Click the image to return Home
This harmful behavior is familiar to us all. We have all been bullied, been a bully or have seen some poor soul be bullied. Regardless of what aspect we have had to deal with, it hurts us just the same. We would like to think that as adults we no longer have to deal with this problem, but all too often it carries into adult relationships too. At work, in social settings and in our personal and public relationships. The lucky ones amongst us have been blessed with a good sense of self or some good tools passed down by our family or mentors. For others it continues to hamper their personal growth, dim their personal happiness and suppress the ability to reach their full potential in work, love and creative pursuits.
Step No 1.
Awareness is key!! Start education and empathy building techniques at a young age. Make your child mindful of the kind of harm and long lasting effects hard words or heavy hands can cause. Use an image of a loved sibling or friend being treated in this way. Put your child in the victim’s role or share a personal story that deeply affected you in some way. Encourage your child to celebrate their peer’s differences and challenge them to learn something new from a classmate. This promotes understanding and takes away the quick response to belittle or judge the unfamiliar or odd’ they see in others.
Step No 2.
It is helpful to make it clear to your child that it is not only cruel and unacceptable to bully others, but that they themselves should also never condone such behavior. By doing so, they allow the bully to think that this form of abuse is okay or not unusual in any way. Make bullying uncool! This can be achieved by explaining that most bullies act out in this manner as a result of feeling insecure, feeling powerless, or possibly stemming from some personal failure/inadequacy. Often it may stem from being bullied themselves.
Step No.3
Teach your child to never suffer in silence. Tell someone. Whether it be teacher, parent , mentor or friend, never let them suffer alone. This is why bullying continues to be an ongoing problem, and often takes place over a long period of time. The majority of those either subjected to this treatment or witness to it, are often either scared to bring it to someone’s attention in fear of worse reprisal or being made to endure even worse punishments themselves for bringing the problem to light. Educators and parents can only address issues that they are aware of and are quite quick and happy to do so if only made informed.
Step No 4.
If your child has been a victim of bullying, inform the school immediately. Start an anti-bullying campaign at your child’s school and give the students free reign and creativity. This is an excellent way to take bullying out of the closet and give the power back to all students as a whole. The more of their own ideas, slogans, and artwork that they produce on their own, the more they will embrace the idea. Regular talks in class, however brief , touching on this topic will keep the idea alive and encouraging children to air their feelings or solutions will make those that are bullied feel less alone. Praise or recognition for those that have worked for or acted in a way that suppresses bullying should be commonplace.
Step No 5.
Lastly, involve your child in activities with like minded children. Whenever possible encourage group interactions. Focus on the traits that your child enjoys or excels at whether it be sport minded, academic based or in a creative path. This could be music, drawing, poetry, crafts, etc. The creative pursuits have the added bonus of letting the person involved in them express emotions and feelings. When children interact in a group hobby, task or activity, it promotes team work, empathy and a sense of belonging.
Change Starts Within.Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com
Vancouver, WA 30 Percent of children in the United States are involved in school bullying according to National Youth Violence Prevention. That is 5.7 million American children who either are bullies or are picked on at school.
We’ve forgotten to raise our kids with kindness, says Aaron Taylor, father and author of the new book The Pumpkin Goblin Makes Friends. Taylor could blame the changing dynamic of the American family or he could point the finger at the internet for making bullying less personal. It doesn t matter to me why kids pick on each other, he says. I just want to be able to help stop it.
Scholastic.com suggests the budding bully needs as much attention as the child who is being victimized. The website reports that being the aggressor as a pre-teen is likely to inhibit positive relationships later in life. In short, the school bully is just as likely to grow up traumatized as the victim.
Taylor s book The Pumpkin Goblin Makes Friends is about a monster with a child s heart who is inspired to stop picking on neighborhood children and to start mending the relationships he had damaged. “I feel it is very important for children to learn about the harmful affects of bullying at a young age”, says Taylor. “If we can reach them before they experience it first-hand, our children will be able to identify and prevent this destructive behavior.”
