Check Yourself Before you Wreck Yourself

Activity – Help your child develop the habit of going through a mental checklist and Pausing Before Posting. 

Teach your child that taking time to think about something before they do it is always better than having to figure out how to undo something.  Here are some suggestions of things to think about before hitting send or posting:

1. I’ve read it four ways: I put the emphasis on different words, read it in a different tone, read it with no inflection, and read it while smiling.  (When we hear what we’ve written, we can better imagine how it could be perceived by someone else.)  
2. No “3Ds – It’s Bigger thank Me” present: Nothing in what I plan to send or post  could be taken as disparaging, dangerous, or disturbing.
3. My message is clear: What I’m writing can’t be taken out of context.
4. Permission granted: I’m not posting or sharing photos or videos of anybody without their consent.