Digital Beginnings / 21st Century Learning, Hong Kong
Cultivating Digital Values in Young Minds. The original conference presentation, with a closer look at how I introduced character-led digital citizenship at Dulwich College Beijing.
Digital Dilon grew from a practical curriculum question: how could digital citizenship belong within the values and routines that young children already recognised at DCB?
The presentation documents a way of working: choose an age-appropriate digital question, connect it to familiar characters and school values, make a short story or media resource, and give children a chance to discuss and practise it with an adult.
The opening work considers access, the form of the content, and the wider school picture. For younger learners, the session moves between group discussion, a media lesson, a shared review, and a group activity.
The lesson sequence revisits current values before introducing digital citizenship, playing the video, and discussing it together.
I scripted the video around digital safety ideas appropriate to early childhood, designed Dilon in relation to existing school content, and built short animated media.
The deck names Illustrator, After Effects and Canva, while also making clear that physical or other digital production methods could work. The transferable part is the script, story and teaching decision.
The early-primary outline pairs Dilon with responsibility, open-mindedness, kindness, respect and confidence. Its questions concern sharing, exploring, helping and using technology together.
For older learners, the presentation proposes comics, media responses, discussion, reflection and student leadership. These are plans shown in the deck, not evidence that every proposed activity was delivered or evaluated.
Children are invited to say what they enjoyed, what would improve the activity, and what digital citizenship means to them after the lesson.
The wider planning considers technology at home and school, age, interests, family involvement, moderation and student digital safety ambassadors.
My later writing examines both the usefulness of a familiar character and the responsibility that comes with children’s attachment to it. Before the Prompt takes that line of inquiry into play, trust and agency, with practical invitations for educators of children aged two to seven.
Digital Dilon is a school-owned DCB project developed by Tim Pyles. This page shares its design history; the original characters and branded materials are not offered as a reusable template pack. The presentation documents practice and planning, rather than measured learning outcomes.
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