Today we looked closely at cyberbullying.  We talked in detail about the following

• What the four types of cyberbullying are:
  • Harassing is similar to ‘cyberstalking’. It is bombarding someone with messages online or repeated contact when it is least expected or wanted.
  • Deceiving is using fake names, posing as someone else, or creating a fake profile about someone else.
  • Flaming is saying mean things, usually in ALL CAPS, and often in a public forum with the intention of humiliating another person.
  • Hate Speech is a verbal attack targeting someone because of their race, gender, religion, ability or sexual orientation.
• When teasing or joking crosses the line to cyberbullying:
  • We talked about the feelings of the person being teased or cyberbullied.
  • We had a good discussion on whether it is better to tell an adult (parent, teacher, head master) or to continue to be bullied, either face to face or online?
  • We watched the video Stacey’s Story during which Stacey tells her story of being cyberbullied at school.
• What it means to be an ‘upstander’:
  • The students drew a distinction between being a bystander and being an upstander.
  • While everyone may not be able to stand up to a bully either face to face or online, everyone can be an upstander.
  • An upstander can simply make a positive statement or compliment to the victim related to the topic the victim is bullied about or it can be completely unrelated to the topic.  One positive comment can make a tremendous difference to the person.
• The effect of a positive comment from an upstander was illustrated through this Coca Cola advertisement .
•  ***We did view this video last week at the multi grade assembly. The students liked it so much, that they asked me if they could watch it again. I did not have time today to show it again, but promised them that we would watch it next week. I highly encourage you to watch it yourself and your child may be interested in watching it with you and explaing what is going on!  It is such a great video that highlights the effects of people making one nice comment to someone else.

The main objectives of this program is build a deeper awareness of safety and appropriate online behavior. What we talked about today, can be reinforced through conversations at home. Your children had some great insights into why people bully, the effects to the victim, and what can be done. They were open in sharing their thoughts and opinions with me.

I would like to share one piece of feedback with you that I think might be helpful to you as you continue the discussion with them:

• In talking about the pros and cons of reporting to an adult that your are being cyberbullied, about half of the students felt that it is more detrimental to tell an adult about it. They felt that telling an adult could possibly make the situation worse. As you know, this is one of the greatest misconceptions that kids have regarding bullying of any type. We talked about the cowardly nature of a bully. 90% of the time, when the bully is called out, the behavior goes away. Additionally, in this digital age, there is solid evidence of the behavior. The students really need to understand that it is much better to go to someone for help when this happens. It is sad to see the kids assuming that they need to tolerate it.

Next Wednesday, we will take a closer look at appropriate online behavior. I look forward to working with the 6th grade students as they are an engaged and talkative group!