Year 5: PAPAYA workshops

We had a visitor from PAPAYA (Parents Against Phone Addiction in Young Adolescents) visit Year 5 and work with us on safe use of the internet, phones and devices. The children considered the pros and cons of the internet, here are some of their thoughts:

PROS:

You can find information quickly; maps online help to navigate; it’s fun; communicate with others around the world; play games; learn new things.

CONS:

False news; scammers; cyberbullying; danger from strangers; not spending enough time with friends and family; poor mental health – social media and comparing yourself to others.

We learned that many young children were on their devices more than 2 hours a day! Did you know, that a daily screen time of 3 hours and 48 minutes a day equates to 58 days a year! This is called ‘Opportunity cost’. What else could you have been doing those 58 days in the year?

The children considered three things they could each do to make sure they had more of a balance – please discuss these pledges with them at home. I loved the ideas of more walks, camping, board games, talking with family and helping cook!