October 2026

In This Issue

LETTER FROM OUR SUPERINTENDENT

FEATURED TOPIC: DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP

DID YOU KNOW?

THINK BEFORE YOU SHARE

PRACTICAL TIPS FOR FAMILIES

FAMILY TOOLS SPOTLIGHT

LOOKING AHEAD

Letter from McKinney ISD Superintendent

Dear McKinney ISD Families,

Every student deserves to feel safe, supported, and valued—in our classrooms, throughout our community, and online. As superintendent, I care deeply about our students’ learning and well-being, including how their experiences with technology affect their relationships and daily lives.

This month, we are focusing on digital citizenship: helping students use technology with kindness, responsibility, and good judgment. These skills include protecting personal information, respecting others’ privacy, checking sources before sharing information, and understanding how words and actions online can affect others.

Most importantly, we want students to know they do not have to navigate difficult online situations alone. When something feels unsafe, hurtful, or uncomfortable, we want them to feel confident turning to a trusted adult for support.

Schools and families share an important role in this work. At school, we teach, model, and reinforce responsible technology use. At home, everyday conversations about a game, message, video, or group chat can help students practice those same skills. Asking “How did that make you feel?” or “What could you do next?” can open the door to a meaningful conversation.

We also recognize the positive opportunities technology offers students to learn, create, and connect. Our shared goal is to help them make thoughtful choices and use these opportunities in ways that support their learning and well-being.

I hope this newsletter series provides practical ideas for your family. Thank you for trusting us with your children and for partnering with us to help every student feel supported and ready to learn.

Every Student, Every Day!

Shawn Pratt
McKinney ISD Superintendent

Featured Topic- Digital Citizenship

DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP

Growing Good Digital Citizens Together

Our students are growing up in a world where learning, friendships, and creativity move fluidly between the classroom and the screen. From researching a history project to messaging a friend to sharing a video, every click is a chance to show kindness, curiosity, and good judgment.

That’s what digital citizenship is about. It means helping our students think critically about what they see online, protect their privacy and the privacy of others, treat people with respect behind a screen, and build a positive digital footprint they can be proud of.

In McKinney ISD, we believe this work is a partnership. Teachers and campus staff reinforce these skills at school, but the conversations that matter most often happen at home, at the kitchen table, in the car, or over a family device. This newsletter is here to support you with practical tips, conversation starters, and resources for the questions that come with raising kids in a connected world.

Whether your child is just starting to log in or is already a seasoned scroller, we’re glad to walk alongside you. Let’s help our students grow into thoughtful, responsible, and kind digital citizens, both online and off.

Did You Know?

What McKinney ISD Is Doing to Support Digital Citizenship

Digital citizenship at school is more than a lesson. It’s built into the tools students use every day.

• Filtering and Safe Devices - MISD follows the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA) and installs a filter on student devices to block obscene or harmful material before a device goes home for educational use. The district also uses Deledao, a web filter that analyzes text, images, and videos in real time to block or blur harmful content, including inappropriate YouTube videos.

  
  

• Student Wellness Monitoring - Deledao flags online searches or activity related to anxiety, self-harm, or threats and alerts trained staff and parents so students can get timely support.

  
  

• Parental Controls at Home - Through the “At-Home Policy” page, parents can configure privacy protection, content safety, and blocked categories for when students use their devices at home.

  
  

• Approved Digital Resources and Parent Consent - The district audits its digital resources and publishes a list of approved tools for each school year. It also requires direct, informed parental consent for most student software, and unapproved resources are blocked.

  
  

• Parent Portal - The Parent Portal gives families centralized access to essential digital tools, along with help-ticket support for login issues.

  
  

• Library Access - Through the Destiny library system, parents can search titles, restrict specific books, receive email notifications when their child checks out materials, and view checkout history. Library Media Specialists also model and teach information literacy and digital citizenship on campus.

  
  

• Phone-Free School Days - Under House Bill 1481, students power off personal communication devices, including phones, earbuds, smartwatches, and tablets, and store them for the full school day. Limited exceptions apply, such as IEP, 504, or medical needs.

Think Before You Share

Small Online Choices Can Have a Lasting Impact

A private message can travel. Messages and photos can be copied, captured in screenshots, or shared beyond the intended audience. Encourage your child to pause before sending.

Consent matters online, too. Before posting someone’s photo, sharing a private conversation, or tagging a friend, ask permission.

Online kindness includes what we choose not to share. Refusing to forward a rumor, embarrassing photo, or hurtful comment can help stop harm from spreading.

Convincing does not always mean accurate. A polished video, realistic image, or confident answer may still be misleading. Teach your child to ask: “Where did this come from, and how can I check it?”

Practical Tips for Familes

Supporting Safe and Responsible Device Use at Home

Children tend to build safer online habits when parents take an active, ongoing role. These strategies apply to computers, tablets, smartphones, and gaming consoles, and can help you guide your child’s screen time while building their confidence and judgment.

