BULLYING: COMPREHENSION AND PREVENTION Presented by: Chris Redlin & Sylvia Chmelko Professional School Counselors

What is Bullying? Bullying is a behavior done to hurt someone physically or emotionally; and it occurs repeatedly by a person or group of people. The behaviors done are intended to be hurtful, and the person receiving the bullying behavior/s feels as if they don’t have the ability to make the person(s) stop, creating an imbalance in power.

What Bullying is NOT. Bullying is not a conflict where both people are doing hurtful things to each other.

Examples of Direct Bullying Behaviors. Name Calling Teasing Hitting Threatening

Examples of Indirect Forms of Bullying Behaviors Intentional Exclusion from a group Rumor spreading

Are bullying behaviors and bullying different?

The answer is YES! Bullying only occurs if the Bullying behavior is done repeatedly, the person(s) doing the bullying are trying to be hurtful, and the person receiving the behaviors feels powerless to make it stop.

Where Bullying Occurs Typically in areas that are unsupervised or areas that are difficult to supervise: Bathrooms Hallways Playground Bus Cafeteria Internet When the adult is not looking (working with another group of students, writing on board)

How do we PREVENT bullying? Education: All Pattie Students learn about bullying and how to handle it Character education Problem Solving Strategies Internet Supervision Empower the bystander/s

Ways to empower your child as a bystander Encourage your child to: Not be silent Not laugh Invite targets of bullying to play Talk to targets of bullying to let them know that you do not agree with the mean behavior Make friends with kids who are being treated in a mean way Tell an adult.

How Can We Stop Bullying? Students can: Stand up for one another with their words/ actions Fill out a bully report form Tell a trusted adult at school and at home about the problem Use “I” messages (I don’t like it when you do ___, you need to stop. If you don’t stop I will get help from _____.)

Pattie Elementary Bully Report Form Pattie Elementary School Bully Report Form Were you hurt ___yes ___ no? How were you hurt ?_______________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________ Has this person hurt you more than once ___yes ___no? When and where has this happened?________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________ Did the person hurt you on purpose ___yes ___no? Why do you think it was done on purpose?___________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________ Do you feel like you can tell the person to stop ___ yes ___no? Why do you feel like you can’t tell the person to stop? ________________________ __________________________________________________________________________ Have you had problems with this student before __yes ___no? Describe the problems _____________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________ Name of student(s) who is hurting you ________________________________

On The Bright Side 88% of 4 th and 5 th grade students at Pattie in the school year reported feeling safe from bullying while at school on the PWCS Student Survey.

Resources “Queen Bees and Wannabes: Helping Your Daughter Survive Cliques, Gossip, Boyfriends and other Realities of Adolescence” by Rosalind Wiseman “The Bully, the Bullied and the Bystander: From Preschool to High School-How Parents and Teachers Can Help Stop the Cycle of Violence” by Barbara Coloroso “Bullying at School: What We Know and What We Can Do” by Dan Olweus Don’t Laugh Netsmartz Internet Safety Safe Youth Cartoon Network: Stop Bullying Speak Up (games, activities, and video presentation to include President Obama with the first Bully Prevention Conference)