1. Each person will have a basic understanding of the legal definition of bullying as outlined in the anti-bullying bill of rights law 2. Each person will leave today with one new idea about parenting in the digital age Learning Objectives:

Anti-Bullying Bill of Rights Law HIB is defined as any gesture, any written, verbal or physical act, or any electronic communication, whether it be a single incident or series of incidents, that  is motivated by any actual or perceived characteristic such as race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation or by any other distinguishing characteristic,  takes place on school property, at any school sponsored function, or off school grounds  substantially disrupts or interferes with the orderly operation of the school or the rights other students, and that:  a reasonable person should know will have the effect of physically or emotionally harming a student or the student’s property, or placing a student in reasonable fear of harm OR  has the effect of insulting or demeaning any student or group of students; OR  creates a hostile educational environment for the student by interfering with a student’s education or by severely or pervasively causing physical or emotional harm to the student.

Olweus Bullying Prevention Program by Dr. Dan Olweus Definition of Bullying A person is bullied when he or she is exposed, repeatedly and over time, to negative actions on the part of one or more other persons, and he or she has difficulty defending himself or herself. This definition includes three important components: 1. Bullying is aggressive behavior that involves unwanted, negative actions. 2. Bullying involves a pattern of behavior repeated over time. 3. Bullying involves an imbalance of power or strength.

Would you put your child behind the wheel of a car without providing driver’s education? Would you throw your child in a pool without swimming lessons? Did you give your child guidelines for using electronic devices responsibly? THOUGHT QUESTIONS

Digital Use Recommendations Know your child’s digital world. Download your child’s favorite sites and become familiar with them. Talk to your children about the social networks they are using. Does your child meet the minimum age requirement to participate in this social network?

Digital Use Recommendations Think carefully about restricting access to certain sites and/or content. There is software that can filter or block sites/content. Monitor your child’s online activities. Talk with your children about acceptable usage and consider using software to monitor their internet usage. Remind children that what they post online stays online FOREVER…… Talk with your children about privacy and cyberbullying and make sure they understand the issues.

Digital Use Recommendations Reassure your child that you will not remove their technology as a knee ‐ jerk reaction to problems (including cyberbullying). Young people report that fear of losing access to their computer or mobile phone is one of the reasons why they often don’t report cyberbullying. Talk to your child about their digital postings What impression does your digital profile make on the world? What would a teacher, college recruiter or an employer think about them?

If your child experiences cyberbullying: Please use the STOP, BLOCK and TELL approach. 1. Don’t answer back to the text, comment or posting 2. Block the “bullies” access to you electronically (Consider giving your device to your parent until the issue is resolved) 3. If this is a friend from school please tell your building Principal, School Counselor, Psychologist, Teacher or Nurse.