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, “The Bully Blockers Club,” by Teresa Bateman. In it, the main character tries a number of different strategies to get another student to stop bullying her. In the end, asking for help from other students as well as her parents and teachers ends up being the best strategy to solve the problem. We connected bullying to our discussion on dangerous and destructive behaviors from last week, and realized that when someone is hurting our feelings and we cannot solve the problem on our own, reaching out to friends and adults 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: [email protected]