Kindergarten: Last week we began our bullying prevention curriculum with a lesson about how to recognize bullying. Students learned the definition of bullying, the types of bullying, and reviewed a variety of scenarios to determine if they were examples of bullying. This week we continued our bullying prevention curriculum with a lesson about reporting bullying. After reviewing the definition of bullying, we discussed the importance of reporting bullying to a trusted adult by using the phrase, “I need to report bullying.” Students watched a video of a student reporting bullying and then practiced reporting bullying in small groups.
1st Grade: In last week’s lesson, your child learned how to state a problem in a respectful way, without blame or name calling. They practiced identifying problems and then stated the problem respectfully. Children may be tempted to blame others when they’re upset about something. Encourage your child to avoid blame by describing what happened without focusing on who is at fault. In this week’s lesson, your child learned helpful ways to respond to a problem caused by accident. They practiced phrases for apologizing: "I’m sorry. It was an accident. Are you okay? How can I help?" When accidents occur at home, take time to apologize and encourage your child to do the same, using the new phrases they learned at school this week.
2nd Grade: In last week’s lesson, your child learned how to state a problem without using blame words. Ask your child for an example of blame words. Have them explain how they’d say a problem without using blame words. In this week’s lesson, your child learned that thinking of more than one way to solve a problem can help them find one that works better or that they like better. Ask your child to explain why it can be good to think of more than one way to solve a problem.
3rd Grade: In last week’s lesson, your child learned a new process for solving problems called STEP. Ask your child if they can recall what each letter in STEP stands for. (S: Say the problem, T: Think of solutions, E: Explore the outcomes, P: Pick a solution.) In this week’s lesson your child learned how to say a problem by thinking about what each person wants or needs. Ask your child how they would say a problem respectfully, without blaming anyone.
4th Grade: In last week’s lesson, your child learned two ways to become a better problem-solver: speaking up for what they need and feeling calm before trying to solve the problem. Talk with your child about times when they might have an interpersonal problem (a disagreement between two or more people) with a friend. Encourage them to use these moments as opportunities to practice feeling calm and speaking up for what they want or need. In this week’s lesson, your child began to learn a process for solving interpersonal problems. They learned how to say the problem respectfully and without blame. Talk with your child about an interpersonal problem they’ve had at home. Help your child think about each person’s point of view, and then work together to say the problem respectfully.
