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Your Digital Footprint

Fourth graders learn about their digital footprint — the trail of information they leave online — and how to protect private information while sharing safely, an important part of being a responsible digital citizen.

Grade 4Digital Citizenship40 minutes1 class periodUse → Modify → CreateExplicit teaching4 StandardsCSTA
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Lesson at a Glance

Everything you need before the bell rings

Learning Objectives

Students will be able to…

  • ✓Explain a digital footprint.
  • ✓Keep information private.
  • ✓Tell private from shareable.
  • ✓Share responsibly.
Essential Question

Everything you post or share online leaves a trail — your digital footprint — and it can last a long time! What should stay private, and what’s okay to share?

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Lesson Phases
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Vocabulary Terms
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Standards Aligned
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Interactive Task
Sort It · Interactive

Keep Private or Okay to Share?

Project this and sort each thing into information to keep private or things that are okay to share.

👣 Sort each — keep private or okay to share?Try it
🔒 Keep Private
👍 Okay to Share
Tap a thing, then tap a bucket.
The Lesson · Use → Modify → Create (a coding progression with Unplugged practice)

40 minutes, five moves

Tap any phase to open the teacher moves and student actions.

1

Hook — You Leave a Trail

5 min

Everything you share online leaves a trail — your digital footprint. How?

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Explain a footprint.
  • Ask what they share online.
  • Set the goal.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Consider.
  • Reflect.
  • Predict.
2

Unplugged — Unplug It

9 min

Students practice.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Discuss what’s private.
  • List things that are okay to share.
  • Feel the idea.

🎒 Student Actions

  • List private.
  • List sharing.
  • Feel it.
3

Use — Private or Share

11 min

Students use.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Send students to Keep Private or Okay to Share?
  • Sort each one.
  • Explain them.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Sort.
  • Explain.
  • Check.
4

Modify — Think It Through

10 min

Students modify.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Fix an over-sharing choice.
  • Explain the fix.
  • Give a footprint tip.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Fix it.
  • Explain.
  • Give a tip.
5

Create — Create

5 min

Students conclude.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Make a footprint rule.
  • Explain why it helps.
  • Complete the exit ticket.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Make one.
  • Explain it.
  • Complete the exit ticket.
Standards Alignment

Built to the standards you report on

Aligned to the CSTA K-12 Computer Science Standards and ISTE Standards for Students.

CSTA
1B-NI-05

Discuss keeping personal information secure.

CSTA
1B-IC-18

Discuss responsible technology use.

CSTA
1B-IC-21

Use online content responsibly.

ISTE
2

Digital Citizen — manage your digital footprint.

Differentiation

One lesson, every learner

Multilingual Learners

ELL / EMERGING READERS
  • Private/share picture cards.
  • Sentence frame: “I keep ___ private.”
  • Discuss examples.

Support & Access

IEP / 504
  • Start with passwords vs. favorite color.
  • Sort one at a time.
  • Use pictures.

Stretch & Extend

GIFTED / EARLY FINISHERS
  • Explain permanence online.
  • Make a footprint poster.
  • Explain a positive footprint.
Materials

What to gather

  • 📽️Projector / board
  • 👣Footprint cards
  • 💻Keep Private or Okay to Share?
  • 📋A privacy checklist
  • ✏️Pencils
  • 🎫Exit-ticket slips
Vocabulary

Key terms — hover for a quick definition

digital footprintthe trail of info you leave onlineprivatekept to yourselfshareto post or send to otherspersonal informationdetails like your addresspermanentlasting a long timeresponsiblemaking careful choicesonlineon the internetprivacykeeping your info safe
Evaluate

Exit Ticket

Preview the three formative checks. Tap “Sample answer” to see what mastery looks like — hide them before you print for students.

QUESTION 1
What is a digital footprint?
The trail of information you leave online.
QUESTION 2
Name one thing you should keep PRIVATE online.
Your home address, passwords, phone number, or daily schedule.
QUESTION 3
Why should you think before you share online?
Because your digital footprint can last a long time.

Create: a footprint rule.

Have students write one rule for keeping their digital footprint safe and positive. A printable digital-footprint sheet is in the Computer Science library.

Study · Flashcards

Study the key terms

Tap a card to flip it, then rate whether you knew it. Built from this lesson’s vocabulary.

🃏 Your Digital FootprintFlip
Card 1
Term
Tap to flip →
Meaning
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Nice work!

Practice · Quiz

Check your understanding

A quick self-check with instant feedback, drawn from this lesson’s key terms.

📝 Your Digital FootprintQuiz
Score: 0
1 / 6
Question 1
0%

Nice work!

Practice · Worksheet

Printable worksheet

A print-and-go review sheet with a built-in answer key. Tap “Show answer key” to reveal answers, or print the clean version for students.

🖨️ Your Digital FootprintPrint
Name: ________________________
Date: ____________

Part A · Write the word that matches each meaning

Word bank: digital footprint, online, permanent, personal information, privacy, private, responsible, share
  1. details like your address
  2. kept to yourself
  3. the trail of info you leave online
  4. lasting a long time
  5. keeping your info safe
  6. making careful choices
  7. on the internet
  8. to post or send to others

Part B · Show what you learned

  1. What is a digital footprint?
  2. Name one thing you should keep PRIVATE online.
  3. Why should you think before you share online?
Answer key — Part A: 1) personal information · 2) private · 3) digital footprint · 4) permanent · 5) privacy · 6) responsible · 7) online · 8) share
Part B: 1) The trail of information you leave online. 2) Your home address, passwords, phone number, or daily schedule. 3) Because your digital footprint can last a long time.