Parent+Information

This page contains all the information parents may be looking for. Hopefully we have answered some of your questions regarding the students current unit of work, if we have not, feel free to contact either Miss Davies or Miss Peebles.
 * Parent Information**

In two of the lesson in this unit, students are required to use mobile phones and facebook. We have chosen to employ these technologies into our lessons as we feel they can enhance the learning experience for the students, as they both link to real world application and hold relevance in many of the student’s lives. We have considered the risks involved and that is why both Miss Davies and Miss Peebles will be supervising the students along with parent helpers and we would like to note that in the subsequent lessons both technologies hold educational value. We have chosen to use these technologies to create a more engaging learning environment and also because we feel it is important for students to learn how to use both mobile phones and facebook in a safe and responsible manner. In regards to facebook, it is an increasingly popular social networking site that many students use to connect with friends and create profiles for themselves. But there are many dangers surrounding facebook if you are unaware how to invite or reject friend invitations from people you do not know, or if you do not set privacy setting correctly. We feel that it is vital for students it learn how to use these technologies safety in an open and safe environment, we will teach them how to set the highest privacy settings and explore the features of facebook in a serious way. If any parents have concerns with their child using these technologies, we are more than happy to discuss them with you, or if you would like you are more than welcome to attend those lessons as a parent helper, where you can monitor what your child is doing.
 * Q. Why are students using Facebook and mobile phones in some of the lessons?**

Students will be sent home with permission slips to ascertain who has their own mobile or can gain access to one for the purpose of the lesson. Both Miss Peebles and Miss Davies will strive to provide students with mobiles for the purposes of the lesson. Again parents are welcome during the amazing race lesson to make the calls for the students if they do not want their students using mobile phones.
 * Q. what if my child does not have a mobile phone?**

Yes. Instead of mobile phones students can use cameras and take a photo of the menu, and instead of facebook students could create their own websites. If there is an overwhelming amount of concerns raised about the use of mobiles phones and facebook in the classroom we will alter the lesson to the above motioned alternatives, however we feel that it is more relevant for students to use technologies that they will no doubt be using in the future. We feel that giving them the opportunity to use and explore these technologies in a supervising environment will help them to learn to use them appropriately when they are left to their own devices.
 * Q Are there any other ways to conduct the lesson with using mobile phones or facebook?**