Be involved. Look for activities you can do together, such as playing a game, researching a shared interest (family vacation spots, a hobby, a historical figure), creating a family playlist, or putting together a family newsletter. Working side by side lets you supervise your child’s online activity while modeling good digital habits.

Keep devices in shared spaces. Devices used in a high-traffic area, such as a living room or kitchen, are easier to monitor. Visibility discourages children from breaking household rules and allows you to step in early if you notice behavior that could lead to problems. Consider having all devices, including phones and tablets, charge overnight in a common area rather than in bedrooms.

Set age-appropriate rules and discuss online risks. Children should understand the boundaries for device use, and those boundaries should reflect their age, knowledge, and maturity. Rules commonly cover:

• How long and at what times of day they may use devices

• Which websites, apps, and games they may use

• Whether they may have social media accounts, and which ones

• Whether they may download or purchase apps without permission

• Which tasks or activities are permitted

Just as important is a direct conversation about online dangers. Explain why sharing certain details, such as being home alone, their location, their school, or their photos, can put them at risk, and encourage them to communicate only with people they know in real life. The goal is awareness, not fear. Be sure to include cyberbullying in the discussion. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) offers guidance in its article Dealing with Cyberbullies.

Monitor online activity. Stay aware of the websites and apps your child uses. If they use email, text or messaging apps, social media, or in-game chat, take an interest in who they are communicating with and whether they know those contacts in real life. Periodically review their friend and follower lists together, and talk about what is appropriate to post, comment on, and share.

Keep communication open. Make sure your child knows they can come to you with questions or concerns about anything they encounter online, without fear of losing access or getting in trouble.

Consider separate user accounts. Most computers and many tablets let you create an individual account for each user. A separate child account limits privileges and access, reducing the chance that files are accidentally viewed, changed, or deleted.

If your family shares a single account, take extra care with security. Limit browser functionality, disable saved passwords and personal information in your browser, and keep your operating system, apps, and security software up to date. Updates often include fixes for newly discovered security problems.

Use parental controls. Many web browsers let you restrict or allow specific websites, and you can protect those settings with a password. Smartphones, tablets, and gaming consoles also include built-in controls that let you set screen time limits, filter content, and require approval for app downloads and purchases. Most social media platforms and apps have their own privacy and safety settings, so review them together with your child.

Explore additional tools. Some Internet Service Providers (ISPs) offer services designed to protect children online, so it is worth contacting yours to ask what is available. You can also install parental control or online safety apps and software. Features vary by product, so compare options to find the one that best fits your family’s needs.

Family Tools Spotlight

What Should I Do If Something Happens?

If your child encounters cyberbullying, inappropriate content, or an online threat:

1. Listen and reassure. Thank your child for telling you.

2. Pause the interaction. Avoid replying, retaliating, or forwarding harmful content.

3. Record relevant details. Note usernames, dates, and where the incident occurred. Do not download or forward sexual images.

4. Report and get support. Use the platform’s reporting tools and contact your child’s school counselor or campus administrator for school-related concerns.

For concerns about bullying, threats, or student safety, visit MISD’s Tip411 reporting page. If someone is in immediate danger, call 911.

Conversations That Grow With Your Child

Age Group

Start With…

Ask…

Elementary

Safe games, personal information, and asking before downloading or purchasing.

“What would you do if a game asked for your name or address?”

Middle School

Group chats, gaming contacts, peer pressure, and sharing photos.

“What could you do if a group chat started making fun of someone?”

High School

Digital reputation, scams, consent, checking information, and responsible AI use.

“How would you decide whether a post is trustworthy or appropriate to share?”

Our Family Digital Citizenship Agreement

Set aside ten minutes to talk about your family’s online expectations. Invite your child to help create the agreement and explain why each commitment matters.

Our Family Agrees To…

What This Will Look Like in Our Home

Treat others respectfully in messages, games, and group chats.

Ask permission before sharing someone’s photo or personal information.

Protect passwords and private information.

Check information before reposting it.

Tell a trusted adult when something feels unsafe or upsetting.

Make time for sleep, schoolwork, relationships, and offline activities.

Adults can model these commitments, too. Ask before posting a child’s photo, check information before sharing it, and put devices away during agreed-upon family time.

One Family Action This Month

Complete your family digital citizenship agreement together. Choose one habit to practice this month and check in about how it is going.

Keep the conversation going with this question:

“What is one thing you can do this week to make your online community kinder or safer?”

Through everyday conversations and shared expectations, we can help students build habits that support responsible technology use throughout their lives.

Looking Ahead

In November, we will take a closer look at two topics on every family’s mind: screen time and artificial intelligence. We’ll share what MISD is doing in classrooms, what the research says, and practical ways to support healthy habits at home.