it. |
| 3-5 | How to Cite a Site | Students reflect on the importance of citing all sources when they do research. They then learn how to write bibliographical citations for online sources. |
| 3-5 | Picture Perfect | Students learn how photos can be altered digitally. They will consider the creative upsides of photo alteration, as well as its power to distort our perceptions of beauty and health. |
| Unit 3 | ||
| 3-5 | Talking Safely Online | Students learn that the Internet is a great place to develop rewarding relationships. But they also learn not to reveal private information to a person they know only online. |
| 3-5 | Super Digital Citizen | Students explore Spider-Man's motto, "with great power comes great responsibility" through the lens of digital citizenship. They create comic strips show a digital superhero who witnesses an act of poor digital citizenship, and then helps resolve it. |
| 3-5 | Privacy Rules | Students learn that children’s websites must protect their private information. They learn to identify these secure sites by looking for their privacy policies and privacy seals of approval. |
| 3-5 | What's Cyberbullying? | Students explore how it feels to be cyberbullied, how cyberbullying is similar to or different than in-person bullying, and learn strategies for handling cyberbullying when it arises. |
| 3-5 | Selling Stereotypes | Students explore how the media can play a powerful role in shaping our ideas about girls and boys. They practice identifying messages about gender roles in two online activity zones for kids. |
Privacy & Security - Students learn strategies for managing their online information and keeping it secure from online risks such as identity thieves and phishing.
Digital Footprint& reputation - Students learn to protecttheir own privacy and respect others’ privacy.
Self-image & identity - These lessons are designed to help students explore their own digital lives, focusing on their online versus their offline identity.
Relationships& Communication - Students reflect on how they can
use intrapersonal and
interpersonal skills to build and strengthen
positive online communication and
communities.
Creative Credit & Copyright - Living in a “copy/paste” culture, students need to reflect on their responsibilities and rights as creators in the online spaces where they consume, create, and share information.
Cyberbullying - Students learn what to do if they are involved in a cyberbullying situation.
Information Literacy - Information literacy includes the ability to identify, find, evaluate, and use information effectively.
Internet Safety - Students explore how the Internet offers an amazing way to collaborate with others worldwide, while staying safe through employing strategies such as distinguishing between inappropriate contact and positive connections.
Shrink the Cyberbully In this interactive activity, from Mcgruff.org students learn how to make choices that will reduce the impact of a cyberbully.
Safety Land Help Captain Broadband fight the nasty character by learning about safety and security while surfing the Web.