|
Reducing Bullying
From a post at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DisciplineWithoutStress
Here
is a marvelously successful idea to have
students understand the motivation of those
students who operate on level B—in
this case bullies who pick on others.
Use a ruler to demonstrate a teeter-totter
(see-saw). Hold it flat and describe that
this is how it looks when it is balanced. People who are getting along and making
responsible choices keep the teeter-totter
in balance.
However, when one person starts to pick on
or bully someone, the teeter-totter gets out
of balance. The person who is picked on
usually starts to feel "lower" than the
other person. This is a normal reaction.
However, if you reflect on the motivation,
it is the bully who initially feels bad
because of a desire for attention or for
power. Otherwise, there would be no
reason to bully.
So, it is the bully who is the first one
to feel inferior. The bullying behavior
is actually an attempt to pull the other kid
down to the bully's level—to try to bring
things back into balance from the bully's
perspective.
People should see the bully as someone who
is having a bad day or feeling bad for some
reason. Challenge students to keep this
in mind as they decide how to respond to
bullying behavior.
With younger kids, prompt them to say,
"Sorry you are having a bad day." The usual
result is that the bully is left speechless.
Many times the choice is simply to recognize
what is going on and walk away, realizing
that the person with the problem is the
bully.
Having youngsters understand that
bullying behavior indicates that the bully
Is "out of balance" with life is empowering
and very liberating.
The discussion also opens the eyes of the
bully. No one wants to be known as
someone who has problems. These students usually
have never thought about their own behavior
in this way.
|
