Digital Citizenship Week: Making Smart Choices Online
⏲Read Time: 3 minutes
October 19–23 is Digital Citizenship Week!
This is a great opportunity to talk about how students can use technology safely, responsibly, and thoughtfully at school and at home.
Digital citizenship is about more than internet safety. It includes treating others with kindness online, protecting personal information, thinking critically about what we see and read, and developing healthy technology habits.
How We Teach Digital Citizenship at School
At our school, one resource we use is Common Sense Media's Digital Literacy & Well-Being Curriculum. This curriculum helps students develop important digital citizenship skills. Lessons cover topics such as privacy, digital footprints, online communication, media literacy, and healthy technology habits.
This year's Digital Citizenship Week focuses on building critical-thinking skills for a world with AI. Students are encouraged to question online information, recognize the purpose behind media, and check whether what they see is accurate. These skills are especially important as AI-generated content becomes more common.
Learn more at Common Sense Media's Digital Citizenship Week page.
Continue the Conversation at Home
Digital citizenship learning doesn't stop when students leave school. Common Sense Media offers helpful resources for families, including activities, conversation starters, videos, and practical tips that parents and caregivers can use at home.
Here are a few questions you can discuss with your child:
- Online safety: What information should you keep private when you're online?
- Kindness: How can you show someone you're being kind when communicating online?
- Media literacy: If you see something surprising online, how could you check whether it's true?
- AI awareness: Did you know that some pictures, videos, and stories online can be created by AI? How might you tell if something is real or AI-generated?
- Healthy habits: How do you know when it's time to take a break from a screen?
You don't need to cover everything at once. Even a short conversation during dinner or on the way home can help children think through their choices and feel comfortable asking questions.
Explore the Common Sense Media Family Resources for more activities and ideas to try together.
Make It a Family Conversation!
Celebrate Digital Citizenship Week by setting aside a few minutes to talk about your family's technology habits. Choose one question from this post, watch a video together, or explore a Common Sense Media family activity. Small conversations can make a big difference in helping children feel confident, safe, and responsible online.
Let's work together to help our students make smart choices in a digital world!
