Edgewood School

- Help your child eliminate excuses for not getting involved.
  - Review different ways to help:
    - Refuse to watch and/or join in on the behavior (don’t give the bully an audience)
    - Change the subject
    - Tell the person doing the bullying to stop
    - Be a friend to the target/victim (talk to them later; write them a note; call them at home)
    - Tell an adult (there is a difference between tattling and telling:
      
      tattling is when you tell to get someone in trouble & telling is when you inform to get someone out of trouble.
- Compliment your child when they have helped a friend in a difficult situation.
- Be a good listener.
- Let your child know that they are not alone in this.
- Let your child know that it is not their fault.
- Compliment your child on their ability to share this problem and compliment their strengths – empower!
- Guide your child through the problem-solving process & inform the school.
- Role-play ways to handle and be assertive.
- Find books and movies that address similar issues and discuss them with your child
- Involve your child in activities outside of school.
- Be a positive role model.
- Intervene immediately with restitution, resolution and reconcilitation!
  - Restitution involves fixing what you did wrong – apologize
  - Resolution involves figuring out how to keep it from happening again
  - Reconciliation involves coming up with a way to heal the hurt – inviting the other person over, writing a note, etc.
- Nurture empathy through conversation, TV, movies, books and volunteerism.
- Talk about your feelings and the feelings of others.
- Create opportunities to “do good” and compliment.
- Use a Behavior Change Worksheet (stop by my office for a copy).
- Monitor TV, computer, and music.
- Be a positive role model – actions speak louder than words.
- Share your own experiences with bullying.
- Engage your child in constructive and fun family activities.