Last term’s ‘Life Online’ Focus Day for Year 8 was a resounding success. It was important that we adapted this Focus Day to incorporate the fact that the internet is a huge and vital part of our modern society, and will continue to be so for future generations. We wanted to empower students to recognise the power of social media, which has the potential to be both positive and negative, in order to use the internet safely and responsibly.

Students enjoyed learning about the importance of online safety and practical ways they can stay safe online through interactive quizzes and role play exercises. In order to harness the positive power of social media, students created their own online charity campaigns with catchy hashtag slogans to convey their crucial messages. We looked at an emotive and chilling online gaming case study and explored the adrenaline-fueled excitement that comes with playing video games with some truly enthralling attempts to win at ‘Grand Prix Hero’. Through these exercises, students were able to experience the fun that can come with gaming, but be reminded of the responsibility they have to keep themselves protected online. The Focus Day finished with an opportunity for students to collate all of the information they had learned throughout the day, plus any extra research and showcase it in a formal debate with their peers.

We were brimming with pride to see all of our students approach such an extensive, and at times disputed, exploration of ‘Life Online’ with empathy, creativity, and maturity. Well done Year 8!

A couple of our students said this about the day:

We enjoyed working together with Strand to act out different scenarios on online safety. It was really informative learning about the risks of being online, we now feel more confident about recognising the dangers of being online. We enjoyed acting out how different charities use social media to promote their work, one of us did RSPCA and one of us did Childline. It showed the positive side of social media. Sophie and Sinem, 8 Strand