Take Action to Stop Bullying

October is Bullying Prevention Month. Let’s work together.

At a recent meeting, a 60-year old man told me, “I feel guilty about the ways I treated my younger cousin. I would laugh at him and leave him out of our games – and other kids in my family followed my lead. I wish I could go back and make it up to him now.” I could see how bad he felt.

“You were a kid yourself,” I pointed out. “And at that time, we really didn’t have a word for bullying. And we didn’t understand the harm it caused. You might talk with your cousin to let him know that you are sorry. And tell your grandchildren, because children learn from adults’ stories. It could have a huge impact if you were to say that you made a big mistake when you were their age – and want to let them know so that they won’t make the same mistake.”

To honor Bullying Prevention Month, please take a few minutes to discuss the Kidpower Safety and Respect Message with kids and adults in your life:

“You have the RIGHT to be treated with safety and respect, and the RESPONSIBILITY to act safely and respectfully towards yourself and others.”

Tell kids stories about times when you have struggled with this yourself.

Questions to discuss might be, “What does safety mean? What about respect? Can you think of ways that you do this? What about others? Are there things that make it hard?”

Create openings by asking children in a casual way (not an anxious one), “Is there anything you’ve been wondering or worrying about that you haven’t told me?”

Listen compassionately to the answers without lecturing or getting upset. Wait to try to fix anything until you really understand what is going on.

Here are some FREE resources that can help:

I want to thank everyone who helped our book Doing Right by Our Kids become a #1 Amazon bestseller. This 5-Star reviewed book includes helpful and proven Kidpower tools you can use right away on how to address bullying at school and other places kids go.

Published: October 2, 2018 | Last Updated: October 2, 2018

Irene van der Zande, Kidpower Founder and Executive Director

Kidpower Founder and Executive Irene van der Zande is a master at teaching safety through stories and practices and at inspiring others to do the same. Her child protection and personal safety expertise has been featured by USA Today, CNN, Today Moms, the LA Times, and The Wall Street Journal. Publications include: cartoon-illustrated Kidpower Safety Comics and Kidpower Teaching Books curriculum; Bullying: What Adults Need to Know and Do to Keep Kids Safe; the Relationship Safety Skills Handbook for Teens and Adults; Earliest Teachable Moment: Personal Safety for Babies, Toddlers, and Preschoolers; The Kidpower Book for Caring Adults: Personal Safety, Self-Protection, Confidence, and Advocacy for Young People, and the Amazon Best Seller Doing Right by Our Kids: Protecting Child Safety at All Levels.