A Columbia University study finds bullying now starts as young as pre-school and intensifies as the angry child ages. More girls bully than boys, but boys tend to be more physical in their attacks. The study goes on to suggest the reason for bullying is the same as the result of it: low self esteem and a lack of friends.
Reaching kids on their own level is the only way to stop the cycle, says Taylor. I geared this book toward young children to show them how unhappy the Pumpkin Goblin is when he picks on the neighborhood children. It isn t until a little boy befriends him that the big bully realizes how much nicer it is to have friends rather than people who are afraid of you. A central message here is picking on others doesn t make your pain go away.
As with most children books, the moral is hidden among rhyming prose and colorful pictures. Taylor suggests reading the book with your young children.
Give them the tools to not be a bully and give them the ideas of how to make a bully into a friend rather than a rival. Kindness and respect isn t just the best thing for the kid being attacked – it s the best thing for the bully too.Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com
Parents have concerns regarding a lot of things once their children start going to school or making friends. Parents want their children to reach great heights of academic success. They also want their child to stay away from any potential hazards that they may have to face once they start going out & making friends. Child bullying has become very common these days. Children are often harassed, humiliated and tortured by their playmates or companions. This becomes a serious issue sometimes & the child feels embarrassed. Sometimes a child feels neglected & humiliated so much that his morale drops down and he may also give in to suicidal thoughts. Parents should take extra care about making their child aware, of certain steps when bullied.
First and foremost, it is very important to look at the warning signs of your child getting bullied so that you can provide him timely assistance.
Here are some warning signs to make you aware of the fact that your child is getting bullied. Think of providing assistance to your child immediately if he behaves in the following way:
Warning signs in your child:
Sudden reduced appetite.
Getting anxious at short intervals.
Reduced interest in school work.
Remarkable drops in school grades.
Having fewer friends than before.
Having no friends at all.
Unable to sleep well.
Having frequent nightmares.
Loss of appetite.
Wants to take a different route to school than used previously.
Showing signs of low self esteem all of a sudden.
Feeling sick before school.
Pretending to have a headache, stomach ache & eager to take a leave.
The child has unexplained cuts & bruises.
Don t want to take a bus to school all of a sudden.
If you notice any of or more signs in your child then understand that it is time to get into action. You should monitor the child surroundings, keep tabs on his activities and know about his friends. Also try to inform the school authorities about the sudden change in your child s behavior. The school authorities will help the child getting out of the problem faced by him.
Remember, that a child who is bullied has something different in him that instigates a bully to criticize his action. The child who is bullied looks different or come from a different culture or belongs to a different religion. They are weaker, younger or lack of social confidence.
A child with a disability also becomes easy target for bullies. A child can be a target for bullies because he wears contact lenses, spectacles, show signs of poverty, is shy or quiet.
In short, a child who stands out in the crowd can be easily bullied.
Once you observe signs of bullying in your child, it is time to act & not panic. Let your child know that he is the best and can approach you any time he gets into trouble. Increase confidence in your child by praising him for his good deeds.
It is very important for you to follow up with your child & find out whether bullying incidents are still occurring in his life. Let the child know that you are interested.Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com
A recent report of frequent bullying in American schools has brought national attention to the stressors commonly faced by teens stressors that many parents and teachers are unaware of. Society is struggling to understand how ‘atypical’ adolescent peer pressure has escalated into vicious student behavior at school. As educators seek ways to increase compassion and empathy among students, many are finding that meditation offers promising, measurable results for tackling the underlying stressors that give rise to bullying. The Problem of Bullying
The (US) National Center for Educational Statistics estimates that one third of students ages 12-18 are bullied at school and online. In all socio-economic levels, schools are experiencing heightened security concerns and acts of violence.
High divorce rates among parents, violent entertainment, and drug abuse by youth even the use of prescription anti-depressants are suspected of contributing to the problem. However, these factors are now being recognized as symptoms of an underlying cause: the epidemic of stress in our society.
