For most children, school is a place to learn, to grow, and to be in a warm and nurturing social environment with their friends. However, when a bullying incident occurs, the whole equation changes and the ordinarily safe confines of a school can sadly become a scary place for a victim of bullying.

In an effort to heighten awareness about the issues associated with bullying, Yeshivat Noam recently held an anti-bullying program in its Elementary School for students in first- through fifth-grade.

The “Stand Up, Stand in, Speak Out and You Win” program, which was administered by Mrs. Linda Stock, Assistant Principal of the Yeshivat Noam Elementary School, Dr. Miryam Benovitz, the School Psychologist, and Mrs. Gali Goodman, MSW, helped teach and remind students about what to do in the event that they are bullied or see someone else being bullied.

In an interactive and fun manner, students answered the question “What is a bully?” Kids enthusiastically responded that it is when you are mean to others, try to bring someone down, or when someone hurts you. As a group they learned that bullying is when a stronger or more powerful person hurts or frightens a smaller or weaker person on purpose. The students also learned that bullies come in different “shapes or colors” and it does not matter what they look like; what is important is how the person acts.

Through video, pictures and games, students learned to identify the characters in a bullying scene, namely, the bully, victim and bystander. Students were taught that bullying includes hitting, punching, pushing, and teasing, as well as ignoring or excluding someone.

Students were encouraged to take a number of constructive steps in order to do something about bullying:

· Stand Up – Stand up for yourself and verbalize when someone hurts your feelings, and remove yourself from the situation.

· Stand in – Watch out for each other and step in when you see someone being bullied.

· Speak Out – If you are being bullied or witness someone being bullied, tell an adult.

The Yeshivat Noam students learned that bullying is the wrong way to get attention and often kids and adults bully others when they feel bad about themselves. The program helped the children understand there are things that that they can do on a daily basis in order to prevent bullying, such as not teasing others and helping their friends feel better about themselves. The students were taught that no one deserves to be bullied and that it is not your fault if you are being bullied.

“It is extremely important that children feel empowered to stand up and speak out when a bullying incident occurs,” said Mrs. Stock. “Being equipped with the knowledge to be able to identify a bullying situation and understanding what can be done to stop it is a valuable life lesson that we endeavored to impart to our students. Children must always feel that they are able to shine in any situation and we cannot allow bullying to be an impediment to that success.”