Ms Kay Bradley

Bullying or Mean Behaviour

As part of our everyday work with students, we help navigate the unstructured times in the playground. Research has shown that all children are capable of behaviour that is insensitive, unkind or mean and learning how to interact with their peers is an important part of child development. 

 When talking to children about playground incidents it is important for teachers and parents to separate, what is ‘mean’ and what is ‘bullying’. The definition of bullying, that we use at New Farm, comes from the ‘Bullying No Way’ Australian website for schools and is:

 “an ongoing misuse of power in relationships through repeated verbal, physical and/or social behaviour that causes physical and/or psychological harm. It can involve an individual or a group misusing their power over one or more persons. Bullying can happen in person or online, and it can be obvious or hidden. Single incidents and conflicts or fights between equals, whether in person or online, and are not defined as bullying.”

Any behaviour that fits this definition must be reported to the school immediately.

If your child tells you of some other unkind behaviour, it is important that you acknowledge it, e.g. “That was unkind of her/him” and follow up with “What are your choices?” and finally “What are the outcomes of this choice?” This will help bring some resolution to the situation and help your child assess and respond to incidents.

For further information visit:

www.parentshop.com.au/meannessvsbullying/

www.bullyingnoway.gov.au/

P.B.L. FOCUS OF THE WEEK