Watching your child grow in a free and happy zone is actually a treat to the parents , however with the fast paced world and instant gratification , children nowadays seek attention and gratification along with sense of pride by bullying their peers or friends.

It’s challenging for any parent to believe that their child is bullying another child, but it happens. You might be feeling shocked, worried, fearful or defensive - these are all normal reactions.

Bullying can be stopped and parents can make a big difference and bring in camerediare amongst the children.

Bullying is a serious concern in all schools. For some children, being bullied by their peers can result in a severe respone or a reaction to the abuse, including poor self esteem, depression, being rude, going back to their shell,anxiety about going to school and even suicidal thoughts.

Bullying is not normal behaviour or just part of growing up hence have to be taken seriously !

Top 10 Activities to Build Social Skills in Preschoolers

Inter weaving learning into everyday activities is a powerful and effective way to make learning of pre schoolers an integral part of your child’s daily life. By blending learning with routine tasks and play, one can build curiosity, creativity, collaboration, global citizenship and a love for knowledge. Here are some effective strategies to integrate learning into everyday activities with your child:

Understanding Bullying

The emotional stability and mental health of a student plays an essential role in his or her academic growth and success. The emotional state of a student can be greatly damaged when he or she is the victim of bullying.

Unfortunately, bullying is an active and serious problem that affects millions of students in K-12 classrooms on an everyday basis which at times go noticed or unnoticed. One could argue that the issue of bullying is becoming more prevalent in present time than it ever was before. In recent years, the rise of technology and instant gratification gave birth to a new form of bullying named cyber bullying. Kids no longer have a safe space when they leave school.

Bullies are able to continue the tormenting of their peers through social media, texting, email, and countless other outlets. Bullying can affect students physically, emotionally, and academically and even their daily behaviors too Teachers now have the responsibility to provide a safe and comfortable learning environment for their students. In order to provide that safe environment, there must be a stop to bullying. The objective of this paper is to identify the root causes of bullying, the effects bullying has on students, and the most effective strategies to prevent and intervene with bullying in the classroom.

Types of Bullying

Bullying can range from physical bullying , verbal bullying, emotional bullying, racial bullying, cyber bullying, religious bullying, sexual bullying and disability bullying.

Physical bullying can be hitting, pushing, kicking, shoving, beating up, stealing or damaging property with physical reactions. While physical bullying causes harm to a child’s body or property,. Such offensive, degrading and rejecting behaviors undermine and destabilize victimized children’s sense of themselves including their self esteem, of their place in the school

Verbal Abuse Includes name-calling, mocking, hurtful teasing, insults, slurs, humiliating or threatening someone, racist comments, or sexual harassment at all times thereby making the child feel extremely low with his /her self esteem.

Cyber bullying Includes the use of email,social media platform ,chat platforms , WhatsApp groups cell phones, text messages, and internet sites to threaten, harass, embarrass, socially exclude, or damage reputations and friendships.

Identifying At-Risk Children

Some signals that may reflect about a child being bullied are

• Unexplainable injuries on the body and child hides them
• Lost or destroyed clothing, books, electronics, or jewelry with no explanations
• Frequent and sudden illness complaining of headaches, stomachs and body aches
• Changes in eating pattern , either eating more or less in an abnormal manner, like suddenly skipping meals or binge eating. Child may come home from school hungry because they did not eat lunch.
• Difficulty sleeping or frequent nightmares and sudden change in the mood with rude behavior or getting frightened.
• Declining grades, loss of interest in schoolwork, or not wanting to go to school
• Sudden loss of friends or avoidance of social gatherings and relatives or friends.
• Feelings of helplessness or decreased self esteem
• Self-destructive behaviors such as running away from home, harming themselves, or talking about suicide

Kids may be bullying others if they:

• Get into physical or , and verbal fights
• Have friends who bully others and that makes situations more rough
• Are increasingly aggressive with stubborn behaviors
• Have unexplained extra money or new belongings
• Blame others for their problems
• Don’t accept responsibility for their actions and have reasons for their every negative actions
• Are competitive and worry about their reputation or popularity

Teaching Kids About Bullying

Open Communication

Encourage parents to have regular, age-appropriate conversations about school, friendships, and online activities. Emphasize listening without judgment and creating a safe space for sharing.

Building Your Child’s Social Confidence

Educate your child about all types of bullying , make the child feel safe and comfortable to narrate any instance so bullying they undergo of any . There are three parties to bullying: the victim, the perpetrator and the bystander or the audience. Even if children are not victims of bullying, they can prevent bullying by being inclusive, respectful and kind to their peers. If they witness bullying, they can stick up for the victim, offer support, and/or question bullying behaviours.

Be a role model and demonstrate to your child how to treat other children and adults with kindness and respect by doing the same to the people around you, including speaking up when others are being mistreated. Children look to their parents as examples of how to behave, including what to post online.

Promote Emotional Regulation

Anger is one of the most common and easily identifiable emotion that arise due to bullying One of the reasons it is so common and recognizable is that it is often not a primary emotion, but a masking one and a triggered one, the actual cause of anger has to be identified.

This means that our anger is usually a means of covering up other, more uncomfortable emotions one must have undergone. When we are feeling sad, scared, or embarrassed, for instance, our brain holds up “anger” as a shield to protect us from confronting emotions we’re not ready to deal with.

To manage the anger and frustration, one has to stay patient with the victim and lend a hearing ear to his frustrations and anger related issues.

Anti-Bullying Strategies for Everyday Life

One has to stay with trusted friends and relatives , use assertive body language along with staying patient and calm, Ignore and avoid situations or people who trigger bullying or who provokes such actions .

Use a loud, confident voice to say "Stop!" and then walk away. If it's a request, say "no" and walk away.

Teaching Assertiveness

• Sometimes, students may feel difficult or uneasy about explaining openly and clearly what they want and what we are thinking. Clear and direct communication will lower the possibility of being bullied and helps us appear stronger.
• Sometimes, when a child face a stressful situation they can forget to breathe. Breathing helps us to see the situation more clearly and to think about what to do and how to respond. Remembering to breathe is an important technique that facilitates an assertive response

Include cyberbullying prevention tips, such as understanding social platforms, setting privacy settings, and teaching responsible digital behavior.

Recognizing Signs Your Child May Be Bullied

Provide a checklist of behavioral, emotional, and physical indicators: sudden reluctance to go to school, unexplained injuries, withdrawal, anxiety, changes in online behavior, and declining academic performance. Explain that early detection is critical for effective bullying prevention.

Collaborate with Schools

Schools can conduct workshops and seminars for the parents to educate them the forms and impact of bullying including the reasons of bullying and this can be effectively be prevented , the parents can be counselled well at all times to also identify or spot the bullying with preventive measures.

Encourage Problem-Solving and Resilience

Boost positive affirmations through counselling and positive affirmations , maintain self esteem and do not being deterred with any arm twisting activities and report the same to the parents or teachers or any other trusted person

Long-Term Solutions for Bully-Proofing Your Child

Establish a clear anti bullying policy ,that can handle the anonymous complaints too with swift actions and closures , incorporate social emotional learning in scholastic subjects and also practice the same at all times in school , include teacher training robust programs and sensitize teachers on the same, Involve parents to understand and identify bullying along with problem solving attitude

Final Thoughts

A child can be prevented against bullying through collective action between governments, civil society, international organizations and all stakeholders in a school and educational institutions (students, teachers, other staff, parents and local authorities) to transform learning environments into safe and welcoming spaces where all students can learn and thrive, free from fear, danger and harm, wherever they live.