As posted on my Facebook page:
Follow-up on the After School app...if you have an Android device, you will not see the same things as an iPhone user. They have the ability to comment, see photos, and more posts. It is just part of the interface of the app right now. Also, the app had been taken out of the app store after first coming out in order to add security features. If a student posts something alarming the After School app employees that they may harm themselves, someone comes on that asks if they need to chat. If they believe there is a threat to the school/community, they alert local authorities and the superintendent. Even though this app says it is "anonymous", remember, it must verify a student is a student through Facebook. Meaning, this is not REALLY anonymous. Watch for a report on KOMU (I will let you know when), where I talk with a reporter about this app! Remember, if it isn't this app, it will be another. Stay informed (I recommend commonsensemedia.org) and remember that a child's safety is more important than their privacy.
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Advertised as a "Funny Anonymous School News for Confessions and Compliments", it is not all it has cracked up to be. Many students in our school have this app downloaded, including 5th graders. After School is a new app available on smartphones that allows teens to share their thoughts anonymously - crushes, anxieties, and gossip. If you can imagine, these anonymous comments have turned into bullying and threats. It allows for students to share their thoughts on message boards that are associated with their high school, but it does not share their identity. This app only allows teens to be on it. How? By verifying their account through Facebook. If parents want to be on it, they would have to lie to say they are a student. But of course, the app has a way of finding those who are posing as students and will block them. Red flag right there that this app is not great. If it blocks adults from seeing it, trouble is going to ensue. Talking about AppsHow can we, as parents, keep them safe and help them make good choices? A few suggestions I gathered from Crosswalk.com may be helpful. I love that they said, "Your child's safety is more important than their privacy". So true.
Further HelpIf you aren't sure how to start talking with your child, or if you are feeling overwhelmed with it all, please get in touch with our school counselors. They have heard of the app and know how to either walk you through how to talk to your kids, or they can talk with them about being safe online, too. Quick EditAfter School has added a piece to their Android description to state they are monitoring posts and have 0 tolerance for cyberbullying. Even IF the monitoring works 100% of the time, it is still important to have open conversations with your child about their cybersafety and kindness online.
Last night while doing a Twitter chat, a question about "ghost apps" came up, and many of the educators in the chat were not familiar with this term. I had only just heard it recently, so we had a discussion about it. I feel it is important to share this information with families so you can talk to your children about digital safety and permanence of posting. What are Ghost Apps?Ghost apps have icons that appear to be a normal app, but when you enter into it, it hides photos you would not want others to see that you have on your device. For example, there is one that appears to be a calculator, but when it is opened, it hides explicit photos the user takes. Now, it isn't as easy as just clicking on it. Most of these apps, you have to hold down your finger on the app and it will prompt you for a password. Then you would see the content they are hiding. Keeping Kids SafeWhile schools do their best to educate students, it is also an open conversation that should happen at home. Discuss the internet and how what you do is more of a digital "tattoo" than the "footprint" we heard so much about before. What you do is permanent. It does not go away after awhile. Also, the understanding that some messages and images that are sent could land a student in hot water because of being underage. Sending these messages have resulted in some teenagers being tried for sending and looking at child pornography since the users were under 18. This is a great news story on the importance of talking to your children and learning about ghost apps. Remember that in talking to your children, try to keep a calm demeanor. Many parents find the approach of just asking them about how certain apps work, whether they have heard of ghost apps, or what their friends are doing, will open up conversations. Charging at them with accusations or hostility may cause the child to shut down and not share with you. What to Look ForAfraid your child has fallen into bad habits? Gotten themselves into a tough place they aren't sure how to handle? Watch for signs that your child has maybe already started using their device inappropriately.
Some Apps to Watch ForSome students may come home with sign up information for an app called Remind. What is this, you may ask. Well, it is a great way for our teachers, club sponsors, coaches, and other leaders to communicate with parents, students, participants, and team.
