Internet Urban Legends
The news of late has been rampant with the urban legend Momo. If your of my age group then you grew up with the stories of Bloody Mary during sleepover parties. I remember covering all my mirrors with paper after a sleepover! However, what is going on with Momo adds another dimension with the advent of social media and the digital world we live in. According to Common Sense Media (copy/paste this link in your web browser if you have trouble opening the article - https://www.commonsensemedia.org/blog/viral-youtube-challenges-internet-stunts-popular-with-kids?utm_source=NEW+03012019+DEFAULT&utm_medium=email) the Momo Challenge is a "frightening social media challenge [that] appears with an unforgettable, horrifying picture of a statue of a bird (that looks like a girl) and allegedly encourages kids to perform increasingly risky and harmful tasks, including hurting themselves. It can pop up in a variety of places but seems to center around Whatsapp, where a user is sent a link to click on. It's not new but resurfaces occasionally. Though some articles mention reports of kids actually harming or killing themselves as a result of the challenge, they are unsubstantiated. Some reports indicate it's actually a way for hackers to get access to devices, which poses a whole separate set of risks."
This is a scary and stressful topic to think about and especially talk about with your kids. This is not something that will be spoken about at Peter Woodbury with students, but I wanted to provide you with a couple resources to help you discuss this with your children if you think it's appropriate or just for your own information.
This YouTube video was created by an educator in another state whose students were asking her about this challenge. The video is what she shared with her students. This Common Sense Media article not only explains the Momo Challenge but will also make you aware of other online challenges & legends that kids may find online. (If you have trouble viewing the video copy/paste this link in your internet browser - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0QE0YmjlqUQ&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR11O_gtJhcKjxtxqIWME6DXw06GLhC_ZAZwJqxIMsVubu5DEx5nH5n2LuA)
Things like this make us want to keep our kids off of technology all together, believe me I have two children myself and I struggle with that thought myself. However, it is important for us to take opportunities like this and use them to teach our children about digital responsibility and digital citizenship (in age appropriate ways).
Here at school I visit every classroom to implement lessons on digital citizenship. Lessons include internet safety, personal information, digital etiquette and digital footprint. It's so important to keep that line of communication open.
This is a scary and stressful topic to think about and especially talk about with your kids. This is not something that will be spoken about at Peter Woodbury with students, but I wanted to provide you with a couple resources to help you discuss this with your children if you think it's appropriate or just for your own information.
This YouTube video was created by an educator in another state whose students were asking her about this challenge. The video is what she shared with her students. This Common Sense Media article not only explains the Momo Challenge but will also make you aware of other online challenges & legends that kids may find online. (If you have trouble viewing the video copy/paste this link in your internet browser - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0QE0YmjlqUQ&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR11O_gtJhcKjxtxqIWME6DXw06GLhC_ZAZwJqxIMsVubu5DEx5nH5n2LuA)
Things like this make us want to keep our kids off of technology all together, believe me I have two children myself and I struggle with that thought myself. However, it is important for us to take opportunities like this and use them to teach our children about digital responsibility and digital citizenship (in age appropriate ways).
Here at school I visit every classroom to implement lessons on digital citizenship. Lessons include internet safety, personal information, digital etiquette and digital footprint. It's so important to keep that line of communication open.