My Digital Journey (MDJ) ©: Helping Children and Youth Become Social Media Savvy & Safe Online

Course Description:

Our children and youth are growing up online. This virtual playground is part of their everyday reality, and we need to join them in supporting safe and savvy online living. Increasingly, it is the medium through which they engage with each other and the broader world. Given the statistics on the average time American youth spend online, it is inevitable that their worldview is being shaped by their use of, and interactions on, multiple platforms. It is therefore imperative that we understand the digital choices they make, especially when those choices lead them to be exploited or to exploit others.

But what if they get it wrong—make a misstep—or struggle to translate in-person social skills to the virtual arena? Current comprehensive assessments for children and youth who sexually harm have recognized the importance of exploring online behaviour, but this has often been limited to a cursory scan for…