Alanna's Post
My group decide to do our service learning project at The Bright Horizons Preschool where Jenn works. I though the experience overall was great. All the students eagerly participated and seemed to learn a lot from the lesson.We split the students into groups and each had a basic plan of talking about what bullying is, preventing it and recognizing it as well as reading "Have You Filled a Bucket Today?" by Carol McCloud.
For my group I decided to have the students to tell me something a bully would do. Most students said simple child actions that are considered bullying but are most likely common at this age; my brother stole my lunch, I got tripped, somebody called me stupid.I asked the students how they felt and did they think it was right for somebody to do this and act like this, of course they all said no.
We then read the children's book and talked about nice things we could do for each other, and how we could help stop bullying if we saw it or were apart of it. The one concept I kept stressing was to always tell an adult, to never try and take action on your own especially because some situations can get out of hand. I had the students list on a white board the names of people in their lives they could talk to if they had an issue, were being bullied, or witnessed bullying.
I loved working with Jenn's students, they were all so adorable and I think this lesson was great for them but like Melissa said it would be better with an older group of students but I think overall the concepts behind bullying and preventing it were good.
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Thursday, April 5, 2012
Melissa's Service Learning Reflection
For our project, our group decided to do a presentation on bullying with the preschoolers at Bright Horizons. Jenn, Alanna and I decided to break the students up into groups to have a more personal discussion with the kids. To start the discussion with my group I asked the children what or who a bully is. My students came up with the following thoughts: someone who is mean, someone who doesn't like you, someone who makes you cry. After we discussed what a bully was, I read the book "Have you filled a bucket today?" After reading the story I asked the students to all go around in a circle and say something nice about the person sitting next to them so that everyone was complimented. I then discussed with my group the importance of being nice to people and 'filling buckets.' I then decided to ask the children what they should do if they are being bullied or see someone being bullied. My group decided that the best ideas would be to tell a teacher, tell your parents or ask the bully to stop.
It felt to do this project with the young children. I think that it is so sad that bullying happens this young, but it does and it is important for young children to know what to do if they or someone is being bullied and also the importance of being nice and caring to their peers. I think that the book was a great addition to this lesson because the children were very engaged with the book. It felt great because I feel like I really got through to the children because they were discussing and engaged in the lesson.
I would definitely do this lesson again with my future students. I think that bullying is something that unfortunately is going to be around for a while, and our students need to be educated on this topic. Depending on the age of the students I would change the discussion questions and the book that I read, but keep the same overall concept for the lesson. I think that I would do this project in the early years of my teaching and continue on with it throughout my career. Like I said, bullying is always going to be an issue and even if it isn't, children should always be taught to be caring to their peers and how to react to bullying.
I think that service learning would fit better into the methods course if the topics were more designed for young students. Personally, my topic was one that could be taught to students quite easily but i know some other groups might have a had a hard time turning their topic into a lesson for elementary aged students.
Jenn's Service Learning Project Reflection
My group decided to do our service learning project at Bright Horizons Preschool (my work). We were in a classroom with 19 children and 2 teachers. When we got there, we separated into groups of 6 or 7. Each group had either Melissa, Alanna, or I to have a discussion with. In my group, we began by using a white board to discuss what it means to be a bully. The children came up with the following answers.
1 A mean boy or girl
2. Someone who kicks you
3. They make you cry
4. A strong boy
5. They make you sad
6. When someone pushes me down on the playground
After they finished discussing what a bullying is, we talked about different ways to stop bullying from happening. Some of the children were unsure about how to stop it, so I wrote down some ideas on the white board and asked them which ones they liked best.
1. Asking the bully to stop
2. Talking with a teacher
3. Talking with your parents
4. Staying away from that person
Many of the children liked the idea of talking with their parents. They said that if they tell their moms and dads, then the bullies moms and dads would tell them to stop. After discussing different strategies, we began reading the book, Have You Filled Your Bucket Today? I told them that this was a book about making people feel good. As we began reading, one child said, lets make our own buckets. I told them that when the story was over, we were going to say something nice about each child in the group like the boy does in the story.
