Expect Mistakes

We’re not perfect. Neither are our kids. Friendships & working relationships have the strengths & imperfections of the humans who created them. Encourage children to accept life – & people, including ourselves – with some imperfections (& review Tip #16: Apology & Forgiveness!).

This article by Admin (Start the School Year Right! Bullying Prevention Tip #20) appeared first on Bullying Epidemic.

Help Others: Community Service

Adults teach children about care & empathy when we help others. Teach children to help within the community. Watch for opportunities to build, deliver, decorate, paint, read, tutor, visit, teach, or coach. Look for ways for kids to share their unique skills & ideas. Extending our hand to others builds self‐respect in the giver, generates gratitude in the giver & the receiver, & helps us get to know people as individual human beings.

This article by Admin (Start the School Year Right! Bullying Prevention Tip #19) appeared first on Bullying Epidemic.

Set Boundaries On Technology At Home

Keep the Internet connection in a public family place. Have a family discussion to set limits: appropriate (& inappropriate) online behavior (echo & amplify school guidelines; review often!), daily time online, Facebook after homework, rules for cell phones at school (review school rules), & rules for staying in touch electronically when out with friends. Allow some compromise. When kids help make the rules, they are much more likely to follow them. Give your children incentives to show you their maturity. There should be reasonable consequences for mistakes, along with the opportunity to review & try again. Rules should change as your kids & technology evolve.

This article by Admin (Start the School Year Right! Bullying Prevention Tip #18) appeared first on Bullying Epidemic.

Balance Online & Face‐To‐Face Friendships

Kids’ friendships today revolve around social networking, but it doesn’t replace or teach the skills of face‐to‐face friendships. Help kids develop both types of healthy peer relationships. Incorporate some group learning classroom activities. Discuss appropriate (& inappropriate) online behavior. At home, enroll kids in programs with their friends & invite friends over after school & on weekends. The results are worth the effort.

This article by Admin (Start the School Year Right! Bullying Prevention Tip #17) appeared first on Bullying Epidemic.

Teach The Skills Of Apology, Accountability,

Repair & Forgiveness

People today view apology as weak. Just the opposite. It takes strength to face yourself in the mirror, take responsibility, & do the work needed to grow. Let kids sit with the discomfort of making mistakes. Don’t smooth the way. Encourage kids to take age‐appropriate responsibility to clean up the mess they created – a broken glass or a broken heart. Start when kids are young – it’s a hard skill to learn in the teen years. Fortunately, adults can relearn as we teach our kids.

This article by Admin (Start the School Year Right! Bullying Prevention Tip #16) appeared first on Bullying Epidemic.

Develop Stress Management Skills

Stress undermines performance & disables bullying prevention. When we live at our max stress‐handling ability, we can easily bully, without meaning to or realizing it. Many adults have poorly‐controlled stress – we see the downsides daily. The stakes are even higher for kids. Why? (1) Kids have less life experience & fewer coping skills, (2) Kids’ stress is an epidemic – anxiety & depression are at all‐time highs, (3) Long‐term stress damages & rewires the brain, leaving lifelong weakness, & (4) Adults’ poor example doesn’t help!

This article by Admin (Start the School Year Right! Bullying Prevention Tip #15) appeared first on Bullying Epidemic.