Social media sites have become the target of bullies to attack the people they hate, anonymously or otherwise. Children with special needs are sadly among the people who are often victims of cyberbullying. They are picked on because of their looks, their behavior and sometimes simply because they exist. But what if it is the other way around?
It is not impossible that kids with special needs could be the ones who are bullying other children online. In fact, a story shared by NPR about a child who was diagnosed with autism was the one attacking other kids on their social media. The question is what are you going to do if you happen to be the guardian of this child who bullies other kids online? Here are the solutions we have come up with so far:
A photo posted by Sergio SylVestre (@sergiosylvestreofficial) on Feb 22, 2016 at 11:56pm PST
Educate and Discuss
As parents, you will need to discuss some ground rules with your children, including the ones with special needs. You have to remember that you can't just tell them your rules, but you also must be consistent. If they ever break your rules, educate them again on why you implemented those in their lives. Explain that it is only for their best why those rules exist. You can also apply positive reinforcement whenever your child shows politeness towards other people online.
Diligent Monitoring
Parents who have kids diagnosed with autism are encouraged to monitor their child's network on their social media. The Huffington Post suggests that giving your child an access to social media 24/7 is not healthy, especially if you can't diligently monitor their activities online. It takes patience to really dedicate your time in parenting a child with special needs to make sure they don't bully other kids on the Internet.
It doesn't matter whether your child doesn't have autism or is someone who has special needs; you would need to be watchful of their online lifestyle. What are your thoughts about it?
