Today we got a letter from the guidance counselor at school about bullying.
It outlines what pro-active steps the school will be taking to prevent bullying in our classrooms. I wanted to share some of the letter with you, in hopes that maybe it will speak to some kids out there, who need to know what to do, or to know they are not alone.
*I really want to encourage all parents to read this entry from the blog mentioned at the bottom, even if you don't read the letter.
A Message from Your Counselor: (Excerpts from an Email to Christian Academy Families)
The American Psychological Association estimates that 90 percent of fourth- through eighth-graders are targets of bullying at some point. As believers we must take Christ’s command to “love one another” (John 13:13) very seriously and to raise the bar so that each student is challenged and held accountable to be “kind and compassionate to one another” (Eph 4:32).
It is important to define bullying, especially in these early elementary years when mean behavior may be a result of immature social skills, which require a different type of discipline. Bullying is:
- Intentional – the meanness is intended to hurt, on purpose, rather than accidental.
- Repetitive – the meanness occurs multiple times and in multiple situations.
- An Imbalance of Power – the meanness is intended to gain power over others in some way, either as a result of size, strength or popularity.
Bullying comes in three forms – physical (hitting, kicking, fighting or the threat of violence), verbal (unkind words, hurtful comments, teasing, using words to humiliate or embarrass) and relational (intent to damage friendships and/or self-esteem through excluding, isolating, rumors, gossip, eye rolling, cliques). These forms may occur together or separately.
During the month of September I will be in classrooms to define what bullying is and what it looks like (above). I will read the book One by Kathryn Otoshi, which is a simple but powerful story about how to take a stand against aggression so that everyone can count.
If you haven’t had The Talk with your children at home, I encourage you to do so. Glennon Melton from www.momastery.com has written The Talk she has with her children, and has graciously allowed you to use this as a template for your own (compassion) Talk. You can find Glennon’s Talk here: http://momastery.com/blog/2012/08/23/the-talk/.
I hope this will be useful to you! Have a great School Year!
Ms. Mary
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