Inappropriate Use of Digital Media

 Last year two fifth-grade boys got into a fight on the playground. They were reprimanded by the principal and both sets of parents were called into his office. That night the two mothers went on Facebook and attacked the character of the other little boy. They said very mean things about these boys. Then they started attacking each other. They used words on facebook that should not have been spoken or written. They were both angry. This led to one of the fifth-grade boys leaving our school.  I felt this was not fair to the boys because they were really good friends before this instance. Sometimes Facebook is where adult air their feeling when they are still dealing with the problem. If they only would have waited until they weren't as angry this may have been prevented.  

Yes, posting something that hurt others has happened at a local school too.  A young school bus rider thought that the bus driver said something inappropriate to another girl! She told her mother, who posted all of this on Facebook!  The young girl was only in lower elementary, so maybe she did not have it all correct?  Anyway, sadly enough, the bus driver was fired.  I still wonder how much was due to the the posting and how much was due to what was or was not said.  Yes, airing one's feelings in social media can indeed create unfortunate problems.

Parents need to be examples for their children, good examples.  No one is perfect, but the old saying, "Children learn what they live," is most definitely true.  Kids see what is posted by parents on Facebook, post positivity.  We need to work on building one another up, not tearing each other down.