1. Lydia GreeneYouth Education ServicesSpecialistInterAct

2. Bullying is a form of emotional or physical abuse that has three definingcharacteristics: 1. Deliberatea bullys intention is to hurt someone 2. Repeateda bully often targets the same victim again and again 3. Power Imbalanceda bully chooses victims he or she perceives asvulnerable Bullying can be defined as an unwanted and aggressive behavior thatinvolves a real or perceived power imbalance. The behavior is usuallyrepeated or has the potential to be repeated over time. The imbalance of power can range from physical strength, embarrassinginformation and popularity.*Stopbullying.orgwww.eyesonbullying.org 3. Physical Any behavior that hurts apersons body or their possessions (hitting,spitting, breaking someone's things). Verbal Saying or writing mean things(Teasing, taunting, name calling) Social/Psychological Hurting someonesreputation or relationships (Excludingsomeone out of a group, spreading rumors,intentionally embarrassing someone inpublic. Cyber - bullying that takes place usingelectronic technology (cell phones,computers, tablets, social media sites, textmessages etc.) 4. wvbullyfree.com 5. Nearly 1 in 3 schoolchildren experience some level of bullyingbetween grades 6-12 83% of all girls claim to have some sort of harassment growingup, while 79% of boys experience the same harassment 6 out of 10 teens say they see bullying happen at school atleast once a day 1 out of 10 children who drop out of school do so because ofbullying 75% of all school shootings can be linked to some sort ofbullying & harassment There are a total of 444,000 suicide attempts in the country ayear Bullying is the third highest cause of death in young peoplethroughout the countryNobullying.com 6. Gets into physical or verbal fights Has friends who bully others Increasingly aggressive Competitive and worry about their reputation Get sent to the principals office or to detention frequently Have unexplained extra money or belongings Blame others for their problems Does not accept responsibility for their actions 7. Uninvolved parents Aggression in family Peers & friends who bully Lack of school rules Poor supervision- location of incident Social Aggression Self Esteem issues Media ModelsEducation.com 8. Revenge/Retaliation Believe the victim deserves it Boredom/Entertainment Peer Pressure Power and Social Status Believe they will not be caught Lacking EmpathyAbouthealth.com 9. Unexplainable injuries Lost or destroyed clothing, books, electronics jewelry etc. Frequent headaches or stomach aches, feeling sick or faking illness Changes in eating habits- binge eating or skipping meals Changes in sleeping patterns- difficulty sleeping or frequent nightmares Decline in grades, loss of interest in school work or not wanting to go toschool Sudden loss of friends or avoidance of social situations Feelings of helplessness or decreased self esteem Self destructive behaviors such as running away from home, harmingthemselves or talking about suicide 10. Questions to Ask Your ChildQuestions following a Indirect Variations Did the child hurt you on purpose? Was it done more than once? Did it make you feel bad or angry?or How do you feel about thebehavior? Did the child know you were beinghurt? Is the other child more powerful(i.e. bigger, scarier) than you insome way? How was the bus ride today? Who did you sit by at lunch? I notice that you seem to be feeling sicka lot and wanting to stay home: pleasetell me about that. Are kids making fun of you? Are there a lot of cliques at school?What do you think about them? Has anyone touched you in a way thatdid not feel right?www.poehealth.orgdisclosure: 11. Child who is bullied: Depression Anxiety Increased feelingsof sadness andloneliness Decreasedacademicachievement Loss of interest inactivities they usedto enjoy Difficulty sleepingChild who is a bully: More likely to abusealcohol and otherdrugs in future Get into fights,vandalize propertyand drop out of school Engage in earlysexual activity More Likely tobecome abusive tofuture spouses,partners & kidsEach day, 160,000 children in the UnitedStates stay home from school for fear ofbeing bullied.eyesonbullying.org 12. Contact school administrators written form is best! Include how the bullying incident/s affected your child Encourage the presence of anti-bullying clubs, workshops, etc Request that the school enforce a no tolerance stance on bullying Report to law enforcement if severe acts are intended or have occurred For Cyberbullying Contact the website administrators/report and block the user Keep/print emails, texts etc. as evidence of the bullying If the cyberbullying was initiated by a school peer, contact the schooladministrators with the evidence 13. Talk about bullying Read stories related to bullying Discuss recent events in the news Call it out! Discuss bullying incidents on TV, movies and music Help kids understand what bullying really is Encourage child to be an Upstander Empower children to make positive change in their schools- promote selfesteem and advocacy Model positive behaviors Set cyber safety rules Know what kids are doing online!