Being Safe and Smart Online
Students learn to protect personal information by categorizing what to share, keep private, and check with an adult about, communicate respectfully in digital spaces with consistent standards, understand what a digital footprint is with two concrete examples of how it persists, identify an advertisement and explain how it's designed to persuade, and know the three steps to take when something goes wrong online.
Lesson Overview
What students will be able to do after this lesson: Students will be able to protect their personal information by categorizing what is safe to share, what is private, and what to check about first — communicate online with the same respectful standards they use in person — describe what a digital footprint is and name two ways it appears — identify an advertisement and explain the specific technique it uses to persuade — and state the three steps to take when something online breaks a safety or kindness rule.
Skill segments at a glance:
| Segment | Segment name | Primary standards |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | What’s Mine to Share | RDM-DIG-3-1 |
| 2 | What You Do Online Stays | RDM-DIG-3-2 · RDM-DIG-3-3 |
| 3 | Spots and Steps | RDM-DIG-3-4 · RDM-DIG-3-5 |
Supporting standards reinforced:
| Code | Why it connects |
|---|---|
| RS-COM-3-1 | Respectful digital communication in Segment 2 directly extends the in-person communication standards students have already built |
| RDM-SAF-3-5 | The three-step protocol in Segment 3 reinforces the distinction between situations students can navigate independently and those requiring an adult |
Key Vocabulary
- personal information — details about you (your name, address, phone number, school name) that could be used to find or contact you
- private — information that belongs to you and that you choose carefully who you share with — not because it is shameful, but because it could be misused
- digital footprint — the record of everything you do online — messages, posts, searches, logins — that can be seen or stored even after you think it is gone
- advertisement — a message designed to get you to buy, click, or do something; may look like regular content but has a paid purpose behind it
- persuasion — the specific technique an advertisement uses to get your attention and change what you do
Materials
- Whiteboard or chart paper for the three-column privacy chart in Segment 1 (columns: Safe to Share · Private · Ask an Adult First)
- Whiteboard or chart paper for the three safety steps in Segment 3
- Optional: information-type slips of paper for the Segment 1 sorting activity
- Before the week begins: Post your unit anchor chart and I Can Statement where students can see them — you’ll reference both throughout the week.
How this lesson is structured: Each skill segment below has an I Do (teacher models the skill with a realistic scenario) and a We Do (class practices together with your guidance). Independent practice — the You Do — lives in the practice resources that go alongside this lesson.
What Students Need Before This Lesson
- What’s inside
- What students should already be able to do
- Helpful to have in place
- 3 quick set-ups before the I Do“Private” doesn’t mean shameful — it means yours to protect · The online/in-person gap — why “it’s just online” isn’t true · What makes an ad an ad
- Rescue planIf students are significantly behind
This section opens when Grade 3 launches.
Introducing the Skill
- What’s inside
- Opening hook
- What we’re learning
- Why it matters
- Core sentence frameThe frame students use all week
This section opens when Grade 3 launches.
What’s Mine to Share
- What’s inside
- I do: 4 teacher modelsTextbook example: clear private information · Wrong version → fix: sharing without thinking · Safe to share: information that carries no risk · The ask-first category in a realistic situation
- We do: 4 guided scenariosWith sentence frames, pacing notes and what to watch for
- Coaching in the momentWhat to say when students get stuck
This section opens when Grade 3 launches.
What You Do Online Stays
- What’s inside
- I do: 4 teacher modelsDigital footprint: what it is and two ways it appears · Wrong version → fix: “it’s just online” · Respectful communication: the same standard online as in person · Non-conflict scenario: using the footprint positively
- We do: 4 guided scenariosWith sentence frames, pacing notes and what to watch for
- Coaching in the momentWhat to say when students get stuck
This section opens when Grade 3 launches.
Spots and Steps
- What’s inside
- I do: 4 teacher modelsIdentifying an advertisement: textbook example · Naming the persuasion technique · Three steps: when something goes wrong online · Non-conflict: knowing it is an ad is power, not panic
- We do: 4 guided scenariosWith sentence frames, pacing notes and what to watch for
- Coaching in the momentWhat to say when students get stuck
This section opens when Grade 3 launches.
Closing the Week
- What’s inside
- 3 partner-share roundsOne for each segment, with the frame students say together
- Round 1 — Sorting private and safe-to-share information
- Round 2 — Online kindness and digital footprint
- Round 3 — Spotting ads and knowing what to do when something goes wrong
- Land the key idea
This section opens when Grade 3 launches.
Practice for every skill segment
Each lesson comes with independent practice — the “you do” — for each of its 3 skill segments, in print and digital.
Printable practice
Ready-to-copy practice pages for each segment.
- View and print in your browser
- Answer keys for quick checking
Digital activities
Share one link — students open it on any device, and you see their answers.
- Works on Chromebooks, tablets and phones
- Students just type their name to start
While you wait: from the SEL Resource Library
Responsible Decision-Making resources for Grade 3, ready to use today.
