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Using Tootsie Roll Pops To Teach Tolerance: Preventing and Intervening in Bullying . Using your Tootsie Roll pop complete the table below listing as many comments as you can. . Form groups of four and share your comments . Discussion.
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Using Tootsie Roll Pops To Teach Tolerance: Preventing and Intervening in Bullying
Using your Tootsie Roll pop complete the table below listing as many comments as you can. Form groups of four and share your comments
Discussion • How are Tootsie Roll Pops like people—on the outside and on the inside? • How can you compare the different flavors of Tootsie Roll Pops with outer differences among people? • If you choose Tootsie Roll Pops by the wrapper color, do you also select friends by appearance (clothes, hairstyle)? • Why do Tootsie Roll Pops and people have a hard exterior? • Just as you look forward to reaching the Tootsie Roll Pop’s sweet center, what reward do you get from making the effort to get to know new people?
Discussion • Talk about a time you judged someone from the outside, then later found that the person was different on the inside. • Just as the Tootsie Roll Pop gets “held up” by the lollipop stick, who are some people in your life you use for support? • Do you try different flavors of Tootsie Roll Pops? Do you always choose the same types of friends, or do you sometimes move outside of your comfort zone to get to know new people?
Conclusion • Everyone has something valuable inside that we may not see at first. • The “soft center” of people represents what we all have in common: feelings, hopes, dreams, fears and insecurities. • To feel safe and protected, people often use a hard outside to hide their soft core. • A tough outer shell may prevent others from getting to know what is truly special about us. Making the effort to get to know what makes someone special on the inside helps us learn, grow and practice tolerance. • This lesson enables students to look at themselves and others differently. One student commented that he wants to find “the soft center” of several of his classmates who seem unfriendly. Another student expressed a wish to melt her “hard shell” so that other students could see that she is really sweet on the inside. Several other students shared how they usually hang out with people who are similar to them on the outside. They now want to find people who are like them on the inside.
Bullying is everyone’s Problem School staff members work in many areas. They maybe:• teachers, aides and any other classroom staff• the principal and other administrators• school counselors, social workers and psychologists• others, such as office staff, bus drivers, librarians, nurses, cafeteria staff, custodians, parent coordinators and volunteers. Whether you work with students all day long or not, you need to know:• how to identify different kinds of bullying• what to do about bullying that you witness, suspect or hear about• how you can help create a school climate that doesn't include bullying. When everyone at school works together to prevent and stop bullying, students can feel safer and learn better.
Bullying is a serious problem in schools Bullying involves hurtful behaviors. In general: • Bullying behaviors are repeated, aggressive and deliberate. • Some bullying is direct, such as hitting or insulting. • Some bullying is indirect. This often involves using others to bully someone (by spreading gossip, for instance). This can be harder to see. • There is an imbalance of power. For example, the person doing the bullying may be-or be seen as-stronger, more athletic, more popular or smarter than his or her target.
Bullying is a serious problem in schools There are many false beliefs about bullying. These include believing that: • bullying is a harmless "rite of passage" • children and young people who bully are "just teasing" they don't mean any harm • being bullied builds character • targets "ask for it" or deserve it • bullying is a conflict that children and young people should handle on their own • asking for help with bullying is tattling • bullying is "not my problem" • if bullying were happening, adults would know it.
Bullying is a serious problem in schools The realities are: • Bullying happens at the expense of others-often unnoticed by adults. It does harm others-in many ways. • Bullying is not something kids should handle alone. Adults need to encourage them to report it and seek help. • It's everyone's job to help keep bullying out of school. Bullying is a form of abuse and it must be stopped!
Activity What policies and procedures does your school have in place against bullying? What type of preventive action has your school taken to prevent bullying?
Have an active bullying prevention committee. • This may have another name, such as a safety committee or school improvement team. • The committee: • may include students, parents, bus drivers and community members along with school staff • may take the lead in tracking bullying andevaluating awareness and prevention efforts.
Discuss Bullying in staff meetings This can help staff: • learn new facts and strategies, and share these with students in age-appropriate ways • stay aware of incidents and hot spots, so they can help monitor and intervene.
Teach bullying prevention throughout the school. For example: • Hold regular assemblies to introduce and reinforce bullying efforts and messages. • Adopt a bullying-prevention curriculum for teachers to use in the classroom on an ongoing basis.
Ensure a welcoming and inclusive school environment. Consider if the school: • feels organized, calm and safe-not chaotic • gives equal attention to students of varied interests displaying both arts and sports awards in the lobby, for instance • is neat, clean and free of graffiti.
Promote positive relationships. Some signs of positive relationships include: • staff greeting students by name in classrooms, halls, other school spaces and in the community • staff and students having open conversations about bullying and other topics of interest to students-in class and informally • staff acting as mentors for students-as club advisors, for instance, or one-to-one. • staff acting as positive role models-by intervening in bullying and showing respect for all students and other staff
Involve students at all stages. For example, they may: • help set rules and consequences • be on the bullying prevention committee • help conduct student surveys or make maps of bullying hot spots • act as buddies or mentors for targets or younger students • act as role models-for example, by using effective bystander interventions • offer ideas for how to prevent bullying in different areas of the school • help educate other students about bullying-through posters, written materials, drama or other presentations, for instance • help improve school grounds-for example, through volunteer cleanup events. Involving students-including those who have bullied or been bullied-can help them learn better social and other skills and feel more connected to school.
Involve parents, too. You might do this by: • meeting with them to help their child who is bullying or being bullied • inviting them to attend bullying workshops or to volunteer-on committees, at special events or to help monitor hot spots, for instance • providing information about bullying, effective discipline and the importance of positive role models. Consider reaching out to parents in a variety of ways-such as through the school Web site, e-mails.mailings and phone calls.
Involve community members. These may include: • local business people who have witnessed or heard about student bullying • mental health professionals who can educate staff and students about bullying • lawyers or law enforcement officers, who can talk about the legal issues-including how some bullying acts may break laws against discrimination and may be considered criminal acts. http://youtu.be/PjKgEoOYWW4