Remind
As you get these codes you can text the number on the paper, follow the directions, and you are set up. There is an app to download to make communicating easy, too. You can sign up to get notifications pushed through your device, texted, emailed, OR all three! Anyone can sign up, not just teachers. Use it for any group you are a member of - book clubs, competitive sports teams, church groups, really anything. All messages are also saved on the website in order to protect users. I hope all of you using Remind love the features it provides. If you would love to see this in your child's classroom or group, talk to their teacher! Also, learn more at Remind.com Artkive is a really neat app to organize all those pictures that your child does in art class. I remember my mom saving all the artwork I did as a child. I now have my own child coming home with art, and I am not going to lie, some of it gets...recycled. Some of it makes its way into a keepsake drawer, where the pile has been growing over the past 4 years. Artkive allows you to take pictures of your child's work, share it with others, and you can create a book of their artwork! Thinking long term, how neat would it be to have a book of the elementary art your child made? I love this idea! You can even do more than art. Pictures of any work can be taken, so tests, projects, report cards...anything! When you take the photo, it puts a plaque at the bottom where you can put your child's name, the grade they were in, a title, and the date. This app can be found on the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store. This blog post is specifically for our district and the app we have. But if you are not from our district, feel free to continue reading to find out what great things you can have as part of an app. If you have not heard, we have an app you can get on your mobile device that allows you access to all things Hallsville related. Just go to your app store and search for "Hallsville", then download the app! You will be able to:
All of these great things are done through ONE single app! There is no reason this FREE app should not be on your device today. Always stay connected and up-to-date. This summer I stumbled across a past student's social media page. She talked about how peers were bullying her online. A coupe of weeks later, her friends had a made a page to support her and raise her up because of all the hate being spewed at her online. This is heartbreaking as this child is only in middle school. Many students have had this same situation happen, but their solutions are not as pleasant.
Social media is full of 'likes' and 'comments'. Many children feel it is a way of acceptance when they get 'likes' on their pics. If they don't get them, many stalk their own images for activity, may take down the photos, and many become depressed. In this day and age, we must see the way social media affects the lives of children. How can we do this? I start with the knowledge that I am the adult. This is what needs to be the first thought in our heads. We are the adults, we set the rules, and it is OKAY to say NO! Here are some ways parents can start to control the devices in their children's lives. 1. Set boundaries for your children. I spoke with a few families who told me their go-to rules included, no screen-time without an adult present, devices can only be used up to 6:00pm, and no cell phones in the bedrooms. 2. Ask children to show you how to use something. When you talk to a child like you want to know something they can do, you often will get a very willing participant. "How do you use Instagram?" would be a way to learn about their account, what they do with it, and you can see the content without the child seeing that you are prying into their business. Remember, this is their social life. It's like when our parents would ask who was calling us on our phone at night. We didn't want to answer these questions when we were kids, same as them not wanting to answer questions related to social media. 3. Open a dialogue between yourself and other parents. When you are curious about something, ask another parent. They may be able to give you insight into something your child isn't talking about. Be advocates for each other. If you hear or know something, talk to the parents of the child. We would want someone to do it for us, let's do it for others, too. Technology is powerful. Adults often feel helpless when it comes to technology because of how quickly it changes. If in doubt, don't allow it until you know more about it. A great site to use to check on the newest technologies is Common Sense Media. Apps are rated and reviewed here. BE INFORMED! Also, if you have any concerns, contact me and I will be more than happy to check out an app for you. Welcome back! Remember, you can request a blog topic by clicking on 'Topic Request' on the navigation bar. Every Monday check back for a new post for parents! We all love technology. Think about your day. Many of us work with computers, have smartphones, tablets, watch tv, play video games, and probably more. It is easy to be connected all day long. What we have to do is balance our lives. Part of that also includes showing kids how to balance their lives.
I am not here to tell you how long your child should be on their tablet or what time to take away a smartphone at night. I just want to tell you how you can do this in a positive way with your child.
Check out some of the highlighted apps from tonight's presentation!
**Sorry if you tried to access this last night. There were some problems with links. They're all fixed!** Recommended Apps Lists
Click on the links to open lists of recommended apps!
Tonight I will be presenting recommended apps at the PTO meeting at 6:30. One of the sections I am going to cover are those apps that we should be looking out for on children's devices. Many students have tablets or smartphones in their hands 24/7. They have access to the Google Play or iTunes store and can download the apps they want. What happens is that we are not wise as to what these apps enable our children to do or what they can expose children to. I am going to give a little sneak preview of tonight's session by showing some of the more popular apps. KRCG News actually did a story on a school that had to ban an app, YikYak, from being used. Check out the story here.
It may be their device, but you are the parent. I recommend having a "device check" at random times to check apps, history, and text messages. Also, one big thing I would do is turn off the location feature. This then means that apps cannot track their location. Some apps post this without kids realizing it is doing that. You can find this in the Settings icon of most devices. Apple devices have this feature in their Settings > Privacy > Location Services. Android may have it in the toolbar you pull down from the top of your device or in Settings > General > Location. It varies on all devices, but start in Settings. Talk with your children frequently about being safe online. It can be a lifesaver. Note: All handouts from tonight's session will be available on this blog at 8:00pm CST tonight, January 26. |
AuthorA teacher turned techie with an obsession with Google, teachers that love learning, and students that love life! Archives
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