Bullying at school
Prevention: How can we protect our child from hostility?
Purposeful teasing, embarrassment, intimidation, exclusion: When your own child becomes a victim, parents are deeply concerned. But how can you as a parent empower your child to prevent it from getting that far? How can bullying be prevented? And what is the best way to react if your child is bullied anyway? Find out here what the effects of bullying are and what strategies can help.
How does bullying work?
Bullying on the way to school, in the playground, in all-day care or at the sports club is unfortunately not an exception. Causes can be a particular characteristic or personal weakness, but also physical appearance, origin, religion or skin color. Some children are not even aware of the reasons why they are being bullied. It often affects those girls and boys who at first glance appear shy and more defenceless than others. When harassment and assaults occur regularly and over a longer period of time, this is known as bullying.
The following forms of bullying can be distinguished:
The reasons for bullying are complex. It usually starts harmlessly with minor things and then escalates. Classmates find a weakness or a sore spot where the victim is vulnerable and unable to defend themselves. One hostile remark is followed by another and the others join in the laughter. Sometimes other children join in and join in the bullying.
The best protection against bullying is healthy self-esteem
If your child is quickly intimidated, this will motivate the perpetrator to continue the nasty game. However, if your child reacts confidently and lets the insults bounce off them, the other children may soon stop enjoying it. It is therefore important that you give your child a healthy sense of self-esteem. This will enable your daughter or son to fend off personal attacks with confidence. If you have a trusting relationship, it will also be easier for your child to confide in you if something goes wrong at school, in the club or with friends. You can then work together to decide which strategy will be most effective against bullying.
8 tips: How to strengthen your child:
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Strengthen self-confidence
Help your child to develop healthy self-confidence by encouraging them right from the start.
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Respect boundaries
Give your child the opportunity to set boundaries themselves and respect them.
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Promote self-confidence
Encourage your child to confidently express their opinion in family discussions
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Stimulate friendships
Encourage your child's friendships and social contacts. A child who has friends is less likely to be attacked than a loner.
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Enable a sense of achievement
Enable your child to experience success (for example in sports, hobbies, family outings, etc.) by challenging them, but not overtaxing them.
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Be a role model
Be a parental role model and resolve conflicts in the family constructively and without violence.
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Have open conversations
Talk to your child about bullying and possible strategies for dealing with it.
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Motivate and encourage
Encourage your child to get help if they or a friend is affected.
Where can we find help and support?
- You can find a counseling center near you via the DAJEB's Counseling Center Finder.
- In NRW, there is a school psychology advice center in every district and independent city that you can contact free of charge and independently. You can find a counseling center near you on the website of Schulpsychologie NRW.
- Many children and young people experience exclusion, bullying and hate speech online at school. In some cases, it starts as early as elementary school. The prevention program "We want to be bullying-free" explains to pupils, parents and teachers what can be done to prevent it. The anti-bullying program is scientifically supported by the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich. Further information can be found on the campaign page www.wirwollenmobbingfrei.com.
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