BULLYING: THERE IS SOMETHING YOU CAN DO
A bully is a boy or girl who is mean on purpose and intimidates smaller or weaker people. Bullies are in every school. Some studies say as many as 20% or 1 out of every 5 kids have been bullied between 4th and 6th grades.
Bullying includes: name calling, stealing your money or damaging your things, making threats that scare you, spreading lies about you, sending insulting messages to you or about you on an IM or blog site, hitting, pushing, shoving, pinching you so that you may not even want to come to school.
A bully is not sorry for what he or she does. They like to hurt another person and will not stop being aggressive unless they are stopped. Bullies do not feel responsible for their behavior, but blame their victim, who somehow "deserves" the bullying.
Remember, bullies are really cowards deep down. They are looking for attention and power in the wrong way. Bullies usually wind up in big trouble if they continue their mean, hurtful behavior. Stand up for yourself; get help from friends and adults. The more you stand up for yourself, the more support from friends and others you have, the faster the bully back away and leave you alone.
STORIES BY OUR READERS...
Dream Once Dream again for it to become a reality
Have you ever wanted something so bad but are too afraid to do it? Have any of your so called friends bullied you? Well if you answered yes to either of these questions than you are just like me. My BFF started to bully me all of the sudden when we hit 6th grade. It was like "what did I do to you?" So then that led me to be afraid to open my locker at school because she could turn the corner and shut it. Then she pulled the trigger too far one day. She started to shove me and make fun of my hair. I just wanted to go home and cry. But now I know how to deal with that because of support at home and my new BFF. They told me to write about how I felt about bullying in school. So I wrote this paragraph.
Our world may seem perfect but really it's not when it comes to one thing. Bullying. The thing some people don't understand is why people bully. Well that in my opinion is easy to answer. 1) They may bully to make themselves feel better, 2) to get back at the person, and 3) for kicks. Those are the three main reasons I have found. I have been a victim of bullying and well it's no fun. All the sudden when I hit 6th grade it seemed like I was the victim constantly. The reason I thought this was because you don't just see someone come up and hit someone with a rubber band. Then see the people you thought were your friends point and laugh at you. Well I don't see that every day. I wish that I would have known that it takes some heart to stand up to the bully and make things better. My only questions are how can some people be so nice and others be the meanest people on earth? Why can't we all get along? Well it would be really easy if someone had a magic wand and waved it and the world was perfect wouldn't that be easy? Well there is no person with a wand that makes things better but there is one thing we can do. We can work together as a team that never breaks. Don't be afraid to stand up for what you think is right. This took a lot of courage for me to write…so do what's right stay bully free.
– Marie, 11, Ohio (aka dancer_Marie)
Tired of Bullying
I bet that almost everyone has gotten made fun of at school by a downright mean girl. I know I have. I have seen it too. It makes me sad to know that some girls like to make fun of others. Well, there are some ways to put up with it.
1. If you can't confront the bully, try talking to an adult or friend you can trust, like a counselor or parent.
2. Try waiting for a while. Maybe the bully will stop bothering you.
3. If the bully is still bothering you, a teacher probably needs to be notified. Also if you haven't yet, go see the counselor. They are there to help.
I hope my suggestions help. Bullying is a huge problem, especially in middle school. Hopefully someday it can be stopped. Also, sometimes even you can bully without even knowing it. For example, if you tell someone they can't sit at your lunch table, think about how they might feel. You never know, they could be a future friend.
– Sarah, 12, Indiana (aka allstarstudent)
Stand Strong
I had watched my 'friends' bully a girl for almost a year. I knew that it wasn't right and I wanted to do something about it. Standing up to them wasn't easy. I had to be upfront and I couldn't be shy about it. When I told them how I felt about what they were doing to this girl I felt a lot better about myself. I just want to encourage other girls everywhere else in the world to stand up for what you believe. Don't let things like bullying go on. Watching it happen is just as bad as hurting that person yourself.
– Maia, 12, Illinois (aka hiddenstar030)
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