Bullying

Bullies target certain people.

Whether they be school studentsteam players in a sporting teams or adults in the workplace.

What I do is change that part of my clients that makes them targeted by bullies.

NegativityI work on my clients self-esteem and anxiety and aim to give them a voice and take their power back. I also teach them strategies from what I call my BULLYING FIRST AID TIPS. All these together, should find those who are being bullied, equipped with the power to find themselves removed from the bullies’ sights.

Unfortunately bullies will still be bullies BUT you will not be in their line of fire.

A definition of bullying.

Bullying is repeated verbal, physical, social or psychological behaviour that is harmful and involves the misuse of power by an individual or group towards one or more persons. Cyberbullying refers to bullying through information and communication technologies-especially social media.

Each individual student who has been bullied or is bullying others will respond and act differently. A student’s behaviours and moods can also change for a variety of reasons. However, the following are some signs that may indicate a student is experiencing bullying:

Signs a parent might report:

  • doesn’t want to go to school
  • changes their method or route to school or are frightened of walking to school
  • changes in sleep patterns
  • changes in eating patterns
  • frequent tears, anger, mood swings
  • unexplained bruises, cuts, scratches
  • missing or damaged belongings or clothes
  • arriving home hungry

Signs a teacher might notice:

  • becomes aggressive and unreasonable
  • starts getting into fights
  • refuses to talk about what is wrong
  • school grades begin to fall

Sometimes bullying can be less obvious. Signs can include:

  • student is often alone or excluded from friendship groups at school
  • student is a frequent target for teasing, mimicking or ridicule at school
  • change in the student’s ability or willingness to speak up in class and
  • appears insecure or frightened

Students who are more likely to be bullied are also more likely to:

  • feel disconnected from school and not like school
  • lack quality friendships at school
  • display high levels of emotionality that indicate vulnerability and low
  • levels of resilience
  • be less well accepted by peers, avoid conflict and be socially
  • withdrawn
  • have low self-esteem
  • be relatively non-assertive
  • be different in some way

A student who bullies may:

  • repeatedly tease, imitate or make fun of the same targets
  • feel the need to dominate or control others
  • show no compassion for someone who’s experiencing bullying
  • repeatedly exclude or ignore the same target
  • whisper behind their backs on a frequent basis.
  • feel disconnected from school and dislike school
  • demonstrate good leadership skills
  • demonstrate good verbal skills and ability to talk themselves out of trouble

Behaviours that do not constitute bullying include:

  • mutual arguments and disagreements (where there is no power imbalance)
  • not liking someone or a single act of social rejection
  • one-off acts of meanness or spite
  • isolated incidents of aggression, intimidation or violence

I run 1 hour workshops in the school holidays to help with this-especially for Primary school students.

For more information, visit our Preschool Drama page.