Bullying, Harassment, & Cyberbulling

September 2012

Serious? Or Seriously?!

As you get seated today, take a look at the

Bullying quiz you’ve been handed. How do you

respond to each statement. Is it Serious, as in

definitely true, or Seriously?! as in, are you

kidding?!

Statistics on Bullying

According to a national survey, 1 out of every 4 students reported being bullied

77% of students reported being bullied verbally, mentally, and physically

1 out of every 5 students reported being the bully

It’s estimated that half of all bullying incidents go unreported

Each day 160,000 students miss school for fear of being bullied

What is Bullying?

Harassment & Bullying

Cyber

Texting

Sexual

VerbalPhysical

Emotional

Excluding

UNACCE

PTABLE

UGLY

INAPPRO

PRIATE

MEAN

What You Can Do!

Bullying affects everyone.

Whether you’re the target, the witness, oreven the kid who picks on others, the bully, there’s something you can do to put an endto bullying.

If You Are the Target

You Are In Control!

Are you being bullied?

There’s a lot that you can do.

Try these tips.

What a Bully Looks for…Differences

How You Can Protect Yourself—Respect differences. Everyone has differences. Just look around you. When you value and respect differences, you let the bully know that being different doesn’t bother you a bit. In fact, you like it! If a bully makes fun of your red hair or hearing aid or how short you are, just smile and agree.“Yes, I do have red hair.”“Yes, I do use a hearing aid.”“Yes, I am short.”

Then walk away!

Tell a parent, teacher, counselor, or other grownup you trust.

Adults can help you stop the bullying.

What a Bully Looks for — Helplessness

How You Can Protect Yourself—Don’t react.Kids who bully want you to be upset. They’re counting on it. So don’t give them what they want! Even if you feel scared or upset, try not to show it. Crying, showing fear, or acting mad encourages the bully to pick on you again. If a bully calls you names in gym class, do something unexpected. Yawn. Laugh. Walk away.

What a Bully Looks for—Isolation

How You Can Protect Yourself—Be with others.

Kids who bully love to target kids who are alone.They love it when no one knows what they’re up to.So try to hang out with other students or be within

sightof a grownup. (Most bullying happens when adultsare not around.) Tell a parent, counselor, teacher, or other grownup you trust. Adults can help you stop the bullying.

If You Are the Witness or Bystander

Take a stand and do not join in. Make it clear that you do not support what is going on.

Do not watch someone being bullied. If you feel safe, tell the person to stop. If you do not feel safe saying something, walk away and get others to do the same. If you walk away and do not join in, you have taken their audience and power away.

If You Are the Witness or Bystander

Support the person being bullied. Tell them that you are there to help. Offer to either go with them to report the bullying or report it for them.

Talk to an adult you trust. Talking to someone could help you figure out the best ways to deal with the problem. Reach out to a parent, counselor, teacher or another adult that you trust to discuss the problem, especially if you feel like the person may be at risk of serious harm to themselves or others.

THE BULLY

About 1 in 5 students admitted they are

responsible for bullying their peers.

Are you a bully?

1. I often tease people until they are upset.

2. I laugh when other people make mistakes.

3. I demand that other people do things my way.

4. I take other people’s belongings.

Are you a bully?

5. I like it when other people think I am tough.

6. I get angry a lot and stay angry for a long time.

7. I blame other people when things go wrong.

8. I get angry when other people are successful.

If You Are the Bully

Put Yourself in Their ShoesConsider how they must feel. If it

seems like you are hurting them at all, stop.

Ask the person being bullied how they feel. Maybe they are afraid or too embarrassed to say something.

Do not let your friends bully others. If your friends are bullying others, help them see how they are hurting others.

If You Are the Bully

Make it RightApologize. Sometimes telling

someone you are sorry can go a long way.

Focus on doing things differently from now on. Although you cannot change what has happened, you can change how you treat others in the future.

If You Are the Bully Get Help Talk with an adult. They may have

good ideas about what you can do to change how you treat others.

Ask for help. Seeing a counselor or a health professional may be helpful. Sometimes it is good to talk with someone who is not personally involved to help you find solutions.

Report Bad Behavior at Sloan Creek!

Ready, Set, Action!

We will need 6 volunteers for our bullying scene.

Sally has a group of friends at school. Her BFF started sending her text messages like “no one likes you” and “There is no room for you at our lunch table.” These messages are upsetting and hurtful to Sally.

What can Sally do?

SEAL

Stop and Strategize: Breathe, listen, and think when and where? Now or later?

Explain: What happened that you don’t like and what do you want?

Affirm: Admit (recognize) anything you did that contributed to the conflict but affirm your right to be treated with dignity by the other person and vice versa.

Lock: Lock in the friendship, take a vacation, or lock the friendship out.

CyberbullyingWhat is it? Sending hurtful, rude, or mean

text messages to others Spreading rumors or lies about

others by text, e-mail or on social networks

Creating websites, videos or social media profiles that embarrass, humiliate, or make fun of others

Why Is Cyberbullying So Harmful?

Bullying online is very different from face-to-face bullying

because messages and images can be: 

Sent 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year

Shared with a very wide audience Sent anonymously

What If You Are Cyberbullied? Stop – Block – Tell an Adult ThinkB4Uclick – Don’t reply back to the sender Do not erase or delete messages from cyber

bullies Inform an adult and/or your internet service

provider if it continues Inform an adult at school if you feel

uncomfortable coming to school because of the bully

Works Cited

www.bullying.org www.ca-kids.ca www.ForBetterLife.org Types of Cyber bullies h

ttp://www.stopcyberbullying.org/parents/howdoyouhandleacyberbully.html

If you are the victim, what can be done? http://www.cyberbullying.ca/

Educators Guide to Cyberbullying and Cyberthreats http://www.cyberbully.org/cyberbully/docs/cbcteducator.pdf

www.how-to-stop-bullying.com www.stopbullying.gov Queen Bees and Wannabes by Rosalind Wisem