Be Kind Online
The class chat got a little unkind. Use the clues to solve four locks and make it a kind place again.
The premise
Words on a screen can make someone feel happy or sad. A Kindness Captain helps everyone feel safe and welcome online. Read the clues, then open all four locks. Each lock shows a reason after it opens, so you learn why the kind choice is the right choice.
How this breakout builds CLEAR thinking
Every Critical Thinking Online Breakout runs on the CLEAR process — Claim, Lens, Evidence, Alternatives, Response (full framework). Here is where students practice each step in this activity:
- Claim — for each lock, decide what answer it is really asking for, and make it specific.
- Lens — notice what you already assume before you choose.
- Evidence — weigh the six clues; “Class Fish” is true but off-topic, so it is not evidence for any lock.
- Alternatives — the multiple-choice and multi-select locks force a comparison of competing options.
- Response — the reason revealed after each lock models the justified answer to act on.
Standards alignment
Aligned to Texas TEKS Technology Applications, Grade 3, §126.8, Digital Citizenship strand — subsections (c)(8). Skills are paraphrased; read the official standard at tea.texas.gov. This page shows the reasoning focus of each lock — not the answers.
| Lock | Reasoning focus | DigCit substrand |
|---|---|---|
| Lock 1 The Kind Message |
The Kind Message | (c)(8) Social interactions |
| Lock 2 Kind or Unkind? |
Kind or Unkind? | (c)(8) Social interactions |
| Lock 3 The Helper's Name |
The Helper's Name | (c)(8) Social interactions |
| Lock 4 Think Before You Send |
Think Before You Send | (c)(8) Social interactions |
In the classroom
- Warm up (5 min). Ask: “Be a Kindness Captain” — what does this mean online? Surface prior experience before the activity.
- Model one clue. Open a single clue together and think aloud: what does this tell us, and which lock might it help?
- Reason, don’t guess. Require students to say why before checking a lock. After each solve, read the revealed reason and compare it to their thinking.
- Spot the decoy. One clue is true but useless. Debrief which one and how they knew — a core evaluation skill.
- Language support. The 🌐 picker offers 7 languages; pair newcomers to discuss clues in their home language, then answer.
- Extend. Have students write a new clue, or a real-life example, for the focus skill they found hardest.