Bullying Free Zone

We live near South Hadley.

I work with a woman who counseled the students from South Hadley High.

I am a teacher.

I have attended Anti- Bully workshops, heard Barabra Colloroso speak.

I have had bullies in my class, and I have the bullied in my class.

I was a high school student.

I bullied and was bullied.

My kids elementary school has a no Bully Zone.

The concept is simple.

No one bullies.

If you see or hear bullying you report it.

The person doing the bullying is counseled.

The bullying ends.

This bully free zone, sounded great until this week.

Luke attended a soccer day camp.

The first day another kid starting picking on him.

Luke didn't know how to handle it.

We brainstormed at home strategies.

The next day the kid picked on him again.

Luke handled it better, but was still upset.

A few days later, the counselor picked on him.

Luke got really upset.

" Don't they know about the Bully Free Zone?" he asked.

And then it hit me.

The world isn't a bully free zone.

He will get bullied.

We all get bullied.

And though a bully free zone is a great concept, it's not realistic.

What Luke needed at that moment was a bag of tricks to defuse the situation.

He had nothing.

He was totally unprepared for this situation and as a result was very vulnerable.

So maybe what we need is not a Bully Free Zone, but a Bully Defense class.

That way our kids won't be defenseless.

I wonder what Phoebe would think about that.