In order to eliminate bullying from their lives, victims need multiple strategies to prevent it. If one strategy does not work, there should be another strategy in their arsenal ready to go. By providing children with more than one strategy to prevent bullying, they will be better equipped to deal with it.
Before giving our children strategies to try, we need to educate ourselves first. We do not want to give them advice that has proven ineffective or that may actually increase the bullying. For example, if we tell our children to fight back or threaten the bully, the bullying will not stop and may actually become worse.
Victims of bullying must remember that the bullies want to make them mad and sad. If the bully sees the victim crying or getting emotional, it is almost a guarantee that the bullying will continue. For this reason, it is important for victims of bullying to do their best to maintain their composure if they are being bullied.
Here are three strategies that victims of bullying can try:
1. Ignore the bully. Ignoring the bully can sometimes prove effective. If other students are teasing you, turning and walking away without saying anything is a strategy you can try. Even though it may be difficult, try not to act upset about the teasing. If you appear hurt or angry at the taunts, the bullying will continue. This strategy works well for the students who have a sense of well-being. Students who are less confident may not find this strategy particularly effective. Walking away while being teased may encourage the bully to continue teasing you because the bully thinks you are scared. However, it is a simple strategy to try. If it doesn’t work, move on to strategy number two.
2. Agree with the bully. Remember, bullies are trying to get a reaction out of you. If they don’t get a reaction, there is a chance they will leave you alone. If a bully is making fun of your clothes or a physical characteristic, just agree with them. This is a strategy that worked for me when I was in school. I was constantly being teased because I have big ears. After unsuccessfully trying other strategies, I decided to agree with the bullies. When they made disrespectful comments about my ears, I just agreed with them. This took the power away from the bullies. It was not fun for them. The bullies would say, “Hey, big ears.” Instead of getting angry or sad I would just say, “Yea, I do have big ears.” You should have seen their reaction. They were waiting for me to get angry with them. Instead, I defused the situation by admitting that my ears were in fact, pretty big. After it became clear that their taunts were not bothering me, the bullies left me alone.
3. Stay in a group. Bullies like to pick on students who are alone. It is much easier to bully students with no support system. Therefore, another positive strategy to use is to try and stay with a group of other students before school and in between classes. Bullies generally will not pick on students who are part of a larger group. This provides too many witnesses to the bullying incident. Bullies would rather harass students who are isolated and alone. So, staying with a group of other students as much as possible can be an effective strategy that potential victims of bullying can use.
Victims of bullying and students who are potential victims must be aware of a number of strategies they can use to eliminate bullying from their lives. Having only one strategy available to them is not enough. Bullying is a painful experience and students must know how to protect themselves.
