September 25th, 2026
Hello Grade 6, 7 & 8 parents,
Please be aware that many intermediate students are engaged in groupchats on social media (eg., snapchat) and some of the conversations are not healthy for 11 to 14 year olds.
Parents are responsible for their children’s actions online. Please talk to your child about these groupchats, and be reminded of this section in our family handbook:
Healthy Digital Habits at Home
Developing healthy digital habits early helps children build balance, self-regulation, and positive relationships with technology. As we navigate the school year, we recognize technology is an integral part of our students’ lives. While digital tools offer immense learning opportunities, they also carry significant risks.
(Recommendations from the Canadian Paediatric Society:)
Healthy Screen Time Habits at Home
At Lincoln Heights Public School, we value student well-being and encourage families to support healthy screen use habits at home. Research shows that balanced screen use supports children’s learning, sleep, mental health, and physical activity.
Children under age 2: Screen time is not recommended, except for video chatting with family and loved ones.
Children ages 2–5: Limit recreational screen time to 1 hour or less per day.
School-aged children and youth: Aim to limit recreational screen time to 2 hours or less per day, when possible.
Families are encouraged to establish healthy boundaries around screen use by:
-Creating screen-free times, especially during meals and family activities
-Avoiding screens for at least one hour before bedtime
-Keeping bedrooms screen-free whenever possible
-Prioritizing outdoor play, reading, hobbies, and face-to-face social interaction
-Monitoring content to ensure it is age-appropriate and meaningful
-Modelling healthy screen habits as adults
What is Digital Citizenship?
Digital citizenship is about how we participate in the digital world. It is the safe, legal, ethical, and responsible use of technology.
In today’s rapidly changing world, this also includes AI Literacy. This means helping students understand how artificial intelligence works, its limitations, and how to make smart, ethical choices when using it.
A good digital citizen is someone who thinks critically and acts responsibly online.
Three Tips for Digital Parenting
Talk to your kids.
The best way to keep children safe in the digital world is to be proactive and teach them the necessary skills. Don’t wait until things have already gone wrong to talk to your child about online issues.
Digital citizenship conversations should be ongoing and proactive. It may look like:
1. Providing guidance on how to deal with problems before they happen
Supporting when things do go wrong
Keeping open communication as children get older
Remind them that they are not on their own and can get help when needed.
It’s never too late to start having these conversations. Check out these tools to begin these conversations at home:
Helping Kids Get a Healthy Start with Phones
Helping Young Kids Get a Healthy Start with Devices
2. Be a part of your kids’ online world.
To help children succeed, parents are encouraged to be a part of their online world early on. This can look like:
Asking them to show you their favourite games, videos, apps, or creators
Inviting them to teach you how things work
Staying involved and curious
This not only helps you understand their digital world but also builds trust so they will feel safe coming to you for help. If you’re unsure about a tool your child is using, you can use this chart to evaluate an app or website.
3. Develop family online rules
Rules around using digital tools at home may differ from family to family. When developing these rules, it’s important to:
Create clear guidelines about digital use in their home
Set clear expectations around digital use and online behaviour
Have regular conversations to ensure that your child understands why they are important
Determining what works best for your family and children is up to you. These tools can help guide your family’s online rules:
Digital Wellbeing Family Guide
Legal responsibilities of schools, parents and guardians regarding student online activities outside of school hours
Under the Ontario Safe Schools Act, schools have the authority to address and discipline students for behavior that occurs off-property and outside of school hours if that behavior impacts the “school climate.” If online activity at home leads to a disruption of safety or well-being at school, the school must intervene.
Your Legal Responsibility as a Parent or Guardian
In Canada and Ontario, parents and guardians have a “duty of care” to supervise their children. This extends to the digital world. Legally, you are responsible for:
Supervision: Knowing which platforms your child is using (e.g., Discord, TikTok, Snapchat, Roblox) and who they are communicating with.
Prevention of Illegal Acts: Ensuring your child’s online activities do not violate the Criminal Code of Canada. Ignorance of a child’s online actions is often not a legal defense for the consequences that follow. Activities that may seem like “internet drama” to children can constitute serious criminal or civil offenses including:
Cyberbullying & Harassment (Criminal Code s. 264): Repeated communication that causes someone to fear for their safety.
Non-Consensual Sharing of Intimate Images (s. 162.1): It is a crime to share, or threaten to share, an intimate image of someone without their consent. In K-8 contexts, this often involves “dares” or “selfies” that are shared beyond the intended recipient.
Uttering Threats (s. 264.1): Making threats to harm someone or their property via text or social media.
Hate Speech (s. 319): Communicating statements in public (including social media) that incite hatred against an identifiable group.
Our School Needs Your Help
The school’s ability to maintain a safe learning environment is directly impacted by how technology is moderated at home. We ask for your partnership in the following:
Device Transparency: We recommend that K-8 students do not have private access to devices in bedrooms or late at night. Conduct regular “spot checks” of messages and history.
Account Knowledge: Ensure you have the passwords to your child’s accounts. Most social media platforms have a minimum age of 13; if your child is under 13, they are technically violating the platform’s Terms of Service.
The “Think Before You Post” Rule: Remind children that the internet is permanent. A “delete” button does not remove a screenshot taken by someone else.
We take the safety of our students seriously. By working together to monitor and guide digital behavior at home, we ensure that our school remains a focused, kind, and safe place for everyone to learn.