Warm Up (5 min)

Introduction

Tell students that not everyone will react to a particular situation in the same way, but just because a reaction is different from our own, doesn't mean we should discount others' feelings.

Explain to students they are going to watch a video about how words, whether typed or spoken, can impact how someone else feels.

Show the lesson video.

Ask:

• Who has heard of the saying, "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me"?
• What did Guts mean in his text that sometimes words can hurt?
  • Words are powerful. Sometimes it is hard to ignore what someone is saying when it's a mean name. Names can make you feel sad or hurt.

Remind students to keep Leg's question in the back of their mind during this lesson: How do you treat others online?

Main Activity (35 min)

What's the Problem?

Organize students into groups of four and have each group pick a person to record their ideas.

Distribute the Words Can Hurt Student Handout. Have the groups of students read the scenario about Rani and Aruna receiving mean messages through a children's game website.

Have each group answer the questions, then have them share their responses with the class. Look for responses that show empahty for Rani and Aruna and acknowledge that the messages sent to them were mean and hurtful. Ask the students to read the 'Use Common Sense!' section on the Words Can Hurt Student Handout.

Invite students to share their own stories.

Ask:

• Have you seen mean messages sent to you or others online? Tell us about it, but do not use real names.

Divide students into pairs.

Invite one partner to write the phrase "You're weird" on a piece of paper, then hand it to their partner. Tell them that they just received this text.

Ask:

• What are the reasons the person might have texted "You're weird"?
  • They’re continuing an inside joke; the first person did something silly at an earlier time; a group of kids is teasing the kid; the person who sent the text really does think the person is weird but is afraid to say it to his or her face.
• How did the partner feel about being called weird?
  • Possibly like the other person was kidding around, but maybe that the person was teasing or being hurtful.

Tell one person from each pair to say to the other person, "You're weird," with a smile on their face.

Ask:

• Why might you feel differently if you could see the person?
  • People give non-verbal cues through facial expressions and body language.

Crossing the Line

Place the piece of string across the length of the classroom. Ask students to stand on one side of the line. Then ask them to imagine that they are online and somebody has sent them a message, which you will read to them. Tell the students to stay where they are if they think the message is okay; to cross over the line if they think the message is not okay; or to stand on the line if they think the message is in between.

Read:

• You are my friend.
• You are an idiot.
• I'm having a party and you're not invited.
• I like your new haircut.
• You are ugly.
• Thanks for the advice. Next time, will you tell me in person rather than through text?
• Did you finish your homework?
• Why is it taking you so long to finish it?
• You are such a freak.

Review with the students that kids like to go online and use cell phones to email, chat, watch videos, send messages, play games, and do homework. But sometimes the language can get mean or scary. Messages that make people feel bad cross the line. Sometimes that meanness is unintentional, but when people use tools such as the internet and cell phones to deliberately upset someone else over and over, that's cyberbullying.

Talk and Take Action

Have students return to their seats.

Discuss how easy is it to feel angry or upset when somebody sends you a mean or scary message online.

Define:

• Cyberbullying: Using technology tools such as the internet and cell phones to deliberately upset someone else.

Explain that cyberbullies deliberately try to make you feel that way, just like real-life bullies.

Discuss:

• Cooling down can be a good first step when you receive a mean message online. Taking a deep breath, counting backwards from 10, or pausing to think about what you will do next can give you time to think of the BEST way to handle the situation.
• Finding help or telling a trusted adult or friend can be a good way to take action. You shouldn't deal with the cyberbullying situation alone. The person you tell should be someone who wants to hear what you have to say and will help you work on a solution. Adults can be especially good because they often have the power to influence the situation or they can give you advice about what to do.
• Ignoring the person who is cyberbullying you can be very effective. Those who bully often like attention.
• Whatever you do, remember to keep a copy of your communication with the individual who is cyberbullying you. If you delete the communication, there is no proof of how the bully treated you if you need to show a trusted adult.

Distribute the Talk and Take Action Student Handout to each student. Encourage them to depict a cyberbullying scenario and possible solution. They can use pencils and paper to make the comics.

Wrap Up (15 min)

Flash Chat: What did we learn today?

You can use these questions to assess your students' understanding of the lesson objectives. You may want to ask students to reflect in writing on these questions in their journal.

Ask:

• Why is it a bad idea to send mean or scary messages online?
  • Because they can make the person who gets the message upset, angry, or scared.
• Why might there be more misunderstandings between people when they send online messages as opposed to a face-to-face discussion?
  • Online messages can be more confusing or scarier than face-to-face messages because there are no face-to-face cues to help you understand people's intentions.
• What can kids do when they get cyberbullying messages?
  1. Stay calm and take a deep breath
  2. Tell a friend or trusted adult who can help develop a plan to handle the situation
  3. Ignore the bully
  4. Keep a copy of the communication with the bully.

Journaling

Having students write about what they learned, why it’s useful, and how they feel about it can help solidify any knowledge they obtained today and build a review sheet for them to look to in the future.

Journal Prompts:

• What was today's lesson about?
• How do you feel about today's lesson?
• What is cyberbullying?
• Who are some people you can go to if you are ever bullied online or in person?

Assessment (10 min)

Print out the assessment and distribute it to the class. Give students enough time to complete the assessment, but make sure there is enough time to go over answers.