Despite widespread efforts to deal with the problem, bullying is a persistent issue in schools, says Donna Henderson, a professor of counseling at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, N.C.
"The goal is to create a no-bullying environment for children. It's hard because we live in a world that accepts violence, intimidation and power as currency in life," Henderson said in a university news release.
Henderson offered tips for parents to prevent their children from becoming bullies or victims:
Ask school officials and teachers about what they do to prevent bullying and hold schools accountable for their anti-bullying policies.
Watch for warning signs in children at the start of the new school year, such as sudden changes in behavior and not eating.
When you see bullying behavior, call it bullying and tell your children that it's unacceptable behavior.
Discuss bullying with your children. Use real situations, news stories, television programs and movies as opportunities to talk about bullying.
Regularly ask children about bullying and address any problem immediately.
If your child is being bullied, letting them know you understand and share their distress can help them feel better.
Discuss and/or role play possible responses to bullying, such as walking away, not showing emotion, staying in groups to avoid being singled out, and confronting a bully.
Do some self-assessment. If you use intimidation in your dealings with others, you may be setting a bullying example for your child. Or if you're bullied by other adults and don't put a stop to it, your child will believe that's the way to respond to bullies.
More information
The Nemours Foundation has more about bullying.
Copyright © 2011 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
Tags: children's health, behavior, parenting
Also
Bully Proof Your Student
It probably started in preschool when your son was playing with the truck and a big mean four and a half year old just came over and stole that dump truck right out of your sweet innocent little man's precious little hands. How dare he?!
The fact is, kids can be mean. Shoot, adults can be mean too. Why do you think someone created the bumper sticker, "Mean people suck"? You can't be with your child 24/7 to protect him from the school bully. You can't control what other children do; but you can control how your child reacts. Or at least hopefully you can bully proof your student.
For starters you want to ensure your precious baby isn't on the giving end of the bullying. Not only is it rude and wrong, it could land your assertive child a suspension. (Assertive sounds so much better than aggressive, don't you agree?)
You would do well to explain the psychology of a school bully before your child is faced with a situation where he (or she) is the one being bullied. The "do unto others rule' is a good place to start. You can also explain that often children act like a bully to mask other feelings (anger, disappointment etc.) If your student isn't doing anything intentional to egg on the rough and tough, the odds are in his favor he may not be a target.
Only you know whether or not your child is mature enough to understand what makes a bully act in a certain manner. If you still have "a situation" even after you've thoroughly and repeatedly discussed how to play nice and how to avoid instigating any negative playground behavior, it's time for Plan B.
Make sure that your child's teacher is aware of the situation. That's not considered tattling; it's your responsibility. Often school can and should put an end to it once they become aware. Ok, so you tried all that and it still didn't stop? Assuming you already had the discussions about defending, not offending; using words not violence, then as a last resort your child should feel free to defend himself. While most parents teach their child that fighting is bad, getting the snot kicked out of you is bad too.
If you personally don't have the knowledge to equip your child, then enroll him in a martial arts class. There is absolutely no correlation between children becoming violent after attending a few self defense lessons. Don't you want to bully proof your student?
With all that said, remind your child that the easiest way to remedy the situation may be to befriend the bully.
http://www.apples4theteacher.com/holidays/back-to-school/articles/bully-proof.html
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