After we finished reading the book, I began by saying, “You boys and girls did a great job listening. I can see how smart you all are.” Then I asked each child one by one to say something nice about the child sitting next to them. Once they did this, they were all smiling and saying nice things to everyone else in the classroom.
After completing this service learning project, I felt like I made a difference. Many of the children knew what bullying was, but they were unsure on ways to stop it. After reading the story, I think they really understood the concept I was trying to emphasize. It is important for teachers to discuss bullying with their classrooms and really make sure they understand it. When I become an elementary school teacher, I will discuss bullying on a weekly basis. I think that it is important to do service learning projects with students (depending upon the age) so they can really understand a specific topic. As I previously stated, completing this service learning project made me feel like I had an impact on those children. I was able to communicate with them about bullying and hopefully prevent them from bullying others children or becoming victims of bullying. Within the past couple of years, students have committed suicide because of being bullied. I think that if teachers continue to discuss bullying with students, they will feel more comfortable and safe coming to school everyday. As future teachers, we need to be the ones to stop bullying. Realistically, bullying will never stop, but the drastic measures students are taking because of it needs to be prevented. Children should feel safe coming to school everyday. There is no need for other students to feel that they have the right to bully another child.
In my opinion, I feel that service learning projects should be integrated into the classroom. The more hands on experience students, the more understanding they will have. Teacher can discuss certain topics with their students, but physically getting up and doing something for other people is what makes a difference. We can not just say we want to stop bullying. In order to stop bullying, people need to do projects such as this and really leave an impact on the children. I think that projects such as these can really help get people involved in the community. I think if anything could do anything differently, I would love to have more guest speakers and see the techniques and strategies they use with college students.
1 A mean boy or girl
2. Someone who kicks you
3. They make you cry
4. A strong boy
5. They make you sad
6. When someone pushes me down on the playground
After they finished discussing what a bullying is, we talked about different ways to stop bullying from happening. Some of the children were unsure about how to stop it, so I wrote down some ideas on the white board and asked them which ones they liked best.
1. Asking the bully to stop
2. Talking with a teacher
3. Talking with your parents
4. Staying away from that person
Many of the children liked the idea of talking with their parents. They said that if they tell their moms and dads, then the bullies moms and dads would tell them to stop. After discussing different strategies, we began reading the book, Have You Filled Your Bucket Today? I told them that this was a book about making people feel good. As we began reading, one child said, lets make our own buckets. I told them that when the story was over, we were going to say something nice about each child in the group like the boy does in the story.
After we finished reading the book, I began by saying, “You boys and girls did a great job listening. I can see how smart you all are.” Then I asked each child one by one to say something nice about the child sitting next to them. Once they did this, they were all smiling and saying nice things to everyone else in the classroom.
After completing this service learning project, I felt like I made a difference. Many of the children knew what bullying was, but they were unsure on ways to stop it. After reading the story, I think they really understood the concept I was trying to emphasize. It is important for teachers to discuss bullying with their classrooms and really make sure they understand it. When I become an elementary school teacher, I will discuss bullying on a weekly basis. I think that it is important to do service learning projects with students (depending upon the age) so they can really understand a specific topic. As I previously stated, completing this service learning project made me feel like I had an impact on those children. I was able to communicate with them about bullying and hopefully prevent them from bullying others children or becoming victims of bullying. Within the past couple of years, students have committed suicide because of being bullied. I think that if teachers continue to discuss bullying with students, they will feel more comfortable and safe coming to school everyday. As future teachers, we need to be the ones to stop bullying. Realistically, bullying will never stop, but the drastic measures students are taking because of it needs to be prevented. Children should feel safe coming to school everyday. There is no need for other students to feel that they have the right to bully another child.
