A recent study on happiness measures of children shows that children from England and some parts of the world are unhappy about their school lives because they were bullied in school. So, they do not like schooling and just prefer to stay at home. If in case, your kids are suffering from this same scenario, equip yourself with the many ways to protect them from this destructive bullying.
Kids Health states that bullying may torment the victim verbally, physically or psychologically. These include name-calling, hitting, foul-mouthing, mocking, sending threats and extorting money or any possessions.
Bullying can be done at home, at school or even in social media. The effects are harmful to the victims that may affect their safety and self-worth. Therefore, it is recommendable that you protect your children from these bullies.
Kidspot shares the following ways on how can you bully-proof your children:
1. Converse with your kid about it.
You must communicate with your kid at all times and ask about his schooling. You may open up the bullying issue in school and share your experiences. If your kid affirms that he is being bullied, praise him for being brave to discuss it with you. Go to your kid's school and talk to the school officials and teachers regarding the bullying your kid is experiencing and know how they will act on it.
2. Advise your child to keep calm and stay away from the attackers.
A bully feels stronger in hurting others. The best way to discourage the bully is to ignore him and remain calm. Tell your kid to stay away from this bully. Let your kid tell his bully classmate to stop and then walk away.
3. Help your kid in building a friendship with other children.
Your kid needs about one or two good friends. Hence, more friends will be indeed better. Having friends can improve the emotional and social skills of your kid. Bullies will shy away from your kid if they see that your kid has many friends to protect him and has a support group to stand by his side.
4. Talk to the parents of the bully.
You may arrange a meeting with the parents of the bully together with the school administrators. This is constructive and the parents will know how their kids are doing in school and that they're bullying fellow students. In this way, they can reprimand their kids and prevent them from bullying again. You'd surely help them become aware as to how they can discipline and guide their own kids -- addressing bullying issues.
5. Build your kid's self-confidence and self-esteem.
You may enroll your child in self-defense classes such as Karate or Taekwondo lessons. These teach about inner strength and discipline. These defensive routines can strengthen your kids and will boost their self-confidence and self-esteem.