Cybersafety

Since we have had the wonderful opportunity of being a STEM school, our children have been immersed in technology.  Ipads, internet, glogs, education software, Smartboards, online museum boxes… the list goes on and on!  I am finding, as you may be seeing as well at home, that our students are amazingly adept at using these tools and are often much more advanced than I am!  The opportunities technology provides are innumerable, but with those opportunities comes responsibilities.  Internet safety is essential, particularly as advances in technology are occurring as fast as we can count.  Check out these tips below so your child can be “cyber savvy!”

·         Keep the lines of communication open!  Talk to your child about the internet and safe/unsafe activities online.  Be aware of what your child is doing on the computer and allow your child the opportunity to teach you about it.

·         Explicitly state your rules about internet usage in your home.  Post them near the computer and explain consequences if the rules are broken.

·         Keep the computer with internet access in an area where it can be monitored, like a kitchen or a family room … not in the child’s bedroom.  That way you can always monitor what is happening and be a part of your child’s internet experience.

·         Talk to your child about information that can and cannot be shared online.  Phone numbers, addresses, full names, and schools attended are not appropriate  or safe to provide online. 

·         Know all passwords!  Talk to your child about the importance of only sharing passwords with parents and no one else, even friends.

·         Stay current and have fun!  Try to keep abreast of technology so that you can use it as a tool for interacting with your child.

*Taken and adapted from www.cyber-safety.com/parents *

Some Favorite Apps

Thanks to our awesome supply of tech resources available this year at our school, I am the proud holder of an ipad!  Here are some of my most used apps...
-Puppet Pals - Thank you to Dana & Steph for introducing this one to me!  You can create "puppet shows" or stories with characters, backdrops, and voice recording.  Great for creating social stories!
-IBooks - I just discovered that you can download PDFs to IBooks & then you can read it just like a book!  Use this website to download pre-made social stories http://www.speakingofspeech.com/Social_Skills_Pragmatics.html
-Flipboard - This app allows me to organize news feeds from my favorite sources in a very easy to read fashion.  I can stay current with what's happening in the NC School Counselor Association and other education groups.
-Prezi - I love making prezis for classroom guidance  lessons and now I can use them on my ipad... perfect for small groups or student organization for projects!
-Dusty D Dawg Has Feelings, Too! - Storybook about emotions that you can personalize and add your own voice!