Safer Internet Day 2024 was celebrated in the UK on Tuesday 6th February, focussing on the theme of 'INSPIRING CHANGE? Making a difference, managing influence and navigating change online'.
Activities took place within school to address the children's perspective on new and emerging technology and how they could use the internet to make change for the better. Additionally, they considered things that can influence and change the way young people think, feel and act online and offline.
Whole School Activity
Digital Leaders delivered an assembly introducing the theme for Safer Internet Day 2024. Children shared some of their online experiences and suggested who they would talk to if things went wrong or they felt unsafe or worried. Children were reminded that if they confided in a teacher, that information might have to be passed to specialist teachers within school. The assembly ended with this important message:
Our challenge to you: Talk about it!
KS2 Lessons
The children worked in groups to promote conversation. Firstly, they discussed how the internet could influence the ideas and decisions people make.
The children were then shown different scenarios. For each one, they were asked to decide how that example might influence the group if they saw it online. Then, they were asked to make a choice of their feelings, either positive, negative, depends or not sure.
Finally, they were asked to explain why they had made the choice of feeling. Other groups were invited to challenge the explanation if they disagreed.
KS1 Lessons
In KS1, children were asked to think about if something online made them feel sad, uncomfortable, worried or frightened, who could they go to for help with a problem.
To help them understand, children listened to the online story of Mo and Jaz. Mo and Jaz are watching a video about penguins online when it suddenly ends and another video starts which worries and frightens them both. The children were asked to discuss who they could go to for help with a problem.