6 Tips To Prevent Your Child From Being Bullied

Romicio Bejorn -

According to the National Center For Educational Statistics, 1 out of 5 students reports being bullied.

They also reported that the bullying takes place in the hallways, stairwells, inside the classroom, cafeteria, outside the school grounds, online, via text message, bathroom, locker room, and even on the bus.

Those stats mean that kids are practically being bullied everywhere on and off campus.

Many children are victims of bullying and haven’t a clue how to stop or prevent it, which is why we as adults must step up and do everything within our power to protect our children.

There are many different reasons why kids bully others, and the level of severity can vary from one case to another.

No matter how severe bullying is, it is never acceptable and should be handled quickly.

If you think your child is at risk of being bullied, there are things you can do to prevent this demoralizing behavior.

Unfortunately, it’s easier to prevent bullying, than to stop it once it has started.

If you’d like to discover the 6 Tips To Prevent Your Child From Being Bullied, even before it starts, keep reading…

1)) Avoid Being Alone When Possible

Bullying often occurs in unsupervised areas such as hallways, stairwells, during recess, and other areas of the school that are usually blind spots.

Tell your child to avoid being alone in those areas to reduce the chances of being bullied.

When possible, encourage your child to find someone to walk and interact with in between classes.

Bullies tend to pick on kids when they’re alone, which makes them easy prey.

2)) Associate With Good Kids

Encourage your child to meet and associate with other kids that are well-behaved to avoid being influenced to become a bully through peer pressure.

This happens all the time, especially to kids that have a difficult time fitting in anywhere.

The so-called, “Trouble-Maker” group that accepts a child who doesn’t fit in anywhere can easily influence him or her to become a bully.

While this article is about preventing your child from being bullied, you must also look at the flipside and be fully aware that in certain circumstances, your child could become the bully.

I’m just giving you something to think about.

When your child associates with good kids, they’ll always have friends around and bullies are less likely to target your little one.

3)) Try To Ignore Bullies

Another way to prevent bullying is to advise your child to walk away from situations involving bullies.

Many times ignoring bullying attempts is the best way to prevent it, as most bullies are trying to get a reaction out of the children they pick on.

Now, I’m saying that you should teach your child to not defend him or herself in certain situations where the option to walk away isn’t available.

Every living thing has a right to defend itself, but if your child has the option to walk away without getting hurt, that’s the way to go.

Some bullies are extremely aggressive and will not let up in their pursuit, and in those cases, a child should defend themselves to avoid bodily harm or even worst, being killed.

I know that sounds a little extreme, but this can happen.

I’m not a promoter of violence, but it’s better to have your child defend him or herself than to get brutally assaulted.

So, teach your kid to walk away if possible, and to defend him or herself if there are no other options.

Also, educate your child that defending oneself doesn’t make him or her, a bad person to avoid feelings of guilt.

4)) Teach Your Child to Be Confident

Bullies like to pick on children who are not confident or assertive.

They are like sharks that smell blood in the water.

Teaching kids to act confidently is a good way to prevent bullying.

Children who appear confident and can assert themselves when confronted by a bully are less likely to be picked on.

Even if a bully targets your child once, a calm and confident reaction will decrease the chances that your child will be targeted again, at least not by the same person.

Human nature dictates that we respect those that are confident in themselves.

Just look at how most leaders are perceived.

Leaders are very confident, which is why people follow and support them, regardless of whether they’re right or wrong.

So, work on boosting your child’s confidence levels, because it will act as a bully-repellent.

5)) Stay Calm and Assertive

Children should not cry or get upset if they are bullied, instead the best way to prevent bullying is for them to use an assertive voice and tell the bully to stop.

Bullies like to get a rise out of the kids they pick on, so children that are calm and assertive will be less likely to be bullied again.

You see, bullies crave the attention of the onlookers during the terrorizing of their victims.

Most of the time bullies don’t expect their victims to stand up for themselves and are shocked when they do.

This is why using an assertive voice can work wonders for preventing bullying.

6)) Use Extracurricular Activities to Boost Self-Esteem

Because bullies like to pick on children who are not confident, a good way to prevent bullying is to get your child involved in extracurricular activities that can boost their self-confidence.

Examples of Kids’ Extracurricular Activities:

There are no shortages of extracurricular activities that you could enroll your child in that can help to boost his or her confidence.

However, martial arts is my top pick, because it teaches children how to not only defend themselves against attackers, especially bullies, but it also focuses on the mental aspects.

Martial arts is the perfect confidence and self-esteem booster!

Children who have other areas of their life to feel confident about will carry over that attitude into situations where they may be bullied.

Any enjoyable activity that your child excels at will help to make him or her more confident and in turn that confidence will help prevent bullying.

If your child has confidence and high self-esteem, it will be easier to ignore a bully and not let the bully's actions bother him or her.

Conclusion

If your child learns how to respond to a bully and develops a good self-image, it will be easy for them to prevent bullying.

Make sure your child knows that the bullying is not their fault if they are targeted and that it is not acceptable.

Many children are hesitant to turn to adults for help for fear of retaliation, but telling an adult right away is the best way to prevent bullying in the future.

Bullying must be taken seriously because the longer a child remains a victim, the more damage can be caused (both physically and psychologically).

In some extreme cases, prolonged bullying has caused kids to commit suicide.

No parent should have to bury their child over bullying, period!

Be certain to develop a good relationship with your child in order to encourage open communication.

This will make your child feel comfortable with sharing almost anything with you.

It’s through this open communication that you may discover that your child is being bullied.

Let your child know that your door is always open and that he or she can always talk to you about anything, especially if it evolves into bullying.

Apply the tips that you’ve learned today to help protect your child!

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