Bullying can happen at any age. It is also important for you to recognise the signs that your child may be experiencing bullying and what you can do to support them if this happens
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What is bullying?
Bullying can be difficult to identify and keep track of. Children can be very mean to each other sometimes. This might make the children involved angry or upset. Their feelings might get hurt.
It is not very nice when this happens once, but bullying is different. Bullying is being mean to somebody over and over again on purpose.
Bullying can include:
- teasing, saying mean things to somebody or calling them mean names
- ignoring somebody on purpose
- leaving somebody out of games or activities on purpose
- hitting or pushing somebody, or taking their things
- posting mean or untrue things about somebody on social media
Why do people bully others?
There are lots of reasons why people bully others. It might because they:
- feel jealous of the person they are bullying
- want other people to like them more
- feel better about themselves when they put other people down
- feel angry inside
- want to feel like they are in control or have power over others
- have been bullied themselves
- don’t know what they’re doing is wrong
Signs of bullying
Identifying the signs of bullying can be difficult, particularly if your child has difficulty with verbal communication. Signs can include things like:
- not wanting to spend time with friends anymore
- cuts, bruises or other injuries
- frequently ripped clothes or damaged belongings
- avoiding school or social situations
- feeling more stressed, anxious, depressed
- trouble sleeping
- reporting aches or pains more frequently, or saying they are unwell
- losing interest in things they usually enjoy
What should your child do if they are being bullied?
If your child is being bullied, they should try to:
- keep away from the bully
- stay close to their friends or other people they trust. For example, playing near the teachers in the playground
- tell the bully what they’re doing is not ok. This can be difficult and should only be done if your child feels safe to do so. You could role play with your child how they might do this.
- tell someone they trust
What should you do if you think your child is being bullied?
It can be hard to know what to do if your child is being bullied. Bullying can be difficult for the child as well as the parent, particularly if your child is being bullied because of their disability.
A good place to start is to keep a record of any incidents you have noticed or that your child has mentioned to you. This record will help you keep track of what is happening. This record will also be helpful if you decide you want to report the bullying.
You can:
- report bullying to the school
- contact the Department of Education or seek legal advice if you’re not happy with the school’s response
- contact the Police if the bullying is particularly serious
- report cyberbullying to the E-safety Commissioner at https://www.esafety.gov.au/report/cyberbullying
Conversation Starters
What did you do during lunch today? Who did you play with?
You used to talk a lot about your friend Lee at school. Are you both still friends?
That character in the movie was being quite mean to the other people. What do you think the other people should do?
Strategies for you to try
Talk to your child regularly about what is happening at school
This will help you to identify when something is worrying your child. Depending on your family, it might also be helpful to have a family discussion about what is happening at school for each child. You can also share some of your experiences from being a school student. This can help to create a safe, supportive family environment.Support your child to identify a safe place and a safe person at school
Support your child to identify a school staff member they feel comfortable going to if they are having issues. Also support them to identify a place to go if they are being bullied. Your child’s school may recommend the office or library.Practice social skills
Work with your child to practice ways to respond to these situations:- How can you tell someone you don’t like it when they do that and to stop?
- How can you ask a different person to play if you are being left out?
School-age bullying: helping your child
