Last week our 6th and 7th language arts students took part in a digital footprints unit. In order to provide quality lessons for our digital citizenship standards, I use an awesome resource called Common Sense Media to help me prepare lessons for our K-8 students. Common Sense Media has a full K-12 curriculum that is completely free to educators.
Throughout the week, our 6th and 7th graders gained a better understanding of what their digital footprint is and how it impacts their life. As an introduction to the unit, all students watched a video on the different aspects that make up ones digital footprint. Students then discussed what a digital footprint was through group discussions in class, and then took part in an activity where they had to "investigate" two individuals based on their digital footprint. Our students also took a close look at the privacy settings for Facebook and Twitter and learned how these kind of social networking sites are a part of their digital footprint.
Our students ended with thinking about what they would like their digital footprint to include 10 years from now. They were encouraged to think about some of the things that they do not want their digital footprint to include as well. These ideas were written down on a footprint image and hung in our hallway as a reminder for all.
Here are some of the footprints that our students created:
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