Monday, March 21, 2016

Cyber Bullying Recap

On Saturday I went to Do Space for a workshop on Cyber Bullying. 


It was put on by Common Sense Media.

Here's a recap as to what they talked about, or you can read my post. :)

Bullying is a repeated aggression directed to 1 or more person.
  • Physical 
  • Verbal
  • Relational - Manipulating someone's social standing, or destroying their family
Boys in general are more physical, and girls tend to be more relational. Really either sex can do any of the above.

Cyber bulling is the same thing as bulling, but it's online. 1/3 of 10-18 year olds have had some kind of problem with cyber bulling. The biggest problem is that only 1 in 10 tell a teacher or a parent. They hide it. Many feel like if they tell they are going to make the situation worse.
  1. Target - The person being bullied. Offer support to them. You may need to talk to the bullies parents, a teacher, or principle. As a parent talk to your kids even when they are younger about bullying. When or if bullying occurs discuss all steps you as a parent will take to stop the negative behavior. Otherwise it may cause added anxiety for your child.

  2. Bully - Acknowledge the problem. Try to get at the core of their feelings. Oftentimes a bully has been bullied themselves, or were only given negative attention as a child.

  3. Bystander - Is someone that is around when the bulling takes place. They could be in the friend circle of the target if it's online. Encourage them to keep open communication with you.

  4. Upstander - Is a Bystander, but takes their roll and feeds positivity into the situation. They may do this by adding humor to de- escalate the situation, distracting the bully, or standing up for the Target. Encourage your kids to be Upstanders! Work with your kids to instill empathy. 
Signs of a Target getting Bullied:

  • Anxious
  • Secretive Behavior
  • Unusually Defensive
  • Change in Behavior
  • Spends a lot of time online
  • Loss of interest in achievement - such as grades dropping, unwilling to do things they'd normally want to do
What Kids Should be Taught:

  • Don't share passwords
  • Treat others with respect - Upstander
  • Think before you reveal
  • Document if they are bullied by taking screen shots, or printing things out
Resource: Common Sense media is free to use. You do not have to have a password to use it.

There is much more to browse and use on their website. 

Screen Time is the next topic that Common Sense Media is going to tackle. It's next Saturday from 1 -2:30 at Do Space. School aged kids can be brought with you. 

Free - Please register here.

6 comments:

Theresa Mahoney said...

I embarrassed Allison a few weeks back. She was tagged in a Facebook post that I took as targeting another girl in a bullying way. Now, Allison was just tagged and was not participating, but I marched into her room and loudly let her know that it was unacceptable to hang around with girls who act like that. I told her to immediately unfriend the girl from Facebook, and if they girl asked why, tell her that she is not allowed to be friends with bullies. I then pointed at her friend who was spending the night and said I better never catch her dragging Allison into those situations either lol. I'm sure she didn't like my reaction, but I did get my point across to both girls that I would not respond nicely to any bullying situation they were associated with.

Afterwards, I commented on the post letting all the girls involved that I was disgusted with their behavior and knew who all their mothers were. Kind of put the scare in them after that ;)

Optimistic Existentialist said...

As a child, I was bullied quite bit. Luckily it stopped once I was in 10th grade and stood up for myself without fear, but during 8th and 9th grade it was pretty bad. I am so glad that there is an increased awareness of bullying today! It can actually save lives.

Cascia Talbert said...

Even though there is a lot of anti-bullying programs, it is still a big problem. Cyber bullying is awful. Glad to hear you are brining more awareness to this issue. Have a terrific Tuesday!

Kristi Maloney said...

This sounds like a wonderful conference on bullying. We use Common Sense Media often. I am fortunate in that my boys don't really text and have little to no interest in social media. They are 14 and 11.

mail4rosey said...

Bullying is a big deal. Cyber bullying is as bad as in person and often carries over to in person just the same. :(

Odyssey Through Nebraska said...

I hope that is not something my kids have to ever deal with. I like the approach of "Common Sense Media." This article is a great resource.

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