Content provided by Tommy Lee, Safety Instructor East Coast Martial Art
Bullies have been around since the beginning of time and they aren’t going to go away anytime soon. In today’s world, bulling is not just on the playground, at lunch and in the hallways, it’s also in cyberspace.
In the past, children could leave bullying behind when they left school, but in todays environment bullies are using technology to continue to follow their victims.
Bullying is very difficult to escape once you become a target. The first step to stopping or slowing down bullying is to recognize if your child is 1) The Bully, 2) The Victim, 3) The Bystander. It’s important to understand how to educate your child when you recognize he/she is in one of the three groups.
If your child is the victim, watch the short video on some defenses he or she can use.
Here are 3 quick tips on how to non-physically defend yourself from bullying:
- Don’t exchange insults with bullies! This will only make he bully try harder to make you look bad in front of the others. If you insult the bully, you will also prolog the bullying because they will be embarrassed and will make sure they get even.
- Don’t accept getting teased to fit in with the popular group! Some children tolerate teasing to try to be accepted by a popular group of kids. If you are hoping they will stop teasing you as soon as they get to know you, it most likely will not happen. Others will also recognize you let this happen and you may open yourself up for another person or group to target you.
- Immediately report the bullying or harassment! Many popular kids are very concerned about remaining popular, not only with their classmates but also with their teachers. Mention what is happening to a teacher you trust. Bullies thrive in an environment of silence. A student talking to an adult in this situation may be enough to stop the offending behavior.
A confident educated child is a bully proof child. Teach your children the things they need to become bully proof. Minimize their change to be targeted by following simple tips and give them the confidence that if they had to protect themselves they actually could. Self defense can be many things. We can teach our kids to walk away, de-escalate the situation, fight fire with fire and fight or fight fire with water and diffuse the situation.
In the coming weeks we will cover Bullying on the School Bus, Bullying at Lunch, Bullying in the Halls and Bullying Online.
Let’s keep their childhood like it should be, filled with fun, excitement and joy and let’s knock out the bullying.
I am so passionate about stopping bullying that any parent who has made it this far in reading my article has earned a Complimentary Workshop for their child and his/her best friend.
Complimentary Workshop
Click here and register today for a Bully Proof Workshop or call 410-268-1508 and ask for Erik Hollon, a Certified BullyProof Master Instructor.