February was an exciting month at the academy. With a focus on the importance of social interaction, our elementary students participated in a Valentine exchange, and more than 50 students attended our high school February Facts and Fun event. We enjoyed the opportunity to interact socially with your child. Please look in the ICA Today each month to see what social event the academy has planned.
This month, I want to focus on cyber bullying. Any time that you place students in a position where they will be with and around other students, the potential for bullying arises. In a virtual world, that potential takes the form of cyber bullying. How can we as a school work with parents and students to limit the bullying that takes place among our students?
First, know what sites your child visits on the Internet. Since the nature of your child's schoolwork lends itself to children being online, you should occasionally check the history of sites visited. If you notice reasons for concern, talk with your child about the sites visited to determine if these visits were purposeful or accidental. Discuss with your child how to make wise decisions concerning sites they visit and what to do if they stumble across an unhealthy site.
I also recommend that you befriend your child on social networking sites. In physical settings, you will likely know who your children are hanging out with and what friends they are spending time with on the phone or in person. By simply befriending your child on social networking sites, you again have a measure of familiarity with your child's friends and may be able to address situations or friendships that seem unhealthy.
In addition, keep your child anonymous on the Internet. Children are often very trusting of others and see no reason not to give their names and contact information to people whom they meet online. When I was a child, I was taught to never take candy from a stranger and not to approach an adult in a vehicle who stopped by to ask children for directions. Today, we still need to teach our children these important things, but we must broaden our scope to include predators on the Internet. Even though we cannot see them, they can still harm our children.
Lastly, we need to teach our children to be positive in their virtual interactions. Remind our students that anonymity on the Internet is good for protection and safety, but it is no longer good if it allows us to mistreat others. Teach your child that those with whom they interact online should be treated with the same respect they would be given in person.
Take a few minutes this week to talk with your child about cyber bullying and Internet safety. It's the right thing to do!
Deb Secord
Principal