Bullying Definition       

Bullying is unwanted, aggressive behavior among school aged children that involves a real or perceived power imbalance. The behavior is repeated, or has the potential to be repeated, over time. Both kids who are bullied and who bully others may have serious, lasting problems. 

In order to be considered bullying, the behavior must be aggressive and include:

• An Imbalance of Power: Kids who bully use their power—such as physical strength, access to embarrassing information, or popularity—to control or harm others. Power imbalances can change over time and in different situations, even if they involve the same people.

• Repetition: Bullying behaviors happen more than once or have the potential to happen more than once.

Bullying includes actions such as making threats, spreading rumors, attacking someone physically or verbally, and excluding someone from a group on purpose.

Types of Bullying 

There are three types of bullying:

• Verbal bullying is saying or writing mean things. Verbal bullying includes:

Teasing / Name-calling / Inappropriate sexual comments / Taunting / Threatening to cause harm

• Social bullying, sometimes referred to as relational bullying, involves hurting someone’s reputation or relationships. Social bullying includes:

Leaving someone out on purpose / Telling other children not to be friends with someone / Spreading rumors about someone / Embarrassing someone in public

• Physical bullying involves hurting a person’s body or possessions. Physical bullying includes:

Hitting / kicking /pinching / Spitting / Tripping / pushing / Taking or breaking someone’s things / Making mean or rude hand gestures

Kids Involved in Bullying

• Kids who Bully

• Kids who are Bullied

• Kids who are outsiders / bystanders / witness

What I can do (being bullied)

• Take everyone with respect

  Keep in mind that everyone is different.  Not better or worse.  Just different

• Talk to an adult you trust and report it

• Look at the kid bullying you and tell him or her to stop in a calm, clear voice

• Use humor to catch the kid bullying you off guard

• Walk away and stay away if speaking up seems too hard or not safe.  Don’t fight back

• Stay near adults or other classmates and stay away from places where bullying happens

What I can do (more than a bystander)

• Stand up for others who are bullied / report to adults you trust

  Not saying anything could make it worse for everyone. The kid who is bullying will think it is ok to keep treating others that way.

• Support others who are bullied

(reference: http://www.stopbullying.gov/what-is-bullying/index.html

A federal government website managed by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services)