It seems like it is in the news every other day - bullying. From mean girls to picking on a kid because of how he looks or acts or sexual orientation, bullying is everywhere. Experts say it can start as young as kids in preschool...which is amazing, to me, but I know it is true.
The last thing we want our kids to have to deal with is being the victim of a bully...or becoming a bully. There is a lot out there about bullying and what schools and communities are trying to do to combat this behavior and protect our kids.
The latest research says that kids can become bullproof - if the programs teaching this are done right. In these programs, often run through schools, kids can learn the skills - the social ones and the emotional ones - so they can avoid being a target.
The great thing about these programs is not only do they help kids to avoid the horrible feelings and situations of bullying but it can prevent those situations from happening as a whole. And just as bullying can start in preschool, so does this training.
Experts say if we teach our kids skills like empathy and body language and how to build tight friendships, all of these things combined can really combat the effects of bullying.
So, check out this article and see what you can do with your kids to help bully-proof them...granted, no program is perfect and no program can take the place of involved parenting on both the bully and bullied side of the situation, but maybe little by little, we can work to get this epidemic under control.
Have you had to deal with bullying? How do you help your kids to be bully-proof?
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no, we have not had to deal with bullying yet. We just try to teach our kids to confident with themselves. ds is a little more sensitive than dd, so we are working on him to not be so sensitive and fearful. we homeschool so we can avoid that avenue of bullying, it's just their "out of school" activities where they would face it. I have not seen any type of bullying going on at ds's activity.....bowling. But, at dd's dance, some of the girls are not all that nice.
None of my kids are bullied. However, my eldest DS is in middle school so he sees it happening. He has on occasion stepped in *from what teachers have told me* and stopped it. He can't stand for someone to be picked on. He's got a big heart. I really haven't had to discuss it because he already knows it's wrong.
I don't know if this is considered bullying or not. But once a neighbor boy saw my oldest son outside playing with a soccer ball and stole that ball from him and put it in his apartment. I didn't see what had happened because I was inside, but I got my son to tell me why he didn't have his soccer ball anymore. When I found out, we went right over to the neighbor boy's apartment and I knocked on the door. His mom answered and I told her what had happened and she looked and there was my son's ball with his name on it. I think that standing up for my son helped him learn to deal with people like that.
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Sue ~ Head Admin
~ D.V. Survivor/Admin
My sons did. They avoided antagonizing bullies, and being alone with them.
Good lesson. Also a good lesson to have the toys labeled.
Quoting dusky_rose:I don't know if this is considered bullying or not. But once a neighbor boy saw my oldest son outside playing with a soccer ball and stole that ball from him and put it in his apartment. I didn't see what had happened because I was inside, but I got my son to tell me why he didn't have his soccer ball anymore. When I found out, we went right over to the neighbor boy's apartment and I knocked on the door. His mom answered and I told her what had happened and she looked and there was my son's ball with his name on it. I think that standing up for my son helped him learn to deal with people like that.
My 7th grader had a small run in with some mean 8th grade girls last year. We talked afterwards this is a hard time in life and she knows she is better and just to walk away if she can.
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- HeatherNYC
on Jun. 15, 2012 at 12:00 AM