Upper primary cyber citizenship resources were in need of a fresh look and that’s exactly what the Office of the eSafety Commissioner released in July 2018.
Suitability: Grade levels 5-8
Modern interface that mimics a smartphone screen with a social media feed.
What’s it all about: Unlike other cyber safety resources for upper primary, it is not focused on stranger danger, spam emails and online privacy (topics that are already covered in depth by various resources). What I like about The Lost Summer is that it is made for an Australian audience and the fact it focuses on personal and social capabilities, an area that up until now was distinctly lacking any current and engaging teaching resources. Modern graphics and a mock smartphone interface make the game very much aimed at teens and pre teens. The game is broken into five chapters (only 3 released as time of publication) which each focusing on a different area of digital intelligence.
One of the many “choices” students have to make when faced with challenging social situations.
Students play the role of a different character in a fictional, futuristic Australian city where drone racing is king. After navigating a series of challenging social exchanges, students are then given a score based on their choice of responses throughout the chapter. As a reward for completing each chapter, a drone racing game is unlocked (a nice carrot to dangle!). The game is accompanied by a thorough teacher’s guide, complete with chapter overviews, key learnings and even links to the HPE curriculum.
Devices: iOS, Android, Windows or Mac (*NB. Not compatible with Chromebooks unless they have Play Store compatibility and you’ve enabled it).
Check out The Lost Summer
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