LETTER+TO+PARENTS

Dear Parent or Guardian: District #001 prides itself on providing a safe learning environment for its students. With the increased use of the Internet by students in our schools and homes comes an increased need for us to address students' online behavior. Inappropriate use of the Internet is a national concern and has the potential to be harmful, and we ask your support in assisting us with the challenge of addressing it.

Over the course of the next few weeks, the sixth graders will participate in a series of lessons to learn more about **Online** **Safety.**

• Students will learn strategies for responsibly managing online messages and avoiding situations that make them feel uncomfortable. • Students will learn when to seek the help of a trusted adult. • Students will learn that it is inappropriate for adults to flirt or exchange sexual messages with them—online or offline. • Students will learn that it’s risky to give personal identity information to people only known online in combination with talking online to such people about sex. • It’s normal for both younger children and teens to experiment with their identities online, so student learning is focused on skills for managing impressions and audiences. • Students will learn to always think about protecting private identity information—including full name, postal address, e-mail address, phone numbers, calling card numbers, credit and debit card numbers, and Social Security numbers— for privacy and to avoid identity theft.
 * Here are some of my objectives in teaching this material:**

• Start a conversation with your child about what they do online. Let them know that you understand how important using the Internet and other networked devices, such as cell phones, are to their lives. • Keep the family computer in an open part of your home, showing your child that you are aware of, and interested in, his or her online activities. • Let your child know that safety challenges—such as protecting the identities of family members—are a shared responsibility of all members of the family. As a family, set rules that consider the age and developmental stage of each child. Hold family meetings to revisit these rules on a regular basis. • Let your child know you understand that it’s normal for them to be interested in romance and sex. Talk about how to avoid risky behaviors online, such as engaging in flirting or sexual talk with adults they’ve met online, sending/posting provocative photos of themselves, or planning to meet people face to face that they only know online. Make sure they understand that adults who talk to teens online about sex are committing a crime. • Start a conversation at home about unintended audiences, so that your children understand that what they post online can never be deleted and could be viewed by teachers, principals, college admissions offices, and future employers. You’ll get a letter from me with each lesson. I’ll break the lesson down a bit so that you can have an idea exactly what was discussed in class. I’ll then strive to give you some strategies that you can use with your parenting to help us identify safe internet usage. As a parent myself, I embrace the responsibility that we all have to help our kids navigate these tough waters of adolescence and sail more smoothly and peacefully into the adult world. I feel privileged to begin these conversations with you.
 * Here are some ideas for what you, as parents, can discuss at home to reinforce and support the work we are doing in school:**

Kind regards, Your child's teacher