Stars Align Against Bullying Ice breaking exercise – How does this make you feel? Not too good does it. Victims of bullying feel this same pain your are feeling right now. They deal with this on a day to day basis. It causes pain in their hearts that sometimes they just can’t withstand. Now, I am going to talk to you about bullying, the types of bullying, share a story of a student who was bullied, give you some strategies to deal with bullying. And before we all leave today we are all going to KNOW and FOLLOW the Golden Rule which is?.... “Treat others the way you want to be treated”. Be the one!

Bullying Definition Behavior that is intentional, hurtful and repeated by one or more persons. Bullied students are teased, harassed, and assaulted verbally or physically. Read definition. Look at the picture of this little girl here. Do you see them in the background. What do you think the other girls are doing? (talking bad about her), (excluding her from their group), (teasing her). Do you think these things are bullying. How do you think this girl feels? She is going to go home from school and be thinking about how she is going to deal with this for the entire school year. It’s not right. And there are students in this school that feel this same way. There are kids in this classroom that feel the same way. We need to stop and think about what were doing and “treat other people the way you want to be treated”.

Two Types of Bullying Direct Indirect

Direct Physical – hitting, kicking, pushing, stealing, hiding or ruining someone’s things. Making someone do something they don’t want to do. Verbal – name calling, teasing, insulting, threats. Pushing in the hallway, hiding someone’s food at the lunch table. Teasing someone about the way they look. Name calling. No one in here has the right to call anyone a name that is insulting or offensive. Like fat, ugly.

Indirect Relationship Bullying – gossiping, spreading rumors and lies about someone. Making someone feel left out or rejected. Which one of these types of bullying do you think boys are involved in? Which one do you think girls are involved in? Boys tend to be more physical and girls value relationships more than boys. At one school there were these girls who thought they were these divas or the Royal 5 and they had this signup sheet for girls who wanted to sit with them at lunch. What happen was girls would sign up and they would pass the sign up sheet around to see who was rejected or not. This is mean and unacceptable and do you think this is the way those girls would want to be treated?

Bullying can be... One person making fun of another. One person trying to beat up another. A group of people ganging up against others. Not only are these things wrong morally but they are also illegal. You can be arrested for touching, or hitting another person if that person says it was unwanted and he took offense to that hitting. Also, can be arrested for disorderly conduct.

How does it make you feel? Depressed Hurt Alone Low Self-Esteem Anxiety Scared We talked about the effects of bullying has on a person. These are just some of them but there are so many others that I can’t list here because there is not enough room. Depressed. This is a big problem among children and teenagers who are victims of being bullied. Anyone know what depressed means? (let students answer). Ok, now I am going to talk to you about a girl who was the victim of being bullied and her story.

Is bullying just a part of life? NO! Each and every person has the right to feel safe in school and in life.

Who is a Bully? What type of people are not treating others like they want to be treated.

Characteristics of a Bully Excited by their bullying behavior Enjoy feelings of power and control Enjoy causing pain Can be a below average, average or above average student Lack compassion and empathy for their targets Can be all shapes and sizes

How to Deal with Bullying!! If you are being bullied you need to report it but when you are in the moment there are some things you can do. There are also some things you can do to try an avoid becoming a target.

Report it to a trusted adult immediately BE A HERO Report, Report, Report Report it to a trusted adult immediately BE A HERO The most important thing you can do to stop bullying is report, report, report.

Ways to avoid future bullying Hang out with friends Avoid unsupervised areas Sit near the bus driver on the bus or walk with a teacher to class Don’t walk alone and avoid places where bullying occurs Don’t act scared “No one can make you feel inferior without your consent”. – Eleanor Roosevelt

Bystanders Part of the problem not the solution

Be a Hero Bystanders are part of the problem not the solution.

Some things you can say if someone is getting bullied. "That's Not Funny" "How would you like it if someone did that to you?" "Cut it out"

Are you a Bully?

Ask Yourself These Questions… Does it make you feel better to hurt other people or take their things? Do you sometimes use your size and strength to get your way Do you feel as if you want to take your anger out on those who don’t deserve it?

How can you STOP being a Bully?

If you are a bully, here are some ways to stop Apologize to people that you have bullied, and follow it up by being friendly. They might not trust you right away, but eventually they will see that you have changed.

More ideas… If you are having a hard time feeling good about yourself, explore ways to boost your self-esteem. (Sports) If you feel like you’re having trouble controlling your feelings, especially anger, talk to a school counselor about it.

“Treat others the way you want to be treated” The Golden Rule “Treat others the way you want to be treated”

Questions?

Take a stand against bullying! Stars align~ together we shine! Take a stand against bullying!