A promising solution: stress-free schools
Hundreds of public and private schools throughout the US and around the world have benefited from a program of Quite Time, [1] where students have the option to sit quietly for a few minutes or to practice meditation to relieve stress. It s like a washing machine,’ says Jody, a meditating student at a Detroit high school previously plagued by violence. ‘Disturbing thoughts wash away.’
A recent study, conducted by the University of Connecticut, found that 106 at-risk adolescents in three high schools reduced levels of stress, anxiety, hyperactivity, and emotional problems when practicing the Transcendental Meditation technique over a period of four months at school, as compared with controls. [2] The TM technique is an effortless, non-religious meditation that is easy for students to learn and practice at school or on their own.
According to Dr. William Stixroud, when the nervous system becomes settled and quiet during meditation, the stress response starts operating normally. As a result, children are simply less impulsive. The process of quieting the mind and body through the Transcendental Meditation technique increases coherence between the two hemispheres and the front and the back part of the brain. [3] More integrated brain functioning improves the ability in children to control their impulses, says Dr. Stixroud. They get in trouble less; they act without thinking less; they can inhibit the tendency to get distracted better.
Effective meditation can also help strengthen children that are typically victims of bullying by building self-esteem and resilience to stress. Research studies have demonstrated that the TM technique not only reduces stress, it increases inner happiness, and results in improved flexibility, social ability, and confidence. [4] When adolescents practice mediation they tend to find approval from within rather than needing it from the outside, which leads to greater independence, less influence from peer pressure, and less abusive behavior.
References:
1. David Lynch Foundation for Consciousness Based Education
2. At-risk adolescents reduce stress, anxiety, and hyperactivity through Transcendental Meditation. Robert Colbert, PhD, Assistant Professor of Educational Psychology, University of Connecticut (US). Presented at the Annual meeting of the Society for Behavioral Medicine, March 2008
3. Increased EEG Coherence during Transcendental Meditation : International Journal of Neuroscience 14: 147 151, 1981.
4. ‘Transcendental Meditation reduces stress and increases happiness among middle school students.’ Rita Benn, PhD, Director of Education, Complementary and Alternative Medicine Research Center, University of Michigan. National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland, AprilArticle Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com
Part of an educational formula, yoga for kids helps the young ones cope with stress in the best of ways. If in India children receive yoga classes at very small ages, in the West, parents make the choice whether to train their kids or not. The very good part The great advantage of yoga for kids is that they develop self-awareness and get in touch with their inner part a lot sooner and better than an adult. Yoga for kids brings body and mind control as well as it helps develop lots of positive behavioral elements.
Presently, some schools include yoga for kids as an additional curricular activities, but most of the time classes are independent. Just like dance and karate lessons, yoga for kids can be easily squeezed in the child’s daily program. Therapists point out the fact that yoga has had very good results in the case of children who suffer from hyperactivity or attention deficit. Yoga for kids with such behavioral problems soothes the nerves and channels the moving impulses in a non-destructive manner. Self-confidence, balance and calm are the great benefits to result from yoga-for-kids programs.
Moreover, with yoga, kids learn how to conquer victories over mind and body and how to peacefully cooperate. A good advantage of young bodies is that the anatomical flexibility makes the postures a lot easier to achieve; adults on the other hand have to work a lot more to achieve enough mobility to practice yoga. Although the physical part is not that challenging, a major obstacle comes from meditation and relaxation, particularly because kids enter such states more difficultly. Therefore, visualization remains the main way of helping young and grown up yoga trainees learn how to relax.
The posture names in yoga for kids classes allow children to learn them more easily. Thus, instead of performing asanas they will make a bridge, a mountain, a cat, a dog or a cobra, to name only a few. Moreover, trainers never push the practice of yoga for kids to the limit of pain, as the activity wouldn’t be that attractive with an extra pressure.
