Do Children Really Know the Difference Between Reality and Fantasy ? A Cautionary Tale About "Slender Man"!

I'm still having trouble typing because the rotator cuff surgery combined with the bicep tear repair is still painful and typing seems to aggravate the surgery site.  I start physical therapy next week and get to lose my sling during the day, but have to sleep in it for one more week which will make a total of 6 weeks. I'm doing a lot of writing for my grad class so I have to take breaks to prevent soreness. I know whine, whine and more whining - but soon I'll be able to be sure I haven't overdone it and reversed the good work done by the surgery.

I want to sound an alarm for teachers based on a 20 - 20 Television Show that played this past Saturday. It was about a Meme that has been circulating on the Internet and is being kept alive and made more fanciful by faithful fans adding to the "urban legend" credibility of this fictional story. Story lines, photos, videos and graphics are being uploaded by tweens, teens and possibly younger children. http://abcnews.go.com/US/slender-man-stabbing-survivors-parents-describe-horrific-ordeal/story?id=25787516 This is the link so you can find out all the necessary details.

Three issues are important for teachers.  First, when things like this happen - it's a little difficult to directly discuss the topic - you may be sensationalizing it and creating a problem.  The discussion needs to focus on how do you determine the difference between reality and fantasy?  My students were always quick to reassure me that they were fully aware of what was real and what was not - but the desire for many young people to find their 15 seconds of fame leads me to worry that students will use all avenues possible to "get noticed". The second issue is to get parents to realize how many children are aware of "Slender Man" and search for him on line using their personal technology or the technology of their friends. The ABC special makes it painfully clear that parents haven't got a clue what children are viewing - a link to the television program on your home page might do the trick. Finally, some exploration of these topics is natural and part of the development of the age group, but a media literacy unit needs to be in place to develop clear guidelines for measuring reality. Here's an example -

A great group research project might be helpful using the librarian as a resource.  Divide your class into small groups and have them become truth hunters finding the origins of some legends.  These should be age appropriate and again there are some easy-to-read "scholarly' articles/books that you can print out for the groups to use for visual and oral reports. Finding primary source material might help students develop a healthy skepticism and some evaluation skills when it comes to planning out seriously life altering plans for their infamous future.

Good luck dealing with this difficult issue.