Back to School: Bully-Proof Your Student

It probably started in preschool when your child was playing with a house and a big mean four and a half year old just came over and stole their stuff right out of your sweet innocent little child's precious little hands. How dare they?!

The fact is, kids can be mean. Heck, adults can be mean too. You can't be with your child 24/7 to protect them from the school bully.  You can't control what other children do; but you can control how your child reacts. Or at least hopefully you can bully-proof your student.

For starters you want to ensure your precious baby isn't on the giving end of the bullying. Not only is it rude and wrong, it could land your assertive child a suspension. (Assertive sounds so much better than aggressive, don't you agree?).  

, it would be good to have a chat now versus later with your child. Bullying is preventable if all parents would just step up and teach children that it’s unacceptable. 

You would do well to explain some traits of a school bully before your child is faced with a situation where they are the one being bullied.   The "do unto others rule' is a good place to start. 

You can also explain that often children act like a bully to hide other feelings (anger, disappointment etc.)  If your student isn't doing anything intentional to warrant the rough and tough, the odds are in their favor that they may not be a target.

Parents know if a child is mature enough to understand what makes a bully act in a certain manner. If you still have a situation even after you've thoroughly and repeatedly discussed how to play nice and how to avoid instigating any negative playground behavior, it's time for Plan B.

Make sure that your child's teacher is aware of the situation. That's not considered tattling; it's your responsibility. The guidelines which were distributed by the State must be followed and the schools have specific rules that must be followed.

If you personally don't have the knowledge to equip your child, then enroll them in a martial arts class.  There is absolutely no correlation between children becoming violent after attending a few self defense lessons.  Don't you want to bully-proof your student?

With all that said, remind your child that the easiest way to remedy the situation may be to befriend the bully.