Small Moments, a blog about school counseling at Armstrong Elementary School
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3rd Grade Problem Solving and Bullying Awareness

5/30/2018

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Dear Third Grade Parents and Guardians,

This week, students have been continuing their work on problem solving.  The last time we met, we learned about and reviewed “I feel” and “you feel” statements.  They look like this:

I feel __________ when you ________.  I would like you to __________.

You feel _________ when I _________.  You would like me to _________.

For this lesson, students continued to work with this problem solving strategy.  They brainstormed different I feel and you feel statements they might use to resolve different conflict situations.  We also started our discussion on bullying.  In our lesson, we defined bullying as repeated unexpected behaviors directed at another student.  Often, these behaviors make the target, or victim of bullying, feel upset and scared.  We talked about how bullying is different than other problem situations in that the strategies to solve most problems are no longer effective, making the victim feel powerless.  We will continue our discussion on bullying the next time we meet.    

In the meantime, please continue to encourage your children to try strategies like I feel sentences at home.  Practice is important for many things, including (and perhaps especially) problem solving.

Sincerely,

David Starr
School Counselor, Armstrong Elementary School
PH:  (508) 836-7760   Email:  starrd@westboroughk12.org
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Second Grade Bullying Awareness

5/30/2018

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Dear Second Grade Parents and Guardians,

This week, we are discussing bullying in second grade.  Given the Massachusetts bullying legislation, it is not only incredibly important for us to begin to educate our students on bullying at an early age, but is also the law.

For this lesson, students watched an episode from the show Arthur, a cartoon about the experience of a group of students in elementary school.  In the episode, Arthur, the main character, who is usually nice to his peers, starts to make fun of a friend for the sweater she is wearing.  It takes the work of his teacher, friends, and the target of the bullying for him to realize that what he thought was a joke was actually bullying.

As part of the lesson, the students took time to consider what made Arthur’s actions bullying.  They learned that when a person continues to tease someone even after they have been told to stop, it’s bullying.  The students shared their surprise that Arthur, who is usually a nice character, could become a bully.  They learned that anyone can make the mistake of teasing someone repeatedly without realizing how hurtful it can be.  We also highlighted the importance of the bystanders, the other friends who saw what was happening and worked to help the target.  Students learned that bystanders have a lot of power in a bullying situation.  They can make things worse by laughing at the actions of the bullying student.  Or they can work to help resolve the situation. 

If you have a moment, ask your child what they remember from the cartoon we watched.  You can even review the questions we discussed.  The episode can be found online by searching for “Arthur, So Funny I Forgot to Laugh,” and the questions we reviewed are:


  1. What made Arthur’s actions bullying?
  2. Were you surprised that a usually kind character like Arthur could become a bully, why or why not?
  3. Why do you think he bullied the girl in the video?
  4. In the end, who helped him figure out that what he was doing was wrong?

Thank you for your work reviewing this important lesson.
​
Sincerely,
David Starr
School Counselor, Armstrong Elementary School
PH:  508-836-7760              Email:  starrd@westboroughk12.org

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First Grade Bullying Awareness Lesson

5/22/2018

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Dear First Grade Parents and Guardians,

This week, we are discussing bullying in first grade.  Given the continued goal of improving bullying prevention and response in schools, it is not only incredibly important for us to begin to educate our students on bullying at an early age, it is also the law.

In our lesson, we defined bullying as repeated mean behaviors directed at another student.  Often, these actions make the target, or victim, feel scared, angry, upset, even powerless.

We read the book, “Stop Picking on Me,” by Pat Thomas.  The book explains that when someone is being bullied, it can be hard to get help.  However, reaching out to a trusted adult is the most important thing our students can do.  We connected bullying to our discussion on problem solving from last week, and realized that when someone is hurting our feelings and we cannot solve the problem on our own, getting help is an important next step. 

If you have a moment, please take time to review the definition of bullying with your children and remind them that if someone is ever hurting their feelings and they cannot get them to stop, it is important to tell a friend or adult.

Thank you for your help supporting this important lesson.

Sincerely,

David Starr
School Counselor, Armstrong Elementary School

PH:  508-836-7760, Email:  starrd@westboroughk12.org  
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May 15th, 2018

5/15/2018

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Dear Kindergarten Parents and Guardians,

This week, we are discussing bullying in kindergarten.  Given the continued goal of improving bullying prevention and response in schools, it is not only incredibly important for us to begin to educate our students about bullying at an early age, it is also the law.

In our lesson, we defined bullying as repeated mean behaviors directed at another person.  Often, these actions make the target, or victim, feel scared, angry, upset, even powerless.

We read the book “One,” by Kathryn Otoshi.  The book says that when it comes to resolving a bullying situation, everyone counts.  Bystanders play an important role.  They can be nice to the victim, help the victim get an adult, or even tell the student who is bullying to stop if they feel comfortable speaking up.   Students had a chance to write about and illustrate ways they could help someone who is being bullied.

If you have a moment, please review the definition of bullying with your children and encourage them to be active bystanders, people who do something to help those who are being bullied.

Thank you for your help reinforcing this important lesson.

Sincerely,

David Starr
School Counselor, Armstrong Elementary School
PH:  508-836-7760, Email:  starrd@westboroughk12.org

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    Author

    David Starr is the School Counselor at Armstrong Elementary School in Westborough, MA.

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