How To Recognize and Stop Cyber Bullying | Corona, CA

When bullying moves from the playground to online spaces, that is when it becomes cyberbullying. Bullying via cell phones, computers, or gaming means that negative, harmful, false, or mean comments are being expressed. It can include making someone feel embarrassed, or humiliated, or sharing their private information.

The most common places where cyberbullying occurs are on social media platforms, text or messaging apps, instant messages, email, and gaming forums. Bullying via these means leaves a record of comments shared, is harder for teachers to recognize, and can scar one’s reputation.

Cyberbullying has the same consequences as bullying that happens in person. It can make targets feel awful about him or themselves, scared, or embarrassed, and often don’t think their stories won’t be believed. If your son or daughter is the victim of bullying and comes to you with their stories, thoughts or questions, it’s important to make them feel heard and help them identify hateful comments online.

If you would like to learn more about bullying, contact Simple Acts of Care and Kindness at 866-459-7225 or visit www.simpleacts.org for additional information.

The Difference Between Harassment and Bullying | Corona, CA

The difference between bullying and harassment is a thin line. They both revolve around power dynamics, control, harmful actions, and the perceived ability of the target to stop their experience. Yet, the things that differentiate bullying from harassment stem from the notion that the target its part of a “protected class” designation. Here are some things to be aware of when you consider whether what your child is experiencing is bullying or harassment.

According to California law, there is not an express definition of prohibited bullying conduct beyond guidelines for schools to determine disciplinary consequences. In order to suspend or recommend expulsion, a school must find the following requirements within any circumstance that has been brought to their attention.

“Severe or pervasive physical or verbal acts or conduct, including communications made in writing or by means of an electronic act … directed toward one or more pupils that has or can be reasonably predicted to have one or more of the following effects. 

  1. Placing a reasonable pupil or pupils in fear of harm to that pupil or those pupils’ person or property.
  1. Causing a reasonable pupil to experience a substantially detrimental effect on his or her physical or mental health
  1. Causing a reasonable pupil to experience substantial interference with his or her academic performance
  1. Causing a reasonable pupil to experience substantial interference with his or her ability to participate in or benefit from the services, activities or privileges provided by a school.”

While California only sets these precedents for bullying, both California and federal law prohibit harassment based on legally protected attributes associated with “protected class” designations. Protected classes include race, color, religion, sex, age, disability, and national origin. Harassment, as it pertains to students, is defined as conduct that creates a “hostile environment” that limits students from participating in or benefiting from school activities or services.

In California, the Education Code states that the school may suspend or recommend for expulsion students in grades 4 to 12 when the school has determined that “the pupil has intentionally engaged in harassment, threats or intimidation, directed against school district personnel or pupils, that is sufficiently severe or pervasive to have the actual and reasonably expected effect of materially disrupting classwork, creating substantial disorder, and invading the rights of either school personnel or pupils by creating an intimidating or hostile educational environment.”

It is important to note that harassment may include bullying, and there are instances in which this holds true. For example, harassment under federal law does not need to be directed at a specific target, is not necessarily motivated by the intent to harm, and is not always repeated, as with bullying.

If you would like to learn more about bullying, contact Simple Acts of Care and Kindness at 866-459-7225 or visit www.simpleacts.org for additional information.

Bullying Prevention Begins With Developing High Self-Esteem | Corona, CA

Building up your child’s self-esteem is paramount to bullying prevention. When we help our children recognize and feel proud of, their accomplishments, we help teach them their worth. Over time, we can help him or her recognize how their strengths contribute to those around them, teaching them in turn how to repay that support to their peers. When a child is so busy focusing on their skills and cultivating new ones, they don’t have time to be a bully to others- they are busy improving themselves! Here are some easy ways to begin building your child’s self-esteem:

High-lows: At dinner, ask you child what their “highs” and “lows” for the day were. Maybe their “high” was helping a friend solve a math equation, and their “low” was experiencing bullying for being good at math. You can be proud of your child for their willingness to help while reinforcing that being good at math is a good thing, and that maybe the child who was being a bully about it, really just wants some help, because it’s not as easy for them to absorb.

Win-wins. Ask your child about their day, and when they share a moment in which they “won” i.e. felt good about themselves, or did a good thing, reinforce the behavior, and ask how they helped or can help in the future, someone else “wins” tomorrow.

When our children feel confident in themselves, they will move confidently through the world, helping to make it a better place for those around them.

If you would like to learn more about bullying, contact Simple Acts of Care and Kindness at 866-459-7225 or visit www.simpleacts.org for additional information.

Your Child Can Help Prevent Bullying, Here’s How | Corona, CA

Believe it or not, you can teach your child how to be an effective and empathetic support to their peers experiencing bullying. Here are five ways you can foster the notion within your child that he or she can be a champion for change and help prevent bullying.

  1. Communication starts in the home. Bullying can be a difficult topic to bring up with your child, but if you establish a foundation of trust with your child, they will be more likely to share their positive and negative experiences at school. When you make them feel safe and heard, they may begin to make their peers feel that way in kind.

2. Being a safe bystander. When children witness bullying, it can affect them too, even if they don’t directly engage in the situation. Help your child understand how he or she can help their classmate by offering to listen to their feelings or tell a teacher what’s going on, without getting directly involved.

3. Respond intentionally to conversations around bullying. When your child brings bullying to your attention, you can help them learn how they should respond, by being intentional with your response. Listen to him or her, ask questions that illicit a thoughtful response, and try to share how you feel he or she can act the next time they experience something similar.

4. Raise awareness. If your child is consistently sharing instances of bullying, share with him or her the ways they can safely take action, and reach out to adults closer to the situation to inform them of what you are being told. Raising awareness in your child about how to react, and within your community about the issue, is more likely to solve problems that prevent future bullying.

Visit StopBullying.gov for more helpful tips on how to prevent bullying, and have a great school year!

If you would like to learn more about bullying, contact Simple Acts of Care and Kindness at 866-459-7225 or visit www.simpleacts.org for additional information.

Helping Kids Understand Compassion | Corona, CA

As school terms come to a close and summer begins to set in, we feel it is important to share some ways you can help your kids better understand what it means to be compassionate.

Children watch and learn many things both consciously and unconsciously. They observe our behavior, that of their teachers, their fellow classmates, and people they admire. If you are a parent helping a friend through a difficult time, invite your child to sit with you as you prepare a gift basket, or ask their opinion on what to write in a get-well card. Including your child in these scenarios will allow them to ask questions and feel like they are contributing. It will also tonight curiosity and allow opportunities for you to share your values, or otherwise teach them compassionate behaviors.

Another thing we can do is when they arrive home from school, ask questions beyond “What did you learn today”, by asking questions that make them consider their friend’s experiences. Instead of “Did you perform well” you could ask “How did that lesson make you feel” or “How did your friend feel when you said or did that today”. This invites them to consider their own feelings and the feelings they witnessed their friend experience. If their reactions to similar circumstances differ when they pertain to themselves versus their peers, see it as an opportunity to teach them that all people are equal, and their feelings should be just as valid as their own.

These are two ways we can begin to incorporate higher-level thinking into our children’s consideration of their daily lives. They won’t necessarily pick up on it on their own; it’s likely they are at an age where their own human experience is the only one they consider, so invite them to consider others whenever possible to help them understand compassion, and pass it along.

If you would like to learn more about bullying, contact Simple Acts of Care and Kindness at 866-459-7225 or visit www.simpleacts.org for additional information.