Online Safety Overview
At Norfolk Community Primary School, we recognise that today’s pupils are growing up in an increasingly complex world, living their lives seamlessly on and offline. This presents many positive and exciting opportunities, but also challenges and risks. Our online safety curriculum aims to educate children about the challenges, dangers and opportunities of being online. It is designed to give children a broad and deep understanding of the way the internet works. By understanding the forces at play in the online world, children should be much safer, and be able to thrive in the digital age. We want to equip pupils with the knowledge needed to make the best use of the internet and technology in a safe, considered and respectful way, so they are able to reap the benefits of the online world.
At Norfolk Community Primary School we use the Sheffield Online Safety Curriculum resources to support our teaching of the subject. These resources work alongside our PSHE and Computing curriculums and provide a series of specific online safety-related lessons in every year group that can be taught discreetly. The Government have issued statutory guidance for teaching Relationships Education, Relations and Sex Education and Health Education in schools. Our curriculum includes appropriate resources for teaching the areas related to online safety.
As part of our online safety curriculum we discuss, remind or raise relevant online safety messages with pupils routinely wherever suitable opportunities arise during all lessons; including the need to protect personal information, consider the consequences their actions may have on others, the need to check the accuracy and validity of information they use and the need to respect and acknowledge ownership of digital materials.
Any internet use is carefully planned to ensure that it is age appropriate and supports the learning objectives for specific curriculum areas. Pupils are taught how to use a range of age-appropriate online tools in a safe and effective way. Staff model safe and responsible behaviour in their own use of technology during lessons.
Norfolk Community Primary School, we aim to teach pupils what positive, healthy and respectful online relationships look like, the effects of their online actions on others and knowing how to recognise and display respectful behaviour online. We will address online safety and appropriate behaviour in an age appropriate way that is relevant to their pupils’ lives.
This will complement the computing curriculum, which includes how to use technology safely, responsibly, respectfully and securely, and where to go for help and support when they have concerns about content or contact on the internet or other online technologies.
Our curriculum focuses on the following five underpinning knowledge and behaviours;
Our programme of study is based on five core themes within which there will be broad overlap and flexibility across all phases:
Our children will spend time each half term, developing their knowledge and understanding of each of the key attributes in the hope that the children develop not only as independent learners, but confident young people who are prepared for the next steps in their lives.
Our curriculum is designed to run on a two year cycle across year 1 and 2, Lower Key Stage 2 and Upper Key Stage 2.
Online Safety. What we teach in each year group
Here at Norfolk, we use the Sheffield Online Safety Curriculum resources to support our teaching of the subject. These resources work alongside our PSHE and Computing curriculums and provide a series of specific online safety-related lessons in every year group. Next half term each year group will be looking at a different aspect of the online safety curriculum and these are outlined below.
Year 1
In Year 1 they will be identifying what rules there are keep us safe and healthy when we are using technology at school and at home. They will be exploring why we have these rules and how they help us. They will also learn to understand why we shouldn’t share personal information with others and how to keep our information private and safe when we are online.
Year 2
In Year 2, they will learn to understand that we all need to have a healthy balance of online and offline activities and that some online activities can be detrimental to our mental health. They will also be exploring how to decide what to do and what not do online and what to do if they see something that isn’t appropriate.
Year 3
In Year 3, they will be learning about how not everything on the internet is appropriate for children and discussing how to decide what is suitable. They will be exploring the risks and benefits of using the internet and discussing what personal information is and isn’t safe to share online.
Year 4
In Year 4, they will be looking at the issue of online strangers. They will be exploring why meeting people online is sometimes different to real life and how that people on the internet are not always who they say they are.
Year 5
In Year 5, they will be learning about how giving away personal information can lead to both physical and emotional damage. They will be discussing the fact that many small details can be pieced together to gain a much more comprehensive set of information about a person. They will also be exploring how to recognise some of the signs of online danger.
Year 6
In Year 6, they will be exploring the benefit and risks of using social media. They will be exploring how social media can exert pressure on us, and how images and videos that we see online are not always a true reflection of reality. This will lead into discussions on self-esteem and how it can affect how we behave online as well as the negative impact of advertising and media coverage.