Online manners: chat, message and call
Good manners matter everywhere. In a chat room everyone who has access can read your message, so be polite, helpful and positive. Instant messages are short and relaxed, but they must still be kind. An email is more formal. Write the address of the person in the To box, a clear subject, a greeting, clear sentences, a polite ending and your name, and attach only safe and correct files. In a video chat, wait to be let in, take turns to speak, mute your microphone when you are asked, dress properly as you would in a public place, and check that nothing behind you shows your address or private things. A grown-up should be nearby. Practise all of this on paper with role play and pretend names.
| Part | Karim’s pretend email |
|---|---|
| To | my teacher (pretend address) |
| Subject | Help with my project |
| Greeting | Dear Miss Mona, |
| Message | May I ask you to explain the second step? I did not understand it. |
| Ending | Thank you. Karim |
Role play on paper. In groups of three, write three role-play cards, one each for a chat room, an instant message and a video call. Act them out with paper “screens”. The third child is the manners checker with this list: Was it polite? Was it clear? Was it safe (no address, no private things)? Swap roles. Use pretend names only.
| Action |
|---|
| A wait for my turn to speak |
| B shout over the others |
| C mute the microphone when asked |
| D show my address on the wall |