Titus Petersen, Natalie Meyer, Kayden
Hale and Preston Carr working on their ipads with Braxton Saatmann and Wilfred
Kallhoff in the background.
AJ Mueller, and Cheyenne Krupicka with Kaylie Schlueter in the
background, working on the iPads.
K-6 Digital Media at
Exeter-Milligan Public Schools
by Lisa Soukup, Media Specialist
During library time each grade is
learning about digital media. The students use iPads daily in their classes.
Grades 3-6 are using laptops as well and learning how to keyboard correctly.
Teaching the students the right way to use the technology is one of our main
goals. Kids can be anonymous online so we want our students to be safe and
smart when using the Internet.
The 6th grade have learned about
doing better searches online by using exact keywords. Scams and Schemes were
interesting topics for them as they learned how to spot a scam. Cyberbullying
was this month's topic and they have learned how to be an upstander instead of
a bystander. Our last topic is a creator’s rights. We will talk about creating
an original song and their copyright for the song. We will also talk about
giving credit to anything that is not their work.
The 5th grade have been just as
busy with topics of talking safely online, being a good digital citizen,
privacy rules and cyberbullying. They learned how to recognize some of the key
similarities and differences between in-person bullying and cyberbullying and
identified strategies for dealing responsibly with cyberbullying. The last unit
we will tackle is stereotypes. Students will evaluate online media messages
that convey gender stereotypes and why gender stereotypes can sometimes be
limiting.
In the 4th grade curriculum, they
have worked with creating strong passwords and what one actually looks like.
They learned how to be a good digital citizen and identifying spam when we see
it. A very difficult concept we have been working with is citing our sources we
use according to the MLA standards for research. It is good to start young
having students cite where they take information off the Internet. Too often
they use information from the Internet and do not give credit to the creator.
Students were able to follow the examples and create a MLA citation for a
professional website. The last unit we will work with is how pictures can be
altered digitally for advertising promotions and how it can affect our
self-image.
Personal and private information
was the first topic the 3rd Grade learned and how private information should
not be given out online. The students also learned what they should do if they
get a mean message online. Keywords is the topic we just finished and the
students realized the importance of what words they use to find information.
Synonyms and alternative words and phrases were a couple ways they searched to
find their information. Plagiarism is our last unit and the students will be
able to explain how giving credit is a sign of respect for people’s work.
Kindergarteners have been
learning that when you are on the Internet, there are safe sites to go to and
that an adult needs to be with them when they are on the Internet. They are
also learning how to search for pictures using the alphabet. The first grade
has been talking about ways to stay safe online including asking before they
get on the Internet. They are also learning that any information you put online
leaves a digital footprint about you and how you want your digital footprint to
look. In the second grade, they have been working with passwords and what
components make up a powerful password. Their online community is being
discussed, who should make up that community now and how that will change as
they get older.
Our
students are connected to the world outside our little community and keeping
them safe is our main concern whether they are on the Internet or in a school
bus.
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