Teach your Kids about Bullying

It is important to teach your kids about bullying. What ever happened to teaching the golden rule (do unto others as you’d have have done unto you)? When I worked in the counseling field, this was a topic that I dealt with weekly, if not daily. I want to make sure my kids know some tips or advice of things they can do when faced with bullies in the future. It is important as a  parent to write out our stories of things that happened when we were kids, so when the day comes with our own children, we will not forget what we did. Unfortunately for some of us who were bullied so bad, it is not something you can forget. The power is in teaching your child from your experience, claiming your victory over your past, instead of still being the victim.

Role Play

From a young age we hopefully learn to say “please and thank you,” especially to elders in our lives. We like predictability, and when something unexpected happens (like bullying or a fight), it puts us in uncomfortable positions. It is important to teach your child to look at the deeper causes of a bully’s actions. For example, I will do the same thing my parent’s taught me, which is to role play with my child about certain situations. This gives an idea of steps to take to deescalate a situation and teaches problem solving skills.

Put Yourself in Their Shoes

Think about the situation, my parents said. They were teaching me to think about the root causes of the bully’s behavior. Was it from social anxiety, lack of skill development, or is the bully missing a close or meaningful relationship with his or her loved one? I was taught how to increase my tone of voice and demand respect and kindness instead of taking on guilt and shame feelings, projecting mean words or fighting back. Learn to see the strengths in the other person, and give a response that the bully does not expect. That will throw off his game, by not giving the bully what he wants to hear. It is important to teach your child to prepare for bad situations and avoid them before they start if at all possible. I was also taught relaxation tips to help me calm down when I go angry, which saved me many times from getting myself in trouble at school. For that, I am very grateful to my parents. These are all invaluable lessons passed down from my parents, and great grandparents.

Pass on your Life Lessons

Can you imagine having a Baby Time Capsule for your child to write down this lesson in life, along with other words of wisdom about what worked for you in high school. What a great gift to give your child when they become a teenager and enter tough times in life. Have each family member fill out a “Message to the Future” letter about where they see your baby, just born, in the future. What will he or she be when they grow up?

Leave a legacy for your child, and pass on messages of hope, encouragement, and funny stories for your baby to relate to when they become a teenager. Then, when your teenager out of frustration says, ‘you don’t know what it’s like,’ you can pull out their Baby Time Capsule with all the stories about ‘what it’s like’ when you were a kid.

It is not easy growing up in schools nowadays. Honestly, I never predicted that we would have kids going to school with guns shooting other students. That does not mean that we as parents cannot still pass on tips and advice to help our kids. Do your part and write a “Message to the Future” letter to your baby tonight. Get the decorative and cute Baby Time Capsule here to put it in. We do have special stationary paper for the “Message to the Future” included in each Baby Time Capsule.

What words of wisdom would you pass on to children who will be in high school 20 to 30 years from now? Comment below.

Making Milestone Moments Count,

– Marcie