Internet Safety

I talked with a mother of a 17-year-old boy. She is in her 40’s and has already raised two other children. I chose this person because she has a son at home who is very internet proficient. I wanted to see how much she knew about what her children were doing online. She is an amazing mother and is more savvy on the computer then most parents I know.
I feel that what I shared was valuable to the person that I shared with. They really did not know about many of the things that can be located online. When I asked about popular teen sites like facebook, MySpace, and online chat rooms all they could say was that it existed. This was shocking to me. I know for a fact that their children have accounts on these sites and yet they have no idea what they are. When I asked what they knew about the internet they simply said it was good for research. It makes me nervous that she does not know about the dangers that exist online. When it came to talking about online bullying and predators I got a little nervous since the person I was talking to did not know about online bullying and knew little about online predators. This has always been a scary subject for me to talk about, but I felt it needed to be addressed. This was great practice for me when I will be teacher, because I will need to talk about these topics to parents and even some students.
I shared the frontline videos with this parent. I thought that these videos would really help her understand the dangers that exist online. A lot of these videos talk about the subjects that she did not know a lot about.

Questions Asked:
Internet bullying: Did not know this existed
Online chat rooms: They exist
Online predators: They exist
Facebook: There is facebook and children are on it
MySpace: Knows of it
YouTube: You can look at videos
Anything else: You can research pap

Technology Ideas

I saw two really fun lessons that I want to incorporate into my classroom. I really liked the use of the promethean boards. I hope that my classroom has one of these boards. I like how you can store work on these boards to use later. The use of these boards to teach writing was brilliant. It made that lesson a lot easier. Another thing I loved was Stephanie’s use of powerpoint. I believe that if you make a powerpoint interactive they can be very effective. Powerpoints can become boring, but when used the right way the can be extremely effective.

Internet Safety Articles

1. What article did you choose to read for your fourth article? I chose to read An Ensign to the Nations, a Light to the World by Pres. Hinckley.
2. What were the most important things you learned from the readings? I learned a great deal from the readings. I have never really been involved with so many of the online activities the youth is involved with today. I have never understood the desire to participate in those activities, but now I know. I have learned so much about the internet and why I need to make sure my students are safe. Too many hidden dangers are found online and I believe it is my job as a teacher to be aware of them. Something I thought was a really good idea was to keep the family computer in a high frequency area so you can monitor what students and your children are doing. I also have learned so much about what the general authorities think of the internet. They say that it is a great resource but can be alluring and appealing in a negative way. Be careful and be knowledgeable are the 2 most important things I believe I learned from these readings.
3. How will what you have read influence your actions as a parent and/or teacher of children and youth? I know that from reading these articles I am a lot more conscious. I am not a parent yet, but when I am I will monitor what my children are doing. I refuse to give my children their own computer. In every sad story I watched there was always a computer in the child’s room. As a teacher I think I am going to teach a lesson on internet safety. I want my students to be aware of the dangers that lurk online. It is my duty to protect them and give them the information they need.
4. How can you use what you have learned from the reading to have a positive influence on family and friends? I think so many people are naïve as to what is on the internet. I can be a positive source for teaching my friends and family members about what is going on online. I know my parents do not know all of the dangers that are online and they could benefit form my knowledge. I believe it is important to teach all those around me about how to keep their future children safe online. I can also be open-minded. I want my friends to know that if they ever run into trouble online they can turn to me.

Technology in the Classroom

I really liked how Stephanie and Chelsea used the prometheam board to teach a grammar lesson. I like the idea of having the students came up and were able to make corrections on the board. An underlying them of most powerpoints was that the students were actively engaged in the lesson. I think that technology is great because it gets the kids excited and ready to learn.

Technology Powerpoint

Technology Lesson

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A New Understanding

This week I was able to use my computer and an LCD projector to teach my students a concept of sink and float. I know my lesson below deals with the computer lab and kidpix, but I thought talking about my most recent lesson would be beneficial. I was able to find an online game that helped teach sink and float. I hooked up the projector to my computer and together my students and I completed the online activities. This week was a testament to me that students love technology and anytime you can incorporate it into a lesson you should. I believe my students learned more from the online activities and discussion then they did during my instruction. It was amazing to see their excitement.