Curriculum
Cyberbullying: Grades 4-5
Group Think
Download Student Activity Sheet(s) for printout.
Read a Letter to Educators about cyberbullying from CyberSmart!
Overview
Students learn that sometimes youths in groups think and behave differently than they would if each person was alone. They examine the role of the bystander in cyberbullying situations and develop an ethical pledge for bystanders.
Objectives
- Analyze messaging behaviors that could be considered cyberbullying.
- Define bystander and compare helpful and harmful bystanders.
- Publish a Bystander to Cyberbullying pledge.
National Educational Technology Standards for Students © 2007
Source: International Society for Technology in Education-
Communication and Collaboration
- interact, collaborate, and publish with peers, experts or others employing a variety of digital environments and media.
- communicate information and ideas effectively to multiple audiences using a variety of media and formats.
-
Digital Citizenship
- advocate and practice safe, legal, and responsible use of information and technology.
- exhibit leadership for digital citizenship.
Home Connection
Download the Grades 4-5 Home Connection page related to this lesson.
Site Preview
Optional strategies for using Web 2.0 tools with your students are recommended under Teach 3 and Teach 4.
Materials
- Activity Sheets (3)
- Pencils and pens
Introduce
- Ask: Have you ever seen somebody break a rule or law but were not involved yourself? What do you call the person who is not the rule breaker or the target of the rule breaker? (Accept reasonable answers. Students may be able to offer words such as witness, observer, or bystander.)
Teach 1: What's the Problem?
- Distribute the activity sheets. Have students read the scenario about the sleepover at Jesse's home.
- Have students write and share their answers to the three questions under What's the Problem? Look for answers that show students understand that Jesse was probably very embarrassed when Anthony told a popular girl at school about his attraction to Mai Yin; that the girl probably told many other kids on her buddy list; that the boys watching Anthony may have been approving, disapproving, or intimidated; and that the other kids at school teased both Jesse and Mai Yin.
Teach 2: Think About It
- Have students read the Think About It section of their activity sheets. Discuss with students how it is often difficult for one person in a group to speak up because of the fear that the bully will turn on them. Also, typically bystanders believe that someone else in the group will speak up.
- Have students tell their own stories. Ask: Have you ever been a bystander to cyberbullying? Tell what happened, but do not use real names.
Teach 3: Find Solutions
- Divide the class into small groups or pairs to discuss and record what the bystanders at the sleepover could have done.
- Then make a class chart to synthesize the points made as each group reports to the class. Possible answers may include:
| Actions Bystanders Take to Make Things Worse | Actions Bystanders Take to Make Things Better |
|---|---|
| laughing | tell the cyberbully to stop |
| pretending they don't know what's going on | try to help the kids who are the target of the bully |
| telling the cyberbully to do it again or to someone else | tell an adult |
| do nothing to stop it | refuse to help the cyberbully |
Use Web 2.0 tools, such as a secure threaded discussion tool, to enable students to continue online their discussion of bystander actions that do and do not work.
Teach 4: Take Action
- Have students follow the directions on their activity sheets. Suggest they begin each rule of the pledge with “I will …” and sign and date the bottom of the pledge.
Use desktop publishing applications to convert students pledges into certificates and distribute in print or by e-mail. Or use Web 2.0 tools to share the pledges on a school Web page, a blog, or a wiki.
Assess
The following items assess student mastery of the lesson objectives.
- Ask: What is a bystander to cyberbullying? (someone who sees, hears, or knows about cyberbullying but is not the bully or the target)
- Ask: What are some ways bystanders can make cyberbullying worse? (by laughing, encouraging the bully, and making fun of the target)
- Ask: What are some ways bystanders can make cyberbullying stop? (by discouraging the bully, supporting the target, or telling a trusted adult)
Extend
- Students will benefit by revisiting this lesson each year.
- For students who completed this lesson in a previous grade, hold a class discussion about the concept of peer pressure, what it means, and how it affects cyberbullying. Explain that peers can try to persuade kids to do things that are positive or negative. Allow students to suggest examples of each related to the use of computer or cell phone networks.
Cyberbullying Prevention Activities for Your School, Families, and Community
Extend this classroom lesson with activities that will support a cyberbullying prevention campaign for your school, families, and community.
includes strategies for using interactive online Web 2.0 tools.
CyberSmart! Online Workshops
Find out about earning continuing education and graduate credits with facilitated CyberSmart! Online Workshops.
Free CyberSmart! Educator Toolbar
Save time. Search smart. Access essential information resources for educators. Download the free CyberSmart! Educator Toolbar. It's always on your desktop at home and/or at school.