6th Grade Bullying Discussion Mrs. Burnett & Mr. Woodard 6th Grade Counselor & Dean

What is Bullying? Did you know? Bullying is the repeated use of one’s strength or status for the purpose of intimidating or injuring another person. A conflict between equals is not bullying. Did you know? 160,000 students stay home from school everyday due to bullying. (NEA) Virginia Youth Violence Project, UVA, Guidelines for Responding to Student Threats of Violence. Peter L. Sheras, Ph.D. & Dewey G. Cornell, Ph.D.

FORMS OF BULLYING Physical-hitting, shoving, grabbing, property damage Verbal -teasing, name- calling, insults, intimidation, racist remarks

FORMS OF BULLYING CONT… Social or Covert: spreading rumors, excluding, negative facial or physical gestures Cyber-bullying-use of the internet to hurt! – emails, texts, videos, hurtful pictures (ex. Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, AskFM,Text)

Why do some people bully? To make themselves look tough To get attention from others Because they are jealous To get things from others To make people be afraid of them

The Role of Bystanders What is a bystander?: -Students not directly involved in the bullying interaction, but may observe it on a continual and repeated basis. Results of being a bystander: Can feel guilty for not reporting incidents Feel that they are ‘cowards’ or ‘weak’ Feel powerless Someone continues to get bullied because bystanders didn’t help The Role of Bystanders

Why don’t bystanders do something?: They are not aware of the distress the bully is causing the victim Fear they might be the next target Previous experiences of telling an adult and nothing happened They begin to believe what the bully says about the victim (i.e. blaming the victim)

Why is this a problem? 60% of middle school students say that they have been bullied If you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem. If you stand by and watch it happen and do nothing…its as if you are participating in the bullying. BYSTANDERS ARE THE MOST POWERFUL PEOPLE IN ANY BULLYING SITUATION

Tattling vs. Seeking Help - telling on someone for personal gain (ex: “if I tell on Johnny then it will make me look better to the teacher”) Seeking Help: -attempting to stop someone from getting hurt (ex: “I am going to tell an adult that Johnny is planning on beating up Bobby after school today at the bus stop”) Virginia Youth Violence Project, UVA, Guidelines for Responding to Student Threats of Violence. Peter L. Sheras, Ph.D and Dewey G. Cornell, Ph.D.

What can you do if it happens to you or someone you know? *Stand up for yourself: you have a right to be safe and comfortable at school. *Walk away. *Travel with friends. *Avoid the area/situation when possible. *Tell an adult. If you see it happen to someone else: *Speak up-bullies pick on kids who won’t speak up for themselves. *Stand by the victim-bullies don’t usually pick on kids who are in a group. *Distract-make a joke or start talking to the bully or victim. *Take the victim with you. *Get help from an adult.

What happens to kids who are bullied? -Grades Drop -Attendance declines -Anger -Avoid school or certain classes -Physical symptoms (stomach ache, head ache) -Sad/Isolated/Alone -Can lead to depression, suicide, or even causing harm to others What happens to kids who are bullied?

Are you a bully? Have you ever bullied someone else? What were you trying to accomplish? Think about how you made the victim feel? Put yourself in the victims shoes-how would you feel? Change your actions to stay out of trouble. Acknowledge your actions and ask for help Are you a bully?

You Are Not Alone!