Many people ask, "What is Bullying?" Bullying is unwanted, aggressive behavior among school-aged children that involves a real or perceived power imbalance. The behavior is repeated, or has the potential to be repeated, over time. Many people use RAP to remember the definition of Bullying:
R- repeated often to the same person or different people
A- an imbalance of power
P- purposeful with the intent to make fun of, embarrass or exclude others
Typically all three of the above characteristics need to be in place for it to be called bullying behavior.
What do I do if my Child says they are being bullied? Listen to your child and report it to the classroom teacher. The school administration and counselor could also be contacted. What will they do? They will:
R- repeated often to the same person or different people
A- an imbalance of power
P- purposeful with the intent to make fun of, embarrass or exclude others
Typically all three of the above characteristics need to be in place for it to be called bullying behavior.
What do I do if my Child says they are being bullied? Listen to your child and report it to the classroom teacher. The school administration and counselor could also be contacted. What will they do? They will:
- Keep all the involved children separate as school personnel gets the facts.
- Get the story from several sources, both adults and kids.
- Listen without blaming.
- Will not call the act “bullying” while you are trying to understand what happened.
- Collect all available information.
- Report findings to appropriate people.