Author:
Dana John, Angela Anderson, John Sadzewicz, Beth Clothier
Subject:
Communication, Educational Technology, English Language Arts, Speaking and Listening
Material Type:
Activity/Lab, Lesson, Lesson Plan
Level:
High School
Tags:
  • Escalation
  • Online Communication
  • Pause Strategies
  • Triggers
  • Who Am I Online Unit
  • License:
    Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial Share Alike
    Language:
    English
    Media Formats:
    Text/HTML

    Education Standards

    Trigger Happy

    Trigger Happy

    Overview

    Students will consider what source of imagery may cause escalating threads of conversation, and consider pause strategies to avoid escalating online interactions.  This lesson is part of a media unit curated at our Digital Citizenship website, "Who Am I Online?".

     

    Lesson Objective/Student Target:

    The students will be able to…

    Identify personal triggers with online communication.

    Write their own plan for a pause strategy before responding online.

    Washington State ELA Learning Standard:

    CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.9-10.3

    Evaluate a speaker's point of view, reasoning, and use of evidence and rhetoric, identifying any fallacious reasoning or exaggerated or distorted evidence.

    CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.9-10.2.D

    Use precise language and domain-specific vocabulary to manage the complexity of the topic.

    Overarching Question:

    What are my online triggers?

    Do I have pause strategies for online interaction?

    Key Vocabulary:

    Triggers- words, images and/ or events that increase intensity.  Often emotion related.

    Escalation- response that grows more extreme once fully engaged.

    Pause Strategies- A plan that allows for time and space before response and/ or engagement.

    Materials:

    Graphic Organizer

    Lotería Cards for images

    Text or Tweet threads, cut apart and laminated

    Stations for physical decision tree

    Content Objective:

    Identify your own triggers with online communication.

    Language Objective:

    Write your own plan for a pause strategy before responding online.

    Before Beginning:

    1. Provide a copy of the Graphic Organizer and decision tree for students.  This can be a digital copy or a printout of the .pdf file.  
    2. Print, cut out and laminate tweets/texts for students to use in class.  See Text or Tweet sort suggestions.

    Pre assessment/Background knowledge:

    Write one example where you had a strong emotional reaction to something you read or saw.

    Activity:

    Activity #1
    What are triggering
    images?

    1.  Students will answer questions about a facsimile of potentially inflammatory imagery.  The facsimile images used here are loteria cards el borracho, (party pics) el apache, el negrito (racial stereotyping and/ or slurs) and la sirena (nudity).
    2. Individually, the students will individually fill out the graphic organizer.
    3. Next, facilitate group discussion about appropriateness of content and how content may trigger

    Activity #2
    What are triggering
    threads?

    1. Students will arrange tweets and/ or texts in order of escalation and deescalation.  They will circle any words that are triggering or escalating.  They should be able to explain their thinking.
    2. Next, the group can read the threads and indicate if they agree or disagree with the choices.  All students should have one statement that supports their choices.

    Activity #3
    Real life decision tree

    1. Students will make decisions around when and how to pause in the face of triggering content.  They will physically move to stations that explore their choices more fully.
    2. The group convenes as a whole and debriefs the experience. 

    Scaffolds:

    Create a template that is partially filled in to prompt discussion.

    Check for Understanding:

    Students fill out own decision tree about own pause strategy and provide written feedback on why pausing is an effective de-escalation strategy.

    Resources:

    This lesson is part of a larger unit on Digital Citizenship called "Who Am I Online?". To see the full lesson in context with the rest of the unit, visit our Google Site.

     

     

     

     

    Lesson Objective/Student Target:

    The students will be able to…

    Identify personal triggers with online communication.

    Write their own plan for a pause strategy before responding online.

    Washington State ELA Learning Standard:

    CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.9-10.3

    Evaluate a speaker's point of view, reasoning, and use of evidence and rhetoric, identifying any fallacious reasoning or exaggerated or distorted evidence.

    CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.9-10.2.D

    Use precise language and domain-specific vocabulary to manage the complexity of the topic.

    Overarching Question:

    What are my online triggers?

    Do I have pause strategies for online interaction?

    Key Vocabulary:

    Triggers- words, images and/ or events that increase intensity.  Often emotion related.

    Escalation- response that grows more extreme once fully engaged.

    Pause Strategies- A plan that allows for time and space before response and/ or engagement.