Welcome, parents!
The links below include information on tech integration at MCDS; parenting tips and student expectations around technology; practical information to help you and your child manage technology at home; and resources for keyboarding, digital citizenship, media literacy, programming and more!
In addition to reviewing these resources, please consider attending one of these community-ed sessions regarding tech:
Thursday 10/10/19, 7-8:30pm at Mill Valley Middle School: Should I Be Worried? Mental Health, Tech, and Our Kids’ Well-Being
Monday 10/14/19, 6:30-8pm at Sacred Heart Atherton: Using Media to Tackle Tricky Topics: Teens and Sex
Tuesday 10/22/19, 6:30-8pm at Head Royce School: Using Media to Tackle Tricky Topics: Teens and Sex
Tuesday 11/5/19, 8:30-10am at MCDS: The New Normal: Parents, Teens, Screens and Sleep
Wednesday 12/4/19, 6:30-8pm at MCDS: Screenagers: The Next Chapter screening
Wednesday 3/4/20, 8:30-9:45am at MCDS: Notes to My Middle School Self — 8th Grade Panelists Reflect on their Digital Lives
MCDS RESOURCES
All Grades:- Family Media & Device Contract "Starter Kit" - Parent Tech Survey Results, May 2019 - Parent Tech Survey Results, October 2018 - Parent Tech Survey Results, April 2018 - Troubleshooting: I’m not receiving school emails
Lower School: - MCDS Lower School Tech Integration - Recommended iPad apps--K-4 - iPad FAQs - MCDS Lower School Tech Responsible Use Policy
Upper School: - Digital Parenting Tips - At-home Parental Controls Feature Guide - Discussion questions, hypothetical scenarios, and real-life extreme cases - Chromebook FAQs - MCDS Tech Responsible Use Policy, Grades 5-8
MCDS PARENT EDUCATION: SLIDE DECKS
-MCDS Parent Tech Forum - March 26, 2019 - Upper School Parent Tech Forum - December 11, 2017 - 4th Grade Parent Tech Forum - November 3, 2017 - Upper School Parent Presentation - March 30, 2017 - Upper School Parent Presentation - October 18, 2016 - Upper School Parent presentation - March 9, 2016
ARTICLES & RESEARCH
-August 2019-NYT: Common Sense Approach to Digital Parenting | -March 2019-NYT: Human Contact is Now a Luxury Good | -March 2019-60 Minutes: Closing the Gender Gap in the Tech Industry | -February 2019-NYT: The Two Codes Your Kids Need to Know | - January 2019-Scientific American: Kids, Tech, and Mental Illness | -January 2019-QZ.com: This Parenting Approach Could Help Curb Your Child’s Tech Addiction | -January 2019-NYT Opinion: Meditation will keep the digital monsters at bay | - October 2018-Child Mind Institute: A Parent’s Guide to Dealing With Fortnite | - September 2018 - NYT How (and When) to Limit Kids’ Screen Time | - September 2018 Common Sense Media: Social Media, Social Life | - June 2018: Is Screen Time Bad for Children's Mental Health? (WSJ) | - June 2018: Distracted Parenting (The Atlantic) | - 3/30/18 - Are today's teenagers smarter and better than we think? (Another perspective on Gen Z after the March for our Lives) | - 3/8/18 - Are iPhones bad for kids? | - 12/20/17 - The Surprising thing Google learned about their employees (and what it means for students) | - 11/30/17 - Court Ruling re: students posting racist memes on Instagram (and its effects at an East Bay high school) | - Common Sense Media: Media Use By Kids Age 0 to 8 | - Common Sense Media: News & America's Kids | - Common Sense Media: Plugged-in Parents of Tweens & Teens | - Dan Siegel: Social Media | - Lisa Guernsey: Screen Time | - NYT: Laptops Are Great; Just Not During a Lecture or Meeting | - The Atlantic: Have Smartphones Destroyed a Generation? | - The Atlantic: The Binge Breaker
DIGITAL PARENTING RESOURCES
- Local Digital-Parenting Support Group in San Rafael (run by LMFTs) - Apple Families - Catherine Steiner-Adair: Family Relationships in the Digital Age - Center for Humane Technology - Common Sense Media: Cell Phone Parenting - Common Sense Media: K-5 - Common Sense Media: Parent Concerns - Common Sense Media: Screen Time - Common Sense Media: Social Media - Connect Safely - Devorah Heitner: Raising Digital Natives - Digital Glossary - Family Online Safety Institute - Katie Greer: Online Safety - KidsHealth - Internet Safety - Netsmartz on Cell Phone Parenting - Ozicare: How to Keep Children Safe Online - Polly Ely / The Lab Method--"Tech Talk Deck" - Popular App Guide - SafeSmartSocial - TechTalks.Me: local Bay Area Parent Support, Consultation, and Guidance - Tuck Sleep: Smartphones & Sleep; Streaming Video & Sleep; General Tech & Sleep - Heard It From A Friend: Digital Parenting Resources & Services
ELEMENTARY RECOMMENDED APPS
- Common Sense Media "Essential Apps" - Agnitus Personal Learning Program - Endless Alphabet - Endless Reader - Letter School - Monkey Word School Adventure - Sago Mini Ocean Swimmer - Starfall Learn to Read (web tool also) - Moms with Apps (app review resource) - Parents' Choice (app review resource) - Teachers with Apps (app review resource) - Digital Storytime (app review resource)
OLDER GRADES: MEDIA LITERACY
- Common Sense Media: Sex, Gender, & Body Image - Common Sense Media: Violence in the Media - Dr. Jeanne Kilbourne - Miss Representation (a film for adolescents and older) - The Mask You Live In (a film for adolescents and older) - KQED: The Honest Truth About Fake News- News Outlet Reliability Infographic - one subjective but valuable model - WSJ: Blue Feed Red Feed - CSM Study: News And America's Kids - The News Literacy Project (NLP)