#ParentTechTalk
from your St. Matthew's Technology Ambassadors
WELCOME BACK TO SCHOOL!

Introducing a newly formed Technology Ambassador Team , which was inspired by parents wanting more information and support around technology and our Board of Trustees’ Technology Committee wanting to engage families in ongoing conversations about using technology in positive ways.  

Our mission is to educate and guide St. Matthew's parents on the fast changing world of technology and provide resources to keep our kids safe and savvy online.

We will aim to address parents’ technology education needs, questions and concerns by hosting professional speakers, facilitating community meetings, sending out tips, and acting as a liaison to St Matthew’s as the school aims to encourage boundaries around technology.

BACK TO SCHOOL TIPS
The first week of school is a great time to...
Set New Screen Limits - Say good-bye to summer screen time overload and try to dial it back the during the week. Kids sleep better, talk to you more and will hopefully dig into a good book instead of (can I say it?) Fortnite! Many families love Disney’s CIRCLE device which lets parents set limits and monitor usage.

For more info,visit https://meetcircle.com/
Set up a Tech Use Contract -  This may sound extreme but it’s a great way to make sure you and your kids are on the same page. It’s easy too… check out Common Sense Media to see their samples of age appropriate contracts. You can also access the St Matthew’s Technology Use Agreements anytime from our Parent Portal under Forms Central .
Set up a Family Charging Station -  Keeping screens out of bedrooms is highly recommended for closer monitoring and better sleep.

Check out this iPad Bootcamp for Parents : I’m sure everyone is more than familiar with iPads, but this link has instructions on parental controls and ground rules for school and home use.
2018-2019 TECHNOLOGY EDUCATION SPEAKER SERIES
10/17 Speaker Lori Getz on Digital Citizenship
6-8pm

Speaker Bio: Lori is an educator, mother, and Internet safety expert. Her mission is simple -- to help bridge the gap between a young generation of digital natives and their parents and teachers. Lori is the author of The Tech Savvy User's Guide to the Digital World, a workbook for tween and teens.  
Topics covered: Our relationship with technology. How technology can improve our lives and how to avoid the pitfalls of over-sharing, over-friending and over-connecting. A look at how parents feel about establishing rules that apply both in and outside of the home.
Week of 3/25 (TBD) Google Innovation's Jaime Casap on Technology for Good

Speaker Bio: Jaime Casap is the Education Evangelist at Google. Jaime evangelizes the power and potential of technology and the web as enabling and supporting tools in pursuit of promoting inquiry-driven learning models. Jaime collaborates with school systems, educational organizations, and leaders focused on building innovation and iteration into our education policies and practices. 
Topics covered: What students SHOULD be doing with technology, mixed with exciting, innovative looks at technology today.
PARENT WORKSHOPS/COFFEE TALKS

Jan/Feb/Mar - A Series of 3 Workshops/Coffee Talks

Topics covered: New and most popular apps/games and how they work; social emotional impacts of technology; maintaining a healthy digital diet.
 
Other Events:  Please let us know what Tech Topics interest you so we can add them to our agenda. Thanks!
TECHNOLOGY AMBASSADOR CONTACTS
Questions? Ideas?

Upper School: Joe Perez ( [email protected] ) & Liz Jones( [email protected] )
Lower School: Roz Nieman ( [email protected] ) & Zac Thornborough ( [email protected] )
Faculty Ambassador: Adrienne Bononi ( [email protected] )
St. Matthew's Parish School | www.stmatthewsschool.com