October 2017 - All information obtained from http://www.stompoutbullying.org
October is Bullying Awareness Month. Bullying is a serious problem in many schools. Bullying is when someone hurts or scares someone on purpose, over and over again. This can include calling someone harmful/dangerous names, hurting them physically, leaving them out of activities on purpose, embarrassing them, playing hurtful pranks or messing up their property - and it happens repeatedly.
Bullying can also happen online. This is called cyber-bullying. Cyber-bullying is when kids bully each other using the internet, cell phones, or other cyber technology.
It is important to know WHY someone is being a bully to figure out how to handle a him/her. Sometimes people bully because they want attention. Sometimes its because they have been bullied and they have learned this behavior from someone else. Sometimes people bully others because it makes them feel more powerful and better about themselves.
If you're being bullied there is a lot that you can do! Depending on how bad the bullying is, you might want to try to work it out yourself. This will help you feel more powerful and will let the bully see that you aren't willing to let them treat you this way.
If You Feel Safe, Here Are Some Ways To Handle The Bully:
- Walk away when the bully approaches you. Try and imagine you’re walking away from a stranger. Both you and your body language will show you don’t care.
- Try talking to the bully. Use this sentence starter - "I feel ______ when you _______."
- When the bully harasses you and calls you names, look them in the eyes, LAUGH and walk away without any additional conversation.
If you try these ways to handle the bully and the bullying continues - TELL SOMEONE! You could tell your parents, teacher, school counselor, school nurse, or any adult you trust. Be sure to tell them exactly what happened. If you suspect someone else is being bullied, it's a good idea to report that, too. Most adults really do care about bullying and will be glad that you told them about it.
If you tell an adult and you don't think they are doing anything about the bullying or if the situation isn't improving, tell another adult. Keep telling adults until someone does something to help.
Most importantly, don't be a bystander. Don't just stand by and watch if you see someone being bullied. If you don't do anything to help the person being bullied, you are sending a message to the bully that what they are doing is okay.
STAND UP for others! Be a Hero! It's up to you ... It's up to all of us!
