BULLYING PREVENTION Presented By School Climate Committee

Questions...  What is Bullying?  What incidents of bullying have you witnessed in the past?  How should have the situation been handled?  How has bullying affected you?

Define Bullying for Students  “Bullying is peer abuse” – Dan Olweus  Teasing and/or Taunting  Teasing: a fun thing you do with friends, with people you care about  Taunting: a choice to bully someone for whom you have contempt  3 Components of Bullying Behavior  Involves an aggressive behavior  Typically involves a pattern of behavior repeated over time  Imbalance of power or strength

Define Cyber Bullying  The repeated use of information and communication technologies to bully, embarrass, threaten, or harass another.  Communication technologies include cell phones, Facebook, and any other form of social media.  Can include text messages, picture messages, etc.

Cyber Bullying and “Traditional” Bullying Similar Characteristics  Aggressive  Power imbalance  Repetitiveness Different Characteristics  Anonymity  Disinhibition  Accessibility  Punitive fears  Bystanders

Prevention of Cyber Bullying  Stop – Don’t try to reason or talk to someone who is bullying you.  Block – Use the “block sender” technology to prevent the person from contacting you.  Talk – Tell a trusted adult, inform your school, use a help line and report it to police.  Save – Save any instant message or s you receive from the bully, or capture any comments that have been posted on the Web.

Strategies for Helping Students Who are Bullied  Six steps to disengage from a student who bullies…  Ignore them (when possible)  Tell them you don’t like it  Move away from them toward witnesses  Ask them to stop (locate more witnesses)  Tell them to firmly stop (locate more witnesses)  Tell an adult – it is so important to tell someone.

Strategies for Empowering Students Who are Bullied  Bullies must be turned in!  Peer Group Development  Understand that “I” statements have value with bullying situations.  I feel (an emotion)  When (say what behavior bothers you)  Because (say why the behavior upsets you)  I would like (say what solution you would like to try)

Students Who Bully Others Need to...  Acknowledge their own actions.  Experience healthy shame and guilt (“I broke a rule and got in trouble. I don’t want to go through that again!” “I hurt someone.”)  Acknowledge the results of their behavior on themselves and others.  Change their actions to stop a possible lifetime of abusive behavior.  Learn to trust and delay gratification.  Form relationships with helping adults.

Bystander – You ARE Responsible! “There is a tremendous potential in using by-standers to “assist” in solving the problem. Half the time when children intervene in a bullying episode, it stops after 10 seconds. The average episode lasts 38 seconds. The more bystanders (who watch and do nothing to intervene), the longer the bullying occurs.”

Strategies for Bystanders  Seek safe and effective ways to act  Seek alternatives to confront the aggressor  Seek alternative to watching in silence  Seek protection from retaliation if aggressor does act  Seek ongoing support from adults

YAI Policy on Bullying  Will not be tolerated  Will be addressed  Will have consequences  ISS  After school detention  Suspension  Alternative School

Stop Bullying... Pass It On! Now is your time to act…sign the poster to promise you will help to stop bullying!

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