To Jennifer's Rescue is a WebQuest-type lesson featuring information about safety online. Young people learn about problems that may be encountered through web chats and instant messaging. The lesson emphasizes the importance of not giving out personal information online and realizing that some people kids meet online may not be who they claim to be. In addition to the content on safety, terms such as hacker packets and satellite communication that are covered in Penny's Search are reviewed.

The lesson should take two or more 50-minute periods. The length of time will depend up the detail of the projects.

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• To help young people learn to be as safe as possible online.
• To review some of the content covered in Penny's Search.

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Before using this lesson, students should have had the opportunity to complete Penny's Search.

Teachers/advisors should check the web sites in the WebQuest before the lesson to make sure that all the links are working correctly. Although the pages listed all reside on well-established sites, sometimes information on the sites may be moved to another location on the site.

Students may work individually or in pairs on the WebQuest and the project. If they work in pairs, it's best if you assign the pairs. That way no one will feel left out.

NOTE: You should keep in mind that some parents do not allow their children to participate in online chats or instant messaging. However, a great many young people today are involved in these Internet options. As you introduce the lesson, you should mention that whether or not they are allowed to chat online and/or use instant messaging is up to their parents. No matter whether your students are allowed to use chats and online messaging or not, they will benefit from the content of this lesson, for some will get involved without their parents' permission.

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1. Review information from Penny's Search related to web searches and the problems packets may have traveling to their destination.
2. Ask your students if they've ever been in trouble at home because of how they've "misused" their computers. Ask them if their parents have set up rules for their use of computers? If so, what are the rules?
3. Explain that for this lesson they will be sent on a WebQuest to find information for a 13-year-old girl who was caught using her computer late at night and doing instant messaging with a person she really didn't know. Their job is to read the WebQuest story and go to the five links in the Quest. For three of the sites—KidLink, SafeKids, and Family Internet, they are to find out about what's on the sites. For the other two sites, they are to complete the quiz and the slideshow.
4. Tell the students that you will be collecting the rules they print when they finish the slideshow. (This is part of the slideshow.)
5. Have the students begin the WebQuest ( DOC - 38KB)

1. Give the students time to complete the WebQuest.
2. When they are finished with the assignment, bring them together to discuss their findings. What did they find out about rules for online safety? Ask them how they did on the Cybersmart Quiz. At Internet Smarts Keeping Personal Information Private, what did they think of the scenarios about Gwen and Tiffany?
3. Go over the rules they printed. Find out what they think of these rules. Ask them to create on the computer a poster featuring the rules. Remind them that they can use the images in the Packetville Character folder on their poster.

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1. While students are taking on the WebQuest, teachers/advisors can determine if they are participating effectively in the assignment.
2. During the class discussion of the material learned in the Quest, evaluation of students' work on the WebQuest can be made.
3. Teachers/advisors should check the rules created by students. Criteria for assessment of the rules might be if the following are included:
   • Not giving out any private information (including photos, passwords, full name, address, telephone number, email address, name and location of school, etc.) online without parents' permission.
   • Not answering messages that are mean and not using the Internet to mail or post anything that would be hurtful to someone else.
   • Telling parents or teachers about anything online that makes them feel uncomfortable.
   • Not agreeing to meet any online "friends" in person, unless parents agree (and accompany them) and the meeting is in a public place.
   • Not pretending to be someone else online.
4. Posters may be evaluated using the following criteria:
   • Does the poster address the rules?
   • Does the poster appear well planned?
   • Is the poster free from errors in content and in presentation?
   • How effective is the poster?

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