PARENTS:

You Can Prevent

Bullying

BULLYING. Its not a normal part of growing up. Its a relationship problem and requires

relationship solutions. Parents can take actions to keep children safe from bullying, and to prevent a
child from bullying others.

THE SIGNS
YOUR CHILD MAY BE EXPERIENCING BULLYING
IF THEY ARE:

YOUR CHILD MAY BE BULLYING OTHERS IF

THEY ARE:

avoiding or refusing to go to school

being aggressive with children, adults, pets

afraid of walking or riding the bus to and

from school or constantly asking to be driven
to school

holding a positive view of aggression or

passing off teasing as a joke

missing money, personal items, or have

torn clothing

demonstrating bossy or manipulative

behaviour

showing unexpected cuts, bruises or

scratches

leaving people out intentionally

making constant but vague complaints of

sickness, headaches, stomach aches, etc.
changing eating habits, sleep patterns, and
grooming habits

easily frustrated and/or quick to anger

demonstrating difficulty resisting peer

pressure
appearing not to recognize or care about other
peoples feelings

having trouble sleeping or frequent bad dreams

suddenly doing poorly in school or have lost
interest in school work
having mood swings or are sad, teary or
depressed when coming home from school
never inviting friends home or are having
difficulty making new friends
participating less in daily activities like
outdoor play, walking the dog, etc.

THE CYCLE

Bullying often persists because of the silence that surrounds it:

YOUNG PEOPLE WHO BULLY use threats to
build fear and maintain a code of silence.

THOSE WHO WITNESS BULLYING

fear that if they tell someone, they
will become a target and/or their
peer group relationships will suffer.

YOUNG PEOPLE WHO ARE BULLIED

fear that reporting will cause more
problems.

THE TYPES

Bullying takes these four forms, though it can often be a combination:

VERBAL BULLYING

PHYSICAL BULLYING

The use of words to hurt or humiliate

another person.

Targeted people are hit, kicked, slapped,

choked, poked, punched, pinched, pushed,
scratched, have their hair pulled, threatened or
their property is taken or damaged.

Most common form used by both boys

and girls.
Involves name-calling, insults, threats,
discriminating comments and constant
teasing.

1 in 3 students say they have been involved in

physical bullying monthly.

CYBERBULLYING

SOCIAL BULLYING

The use of technologies such as email, cell

phone and text messages, camera phones,
instant messaging and social media, to support
hostile behaviour by an individual or group and
harm others

The systematic diminishment of an individuals

sense of self through ignoring, isolating,
excluding, shunning, or spreading rumours.

Roughly 1 in 8 students said they experienced

electronic bullying (primarily on chat lines,
email and cellular phone text messaging)
monthly.

Highest among boys in grades 6 and 7.

Used to convince peers to exclude or reject a

certain person, cutting the target off from their
social connection.
Girls are the most common targets, although
both genders report bullying equally

Those who use technology to bully are removed

from the impact they have and can hide their
true identities, lowering the level of empathy
they may feel for those they target.

ACTIONS

Parents can take steps to help their child if they are being bullied or bullying others:
BE AN EXAMPLE of positive
relationships; be a role model.
TALK with your child about
acceptance and not judging;
help him/her see people as
individuals.

BUILD empathy in your child.

WORK with them to develop
anger management strategies.

SET UP learning consequences

to curb bullying behaviours.
MAINTAIN a loving, talking
relationship with your child.

Its also important to know school and organizational policies and where you can get support for
your child and yourself.
Sources: Bullying Prevention: What Parents Need To Know, Dr. Wendy Craig, Dr. Debra Pepler, Dr. Joanne Cummings.
Available for purchase through the Canadian Red Cross
The most underrated and enduring problem in schools today, Alyson McLellan https://www.bctf.ca/publications/NewsmagArticle.
aspx?id=14150

Visit the Canadian Red Cross website for more information on preventing violence, bullying
and abuse including Canadian Red Cross programming, resources and course registration.