FACT

24% of high-school age teens (ages 14 to 17) and 33% of college-age students (ages 18 to 24) have been involved in a form of nude sexting.

https://www.dosomething.org/us/facts/11-facts-about-sexting

Lesson 3- Digital Abuse: About Us

ACTIVITIES

The activities and videos below open up conversation surrounding sexual domestic violence, power and control, and the dangers of sexting.

The buzzer game. This game is designed to show how social media and texting can be a form of power/control. Consider how technology can be used as a tool for dating abuse. Support students in considering what their communication goals would be with a partner. Discuss how to challenge unhealthy technology use in relationships. The discussion leads to creating healthy boundaries with partners and friends.
"Cool/Not Cool", each student will be given a sheet of paper. On one side the word "cool" will be written, on the other side "not cool". The students will hear various scenarios depicting healthy and or unhealthy tendencies pertaining to social media and texting. After each scenario the students will decide if the outcome was cool or not cool. This will be followed by a brief discussion.

Lesson 3- Digital Abuse: What We Do

BUZZER ACTIVITY

How texts can be abusive

Digital Abuse buzzer Game

The purpose of this activity is to:

• Consider how technology can be used as a tool for dating abuse.

• Support students in considering what their communication goals would be with a partner.

• Discuss how to challenge unhealthy technology use in relationships.

ACTIVITY STEPS

1. Write the sentence “I have a right to a safe and healthy relationship” on the board.

2. Ask students to fold their sheets of paper in half.

3. Start by explaining to students that they will need to copy down the sentence on one half of their paper.

4. When they hear the noisemaker/buzzer they will stop writing the sentence and begin writing their first and last name on the other half of the paper.

5. Once they complete writing their first and last name they will resume writing the sentence on the other half, but from the beginning.

6. Let students know that every time they hear the noisemaker/buzzer they must stop and write their first and last name.

7. Only allow students to write a few words between buzzes or buzz multiple times so students are forced to write their names several times in a row.

8. Do this activity for 1-2 minutes or as long as necessary.

DIGITAL ABUSE

Cool / Not cool

A few sample "cool / not cool" questions

Gary asks Kim to send him a nude photo. Kim doesn’t really want to but she and Gary have been together for over 2 years, so she feels as though she should.
Jim asks Mary to text him when she gets home tonight.
Jack and Alayia have been dating for a couple of months. Alayia says she sometimes gets jealous and asks Jack for his password.
JaNelle asks her partner’s permission to tag him in an unflattering picture on social media.
Lydia is upset that her girlfriend tagged her in several photos on social media. She speaks with her girlfriend and her girlfriend immediately apologizes and removes them
Nia notices her boyfriend has been snap chatting with a lot other girls. She says that he can only talk to boys on all forms of social media
Greg tells his partner if he doesn’t do whatever Greg wants he will post his sexual orientation all over social media.