Successful Anti-Bullying Measures!

No Bullying circle

I felt impelled to write the following essay after reading this evaluation: The ‘ Ogre ‘ Of Violence – Rooted In Childhood  by Sheshu Babu

In the USA, we have guidance counselors in schools to help stop violence. One of my relatives, a guidance counselor, runs groups for bullies and for victims of violence. Other means than group sessions are devised for some children.

Unfortunately many parents work too many long and hard hours. So they don’t train their children properly, nor keep track of them at night. Then the youths roam in gangs and cause harm — even murder.

Yes, means need to be put in place to help children learn to be kind. Perhaps a curriculum could be devised for training them and every teacher could use it either every day or once a week.

In the least, a violent child could have a sticker book and every day that he acts kindly, he gets to put another sticker in it. An act as simple as this sometimes works with some children. … Sometimes another reward can be used like a candy or extra free-time for the child to do something that he likes such as draw a picture..

If I were a parent of a child in a school with no anti-bullying curriculum, I would ask the school director to institute it immediately and show him internet links that can serve to get free anti-bullying resources. If I lived in a place that had no anti-bullying curriculum in the schools, and I weren’t a parent, I would go around from school to school and introduce it to the school directors.

Heck, schools can even have an all-school assembly once a week wherein the anti-bullying information can be shared.

Now I don’t want to brag, but if we can do these activities here in our schools to teach kindness and social cooperation, they can be used elsewhere. Why not?

Youngest school children can make cards for elderly strangers in hospice, nursing homes and hospitals. Next age up can do a canned food drive for feeding the impoverished people. Next age up can do a clothing drive for the poor. Next age up can make little sculptures or something for giving to strangers. Next age up can pull out weeds in school gardens or on public properties. Next age up can volunteer at soup kitchens, animal shelters and other places. Next age up can paint buildings in public shelters and homes owned by the poor. Next age up can volunteer to clean homes for elderly people. Next age up can volunteer to help young children struggling in academics in schools and tutor them, and so on.

Indeed there are many ways to help children learn to serve others in their communities. Why, my daughter and I always served since she was around three years old. Such activities are easy to devise!

Here is a sample of lessons that I wrote with my relative. Please feel free to use it and explore the internet links that follow. This activity can be carried out by parents and/or teachers.

Brief Lesson Plans Related to Name Calling and Theft of Water Bottles

 

NAME CALLING LESSON

Introduction

Teacher tells the true account of Susie Looms in fifth grade.

Main body

The class discusses about what it feels like to be Susie.

Conclusion

Class discusses or writes about what they would individually do if they were the most popular person in the class, had been the worst offender to hurt Susie and now wanted to help her due to the realization that she was very, very hurt by the name calling.

 

THEFT LESSON

Introduction

Teacher tells the narrative about Tom who takes water bottles, etc.

Main Body

Children in the class discuss about how they would feel if they were Tom.

Conclusion

Children write an apology note as if they were Tom to the students from whom items were stolen, as well as to the school’s principal and policeman for taking up their time. The note can be something like:

 

Dear students, Principal “X” and Officer “Y,”

 

Classmates, I am sorry that I took things from you and realize now that my doing it is really not funny. It is mean.

 

Principle and Officer, I am sorry that I took up your time to deal with my poor choices. I promise that I will think before I act in the future and, from now on, make good choices.

 

Sincerely,

 

Tom

 

 

Name Calling Account:

 

This is a true story: Susie Looms was a very shy girl and never was mean to anybody. The reason that she never was mean is that her feelings had been so hurt by her classmates by the name that they called her, which was Susie Fumes. They would say comments like: “Pe-ew, you stink, Susie Fumes” and “What a smelly girl you are Looms-Fumes!”

 

Susie knew that she didn’t smell badly since she showered every day and wore clean clothes every day. Nonetheless, the name calling really hurt her and she cried a lot every day because of it, as well as had horrible nightmares about being called terrible names.

 

She also got anxious about going to school since that was where she was tormented by other girls and boys. So she would get a stomachache just prior to getting on the bus for school each day. She also would fake being sick on some days so she could get out of going to school.

 

Further, she got so insecure that she couldn’t read out loud in her class from books. So she got stuck in remedial reading class, which made the other girls and boys make fun of her even more, even though she was a very good reader and was able to read books way above her grade level. Poor Susie!

 

Imagine that you are Susie. What does it feel like to be Susie?

 

Imagine that you are the most popular person in Susie’s class and you are also the person who was the meanest to her. What can you now do to help her since you realize that you hurt her very, very much and she is really a nice, interesting person?

 

Theft Account

 

Tom thought that it was funny and “cool” to take water bottles from students that he didn’t like. He would hide them in his locker and would secretly gloat every time that they would look for their water bottles and not find them.

 

He got so proud of himself for getting away with taking the water bottles that he escalated and now started stealing the homework from people whom he didn’t like. He put the homework papers also in his locker under the pile of stolen water bottles.

