Dealing With Bullies
Bullying is another name for harassment. Bullying can be physical- one or more students hurting another. More often, bullying is verbal and includes persistent threatening, teasing, ridicule or talking about another person.
Parents may tell their children to strike back at bullies. Usually, that creates more problems than it solves. But if your child is being bullied, he is not helpless. He can do some things that may stop the bullying. Here are some things he might try:
- Tell a friend. Ask your friend to help you—it’s tougher to pick on a person who has someone there for support.
- Walk away. It’s harder to bully someone who won’t stand still to listen.
- Chill out. Bullies seem to target kids who respond to their taunts—girls who cry easily or boys who have a tendency to fly off the handle. So try hard not to show any emotion. It’s no fun to bully someone who doesn’t seem to care.
- Try not to be alone in places where the bully picks on you. This may mean you need to sit in a different place on the bus or take a different way to school.
- Don’t fight back. Usually, bullies are bigger and stronger than you are. If you try to fight, you’ll probably get hurt. You could make the situation worse, or you could even get blamed for starting the fight.
- Write it down. Keep track of what happens—dates, times, places. Write down exactly what the bully says. When you are ready to tell an adult, you’ll have proof.
- Tell an adult. It’s pretty tough to stop bullying by yourself…so if you’ve tried some of the things on this list and the bullying hasn’t stopped, it’s time for you to tell an adult.
Anti-bullying websites to visit: