Maine Middle School Digital Citizenship: Six Units on Online Life
Maine Middle School Digital Citizenship: Six Units on Online Life
For Maine middle schools building their own digital citizenship lessons, the Digital Life Units Bundle offers six ready units for Grades 6–9 at $89.99: cyberbullying and hate speech, influencers, AI and responsibility, data protection, phishing, and recommendation algorithms. Maine leaves technology standards to districts, so you decide where the units go. They are general, not tied to any Maine framework.
See the digital life unitsThe Digital Life Units Bundle ($89.99) is a good fit for a Maine middle school that wants digital citizenship lessons without writing them. It combines three ethics units, on cyberbullying and hate speech, influencers and social media, and AI and responsibility, with three computer science units on data protection, phishing and social engineering, and recommendation algorithms and filter bubbles. Because Maine has no state-adopted computer science standards, check it against your district's chosen framework.
The resources
Digital Life Units Bundle, Grades 6–9
6 resources in one download: $89.99 instead of $149.94 bought separately.
Start with the first resource; the others are optional add-ons. Open any cover for the full contents and price.
Digital Life Units Bundle | Cyberbullying, Influencers, AI, Privacy, Phishing & Algorithms | 6 Units | Grades 6–9
AI & Cybersecurity Units Bundle | How AI Works, Prompting, Phishing, Encryption & Data Privacy | 6 Units | Grades 6–9
Digital Citizenship Activities | Cyberbullying, AI, Social Media & Media Literacy Lessons | Grades 7–10
Middle School Ethics Curriculum | Justice, Conscience, Freedom, Digital Life & Climate | 10 Units | Grades 6–9
The real problem
No state framework, so the school decides
Maine DOE does not name state-adopted K-12 computer science standards. Districts select their own, and they also decide whether computer science counts toward local graduation requirements; there is no state course or graduation requirement for it. For digital citizenship in middle school, that usually means the topic has no fixed home. In one school it lands in advisory, in another in a technology rotation, a library period or a health or social studies class, and the teacher assigned to it may have no background in either ethics or cybersecurity. The topics themselves change fast. Students meet influencers, recommendation feeds, AI tools and phishing messages every day, and a lesson on online safety that is three years old already sounds dated to them. Home instruction families face a related question: Maine's required subjects for home instruction include computer proficiency in at least one grade from 7 to 12, and parents often look for structured material on safety and responsible use to go with it. Because there is no state framework to lean on, confirm with your district, or with the Maine Department of Education for home instruction, which standards and expectations apply to you.
Why it fits
How the six units fit a Maine middle school
Half the bundle is about how to act online, half about how online systems work. Together they give a balanced strand.
- Cyberbullying and hate speech unit gives advisory teachers structured discussion instead of a single assembly.
- Influencers and social media unit takes on the platforms students spend their evenings on.
- AI and responsibility unit gives a structured ethics discussion about using AI tools.
- Phishing and social engineering unit trains students to spot fake messages before they click.
- Recommendation algorithms unit explains how feeds choose content and how filter bubbles form.
- Units stand alone, so a district can place them in whatever course it chose for digital citizenship.
Getting started
A quarter-long digital life rotation
A suggestion for a Grade 7 or 8 rotation or advisory block. Fit the order to your own schedule.
- Start with how people treat each otherOpen with cyberbullying and hate speech. This unit sets expectations for respectful talk in the class and gives students language for the rest of the rotation.
- Look at influenceTeach the influencers and social media unit next, then recommendation algorithms, so students see both who is selling to them and how the platform decides what they see.
- Protect your dataMove to data protection and cyber safety, then phishing and social engineering. Students practice recognizing suspicious messages and protecting personal information using the unit materials.
- Finish with AI and responsibilityEnd with the AI and responsibility unit, which brings back earlier themes about choices, influence and data, and asks students to weigh what responsible use of AI looks like for them.
- Agree on a home for the strandAfter the first run, talk with colleagues about which course should own the units next year, and whether the district framework you use asks for anything they leave out.
What to buy
Picking the right bundle and avoiding overlap
Buy the Digital Life Units Bundle at $89.99 for a balanced digital citizenship strand; the six units cost $149.94 separately. Several related products share units with it. The AI & Cybersecurity Units Bundle ($89.99) shares the data protection, phishing and recommendation algorithms units and adds how AI works, prompting and encryption, so it suits a technology teacher more than advisory. Digital Citizenship Activities ($69.99, Grades 7–10) has four units and 12 lessons, including fast fashion. The Middle School Ethics Curriculum ($119.99, parts $249.90) includes the three ethics units here plus seven more.
Honest limits
Where the bundle stops
These units are not written for Maine and are not tied to any standards framework a Maine district may have chosen, so check them against yours. They teach about digital life; no software, apps, accounts or devices are included, and any online practice runs on equipment your school already has. Six units make a rotation or quarter, not a full-year course. The licence covers your own teaching; if several advisory teachers will use it, message Teach Lessons first. If it is not a fit, exchange it within 7 days for store credit, not a cash refund.
Good to know
Frequently asked questions
Does this match Maine's computer science or digital citizenship standards?
Maine DOE does not name state-adopted K-12 computer science standards; districts select their own. This bundle is not aligned to or endorsed by any of them, or by the state. Compare the six units with the framework your district chose, and confirm expectations with your curriculum office before listing the units as coverage.
Can a home instruction family use it for computer proficiency?
Maine lists computer proficiency in one grade from 7 to 12 among the subjects for home instruction. These units teach about online safety and responsible use, which some families include in that subject, but whether they are enough is for you to judge. Check current rules with the Maine Department of Education or a homeschool legal resource.
Do students need devices for the lessons?
Not for most of the work. The units use worksheets, reading texts, discussions and slides that print or project. If you want students to try a task online, use the devices and accounts your school already manages; no software, apps or accounts are included in the bundle. Check your district's rules on student accounts first.
Which teacher should teach this?
Any teacher assigned to advisory, technology, library or ethics time can use it. The ethics units are discussion-based, and the computer science units come with full answer keys and marking guides, so a non-specialist can prepare from the materials. Read the reading texts a day ahead and you will be ready for most questions students raise.
We already own the AI & Cybersecurity bundle. Should we buy this too?
Only if you want the ethics side. Three units are the same in both bundles. If you already own AI & Cybersecurity, buying the three ethics units singly at $24.99 each may cost less than the full Digital Life bundle. Check your order history first so you do not pay twice for the same units.
How do I receive it?
As a digital download straight after purchase. The link arrives by email, and the files stay in your customer account under Orders, so a colleague covering your class can be given the printed pages on short notice. Nothing ships by mail, so you can start planning the rotation today.
A digital citizenship strand, ready to place
Open the product page to compare the six units with your school's plan.
See the digital life units