Our fictional document: “The Flying Seed”
Beginning · Mila: “The seed hid under the umbrella.”
Adventure · Niki: “The umbrella flew over the garden.”
Ending · Yana: “The seed found a new home in the soil.”
VERIFIED · 22.10.2026
AI help: yes
reviewer: awaiting teacher and psychologist
Together in One Document: Roles and Rules
One document, several ideas. Before you begin, agree who writes, who checks and how you suggest changes to someone else’s part.
⏱ 10–15 min
Maker
Internet & Safety · 14
grades 4–6
You will be able to assign roles in a shared document, suggest a change in a comment and agree on three rules for working together.
For parents: a one-page guide — dinner questions and a paper relay.
01Remember
Think first, then open the answers.
From “My Data”: what would you ask before showing a document?
Who will be able to see it? Use only made-up content for this activity.
From “Is It Personal?”: what if you are unsure whether something is personal?
Stop and ask a grown-up you trust.
Have you worked together on one sheet of paper?
Recall how you decided who would write and who would read it through. Perhaps you had no agreement yet.
02Story
Mila, Niki and Yana are made-up children. They are writing a story together called “The Garden of Flying Seeds”. Mila invents the beginning, Niki the adventure and Yana the ending. Each has a part in the same document.
Niki sees Mila’s sentence: “The seed hid under the umbrella.” He would rather have a ship. He changes the umbrella to a ship without asking. Mila looks over. “But I’ve already planned what happens to the umbrella!” Meanwhile Yana checks the ending while Niki is still changing it. Which sentence should she read?
The children pause. “Let’s agree first,” Yana suggests. Mila will write, Niki will check and Yana will keep track of turns. Then they will swap roles as they move through the parts.
This time Niki leaves a comment: “Could the seed find a ship?” Mila replies: “Let’s keep the umbrella here. The ship could appear in your part.” Nobody loses an idea without a conversation. At the end, the checker reads after the writer says “ready”.
This is a fictional story and one suggestion for working together. You can agree on different roles, as long as everyone understands their task.
03Worked example
Yana wants to change the ending Niki wrote.
Role: Yana checks, Niki writes and Mila keeps track of turns. The checker suggests and the author replies.
Comment: instead of deleting the ending, Yana suggests: “Could the characters plant the seed?”
Agreement: Niki says “yes” and changes his own part. If he says “let’s think about it”, the text stays while they talk.
Check: after “ready”, Yana reads the new ending. Then they swap roles.
Roles are tasks for this turn. They do not make anyone the owner of the whole document. Ask the author before changing their text.
04Try it now
This is our own drawing of a fictional shared document, not a real tool. You only choose: nothing is typed, sent or saved. There are no points, clock or rankings.
1 · Predict
Predict: what might happen if everyone changes someone else’s part without an agreement? Think of an answer, then compare the two versions.
2 · Run: assign roles and choose three rules
Press each child’s button to change their role. They swap tasks with the other child who has that role. Each child keeps their own part.
Without an agreement — a made-up version
Choose three rules and run the scene.
With your roles and rules — a made-up version
3 · Change
Change: swap roles or replace a rule, then run it again. Which action changed? If you disagree, pause and talk; a role does not let you decide for someone else.
05No screen: paper relay
You need paper, a pencil and a group or family. Make up a story without real people or personal information.
Agree who writes, who checks and who passes the paper. Choose three rules from the simulation or suggest your own.
The writer adds a sentence and says “ready”. The checker reads. Suggest a change aloud or in the margin; the author replies before you change their text.
Pass the paper and swap roles. Continue the story so everyone takes part.
Read it together. Say which rule helped and which agreement you would change.
06Make your own
Make a paper card called “Rules for Our Shared Document”. Choose three rules: copy the ones you selected in the simulation or make up your own. Draw a symbol beside each and say why you chose it.
Show your card to the people you will work with. Ask whether they agree. Leave room for the roles and agree when to swap them. Write only the tasks, without real names.
07What I learned
- Before we begin, we agree who writes, who checks and who keeps track of turns.
- We ask before changing someone else’s text; we can suggest a change in a comment.
- We swap roles and discuss our rules together.
🤝
If something scares you, tell a grown-up you trust.
Check yourself
1. You want to change someone else’s sentence. What do you suggest?
2. When do you check under our agreement?
3. Someone wants a different role. What do you do?
Skill badge: “I work together and respect other people’s text”
It is yours when you can assign roles and suggest a change without deleting someone else’s sentence. The badge recognises a skill; there are no points or rankings.
It is yours when you can assign roles and suggest a change without deleting someone else’s sentence. The badge recognises a skill; there are no points or rankings.
08I have a question
Do you still have a question? Write it here. It goes to your parent, not to strangers. Your parent confirms their e-mail first.
The form is loading… If it does not appear, write your question on paper and show it to a parent or teacher.
·Sources
- Title: Together in One Document: Roles and Rules (DB-IB-14) · Author: Children’s Library, East Accelerator Foundation · Source: original content, 2026 · Rights: CC BY-SA 4.0.
- The children, document and outcomes are made up by us. The activities are practical suggestions.
- Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0 · Children's Library, East Accelerator Foundation, 2026. You may share and adapt this lesson if you credit the author and keep the same licence. Learning is free forever.