 

Then he was caught because one day when he was putting some stolen papers in his locker a teacher walked by and saw all of the water bottles. Oh-oh!

 

Then he was sent to the principal’s office and the principal called the police so that the principal and officer could both talk with Tom. Then they shared that theft is against the law, theft of homework papers could lead to a student getting an “F” for a grade, and theft of a water bottle could cause a student to collapse on the playground or in gym class from dehydration so that he’d have to be rushed to the hospital perhaps.

 

Tom had never thought about these issues, but realized that they were really serious. He also wasn’t surprised when he was suspended from school for ten days for having stolen items from other students. … Boy, would his parents be upset and angry when they heard about his poor choices and he wrote an apology letter to the students from whom he stole, the principal and the police officer.

 

He was sorry to take up their time and cause them all trouble. So what should he state in the letter?

 

How does Tom feel when the police officer and principal talked with him? What does he think that his parents will say to him?

 

Pretend that you are Tom. Then write the apology letter to the students, the principal and the police officer.

NEA – Teaching Students to Prevent Bullying

www.nea.org/tools/lessons/teaching-students-to-prevent-bullying.html

Curriculum Resources Address Identifying, Confronting and Stopping Bullying. … Lesson Plans; Activities; Games; Quizzes; Background Resources; Books for Parents, Educators, and Kids. Student bullying is one … Students in grades K-12 promote school-wide awareness of bullying issues by creating antibullying posters.

Lesson Plans · ‎Activities

Classroom Tool Kits – National Bullying Prevention Center

www.pacer.org/bullying/classroom/

Middle and High. Free, on-line creative resources developed for middle and high school classrooms to engage in bullying prevention education. Toolkits include planning an event, opportunities for student involvement and lesson plans.

The Bullying Project – The Bullying Project Curriculum

bullyingproject.com/curriculum/

These activities can be implemented in a number of ways. The student activities can be used as a part of the program for teachers and administrators as a form of practice for future antibullying curricula. These activities can also be implemented school-wide as a pilot antibullying program.

Evidence-Based Bullying Programs, Curricula and Practices …

sde.ok.gov/sde/bullying-prevention-curriculum

Dec 23, 2017 – Evidence-Based Bullying Programs, Curricula and Practices. Integrating bullying prevention information into curriculum and school activities is an effective way to eliminate bullying. Below is a list of evidence-based bullying prevention programs examined and approved by federal agencies to assist schools …

[PDF]Let’s Get Real and this curriculum guide – Groundspark

https://www.groundspark.org/download/LGR_guide.pdf

In the classroom and school. … The film can provide a focal point for a school-wide antibullying curriculum or initiative. It can also be used during middle or junior high school orientations for students.

[PDF]Embedding Bullying Prevention in Core Curriculum – Boston Public …

https://www.bostonpublicschools.org/…/embedding%20bullying%20prevention.pdf

if they witness bullying. These messages can be introduced in antibullying and violence prevention curricula and reinforced in language arts, science, social studies, and other subjects. 1. Wang, J., Iannotti, R., & Nansel, T. R. (2009). School bullying among adolescents in the United States: Physi- cal, verbal, relational, and …

[PDF]K-5 Curriculum: Bullying and Cyberbullying … – Goffstown School District

www.goffstown.k12.nh.us/common/documents/K-5Curr.pdf

Curriculum objectives broken down by year: Kindergarten. Learn bullying and cyberbullying vocabulary. Begin to learn basic group discussion skills. Observe older peers as they model pro-social and antibullying behaviors. 1st grade. Learn definitions and examples of bullying. Learn from older peers as they model …

[PDF]Giving students the tools to reduce bullying behavior by blending …

www.pbis.org/common/cms/files/pbisresources/BullyPrevention_PBS_MS.pdf

Procedure: 1. Compare fire and problem behavior with the class (Light the candle). • Both can be bright and both can hurt. 2. Explain how problem behavior needs peer attention to keep going just like a candle needs oxygen to stay lit. 3. Discuss the many forms of peer attention. • Arguing with someone that teases you.

Middle School Bully Lesson Plans—Intermediate Unit 1

https://www.iu1.org/services/bullying/middle

… rewards of cyberspace and then consider bullying scenarios in which they examine their personal comfort levels. They learn to recognize such feelings and responsibly handle the unacceptable behavior of others. Cyberbullying videos and activities; Videos. Various student-made video clips pertaining to bullying issues:.

[PDF]RETHINK High School Bullying Prevention Curriculum

https://dpi.wi.gov/sites/default/files/imce/sspw/pdf/bullyingrethink.pdf

Jul 25, 2013 – includes antibullying policies and curricula. Bullying behavior, characterized by power and control of one person over another, negatively impacts a student’s connection with school, their engagement with the curriculum, and their overall ability to learn. Bullying prevention is critical to building a school …

Sally Dugman is a writer in MA, USA.

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