Grades 9–10
Cyber Defender I
From awareness to defensive skill: risk, OS security, identity and access, Python for cyber, logs, forensics, cloud and incident response.
- Grades
- Grades 9–10
- Length
- 12 weeks
- Group size
- 25–30 students with 1–2 participating educators
- Where it runs
- School-day enrichment, After-school, Weekend academy, Summer camp, Library / community center
Skills students build
Risk & controlsWindows / Linux hardeningTCP/IP & DNSIdentity & accessPython for cyberLog analysisDigital forensicsCloud basicsIncident response
Before joining
None required. Cyber Explorers (Grades 6–8) is helpful.
How progress is checked
- Pre/post knowledge and scenario checks
- Lab evidence and rubric scores
- Team incident simulation and executive brief
What students learn, step by step
Every lesson ends with something students make, explain or show.
| Week | Topic | What students learn | What students produce |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CIA Triad & Risk | Confidentiality, integrity, availability, controls | Risk-to-control mapping |
| 2 | Windows/Linux Security | Accounts, patching, permissions, services | Hardening checklist |
| 3 | Networking & Protocols | TCP/IP, ports, services, DNS | Service investigation |
| 4 | Identity & Access Management | Least privilege, MFA, roles | Access-control matrix |
| 5 | Python for Cyber | Parsing, conditions, simple automation | Log-parser script |
| 6 | Network Defense | Firewalls, segmentation, monitoring | Defense design and rule rationale |
| 7 | Vulnerability Management | CVE/CVSS concepts, scanning ethics, prioritization | Remediation ranking |
| 8 | Logs & Detection | Authentication/system logs, alert clues | Suspicious-pattern write-up |
| 9 | Digital Forensics | Evidence, timelines, artifacts | Forensic mini-case timeline |
| 10 | Cloud Fundamentals | Shared responsibility, IAM, storage, encryption, logging | Cloud risk review |
| 11 | AI Security Awareness | Data leakage, prompt-injection concepts, misuse | AI-risk mitigation choices |
| 12 | Incident Response Capstone | Detect, investigate, contain, brief | Team incident simulation and executive brief |
What students build
- Hardening checklist
- Python log-parser script
- Incident simulation and executive brief
How we keep it safe
- Authorized only — all activities stay inside approved sandboxed environments
- No real targets — students do not attack live systems, scan public targets or use real credentials
- No sensitive data — exercises use fictional data
- AI security is taught as recognition and mitigation, not bypassing real systems
More Cybersecurity tracks
Students can move up to the next grade band in later years.
CybersecurityGrades 6–8
Cyber Explorers
A safe, engaging entry into cybersecurity: ethics, identity, phishing, networking, Linux, cryptography and a beginner capture-the-flag.
10 weeks
See what they learn CybersecurityGrades 11–12
Cyber Career Academy
Enterprise security, SOC operations, incident response, forensics, cloud and AI security — ending in a capstone defended before mentors.
14 modules
See what they learn Ask about Cyber Defender I
About: Cybersecurity Pathway — Cyber Defender I (Grades 9–10)