Digital Citizenship

Digital Citizenship is comprised of the knowledge and practices that allow students to safely interact in a digital environment. Topics cover appropriate online behavior, responsible use of social networking websites, and cyberbullying prevention. All students must be educated annually in this subject in order to comply with Federal law.

Curriculum

You may provide instruction using any of the approved curricular providers below.

Free Options

Be Internet Awesome: Google’s Be Internet Awesome supports students in grades 2 - 7 in being safe, confident explorers in their online world.

Be Internet Awesome Promo Video

Common Sense Education: This curriculum provides free lesson plans, interactives, and videos designed to support K-12 students in being good digital citizens. You can also use their Essential Guide to Digital Citizenship for CIPA & E-Rate.
- Common Sense Education Promo Video
Digital4Good x #ICANHELP
A champion for digital safety and well-being for students, parents, teachers, and the community, Digital4Good x #ICANHELP educates, engages, and empowers communities in the use digital media and technology with free tools such as their:
- The Club Starter Kit inspires students to take action against online negativity by starting a Digital4Good Club. Implementing this, can fulfill the requirement to educate students about appropriate online behavior.
- Parent Guidelines are dedicated to promoting appropriate digital etiquette and safety at home.
- The Social Media Emergency Plan empowers school leaders with the tools and resources to effectively navigate social media emergencies.
Edpuzzle Originals - Digital Citizenship: These ready-made video lessons help elementary, middle, and high school students become responsible digital citizens. All videos have embedded checks for understanding with the option for teachers to add questions, notes, and voiceovers.
- EdPuzzle Promo Video
EverFi- Ignition – Digital Wellness and Safety: Ignition: Digital Wellness and Safety is a digital literacy curriculum designed to provide students in grades 6-9 with the information they need to safely and confidently navigate the digital world, and the skills to leverage technology safely and effectively.
- Ignition Promo Video
Teaching Digital Citizenship Through an Inquiry Lens - The NYCDOE Department of Library Services has aligned the Common Sense Digital Citizenship Curriculum to the Empire State Information Fluency Continuum to help build digital citizenship skills through an inquiry model for grades K-12.

Fee Options

BrainPOP: FAMIS Vendor ID: BRA550283

BrainPOP Jr.

Curriculum consists of lesson ideas, quizzes, games, and activities for students in grades K-3

BrainPOP Digital Citizenship

Curriculum consists of topics, learning pathways, and support resources for teachers and students grades 3 and up.

BrainPop Promo Video

Digital4Good x #ICANHELP (FAMIS Vendor ID: ICA589233)
- The Digital Citizenship Curriculum consists of engaging lessons and peer-to-peer models that educate students about digital citizenship, safety, literacy and wellness. The curriculum features real issues that students face and is designed to help schools decrease online drama, which mitigates in-person issues and decreases student discipline reports.
- The Social Media Literacy Curriculum consists of lessons and activities students need to use social media safely and responsibly.
- Train the Trainer - Through regional training, Digital4Good prepares teachers, counselors, resource officers and administrators to train students to become peer mentors. Students and staff work with the community and other schools by modeling positive online behavior, and promoting mental health awareness. The package creates an ongoing opportunity to complement existing programs that create a positive school culture and climate.

Other

If you want to use another digital-based curricula, you must make sure that the vendor has a “Completed” status in the Enterprise Request Management Application (ERMA). You can visit the EdTech Portal to check the compliance.

Schools Must Certify

As soon as schools have educated students about appropriate online behavior, including responsible use of social networking websites and cyberbullying prevention, they need to certify compliance.

The deadline to do so is April 4, 2025.

Learning Opportunities

On-Demand Classes

WeLearn

On-demand Digital Citizenship classes are available from our partners through WeLearnNYC

Sign into the WeLearn platform. Then select the "Discover” tab and type in the name of the class you’d like to take from the list below. The class will then be listed in “My Courses” when you visit your home screen again. Most classes also qualify for CTLE credit:

Google’s Be Internet Awesome (Grades 3 - 5)
CommonSense Education (Grades K - 12)
EverFi(Grades 6 - 9)

Recorded Class

This class does not qualify for CTLE credit:

Teaching Digital Citizenship Through an Inquiry Lens (Grades K-12)