In my opinion, I feel that service learning projects should be integrated into the classroom. The more hands on experience students, the more understanding they will have. Teacher can discuss certain topics with their students, but physically getting up and doing something for other people is what makes a difference. We can not just say we want to stop bullying. In order to stop bullying, people need to do projects such as this and really leave an impact on the children. I think that projects such as these can really help get people involved in the community. I think if anything could do anything differently, I would love to have more guest speakers and see the techniques and strategies they use with college students.
Thursday, March 1, 2012
Our group is thinking of doing a informational discussion with the local boys and girls club of Salem Massachusetts. We would want to sit down wit the girls and boys and talk about all the aspects of bullying and offer up some videos that would both inform and motivate the children to stop bullying, prevent bullying, and speak out against it. We could also do one of the projects mentioned below. When we go to do this project we will contact some of the following people :
THE BOYS & GIRLS CLUB
OF GREATER SALEM
13 HAWTHORNE BOULEVARDSALEM, MA 01970
978-744-0915
978-744-6203 (FAX)
www.bgcgs.org
Administrative Office
194 Essex Street
Salem, MA 01970
Phone: 978.740.KIDS
Fax: 978.740.2486
Deborah A. Kneeland
Executive Director
978.740.5437, Ext. 14
dkneeland@fkoafterschool.org
| Mentor Coordinator | Arielle Sobov | 978.740.5437, Ext. 19 | asobov@fkoafterschool.org |
If our group were to do a service learning project for elementary students it would be a group sit down. For this, the teacher would split the groups up to 6 to 8 kids per group. The students would then go around the group and discuss what they feel a bully is. The teacher would also have them talk about how to protect themselves against bullying, who to get in touch with and how to help others if they see someone getting bullied. Once the students finish their discussion, the next thing the teacher would have them do is a trust fall lesson. Each student would have to let someone catch them while closing their eyes and crossing their arms. This is a true trust building experiment. It allows for a community atmosphere in the classroom.
Another activity that our group would do to educate elementary students about bullying, or as a service learning project could be the following lesson:
Introduction
Explain to students that an estimated 5.7 million young people in the United States have identified themselves as a bully, admit to being bullied, or both. Bullying can be verbal or non-verbal, physical or non-physical. Bullying can be direct, like hitting, teasing, or making threats. It can also be indirect, like rumors, manipulation, isolation and exclusion. A bully might be one person acting out independently, or a clique or group of people picking on someone out of a need to increase their popularity or to seem more cool.
Procedure
1. Ask students what the think the saying “Sticks and stones can break my bones, but names can really hurt me.” Has anyone heard another version of this saying? Which is truer? Ask students to take a moment to reflect on their experiences. Have they ever had someone say something to them that hurt their feelings. Has someone ever hurt them physically or tried to scare them? Have they ever hurt someone by something they said or did?
2. Teachers might want to provide students with their own personal example of a time they were a victim or a witness to bullying or they hurt someone’s feelings. If students feel comfortable, allow them a few moments to share their experiences aloud. And/Or read a book about bullying like This is Our House, Hey, Little Ant, Mr. Lincoln’s Way, Say Something, or Simon’s Hook.
3. Give each student a light gray paper “stone.” Have students write a behavior that could hurt someone or make them feel bad such as calling someone an ethnic name, or tripping someone. Younger children can draw a picture.
4. Have them wrinkle up the "stone" and then try to smooth it out. Explain that once someone has been hurt, it is never forgotten. You cannot remove the hurt. The wrinkles will always be there.
5. Hang stones on wall to create a wall of intolerance or have students sit in a circle and pile the rocks up in the middle. Ask students to think about ways to prevent these things from happening. Create a class list of ideas.
6. In turn, have each student select someone else’s stone off the wall or from the pile. Read your stone and imagine that this happened to yourself or a friend of yours. What could you do about it? Pair and share your ideas.
7. Together as a class make a poster or some other product (PowerPoint, video, letter to newspaper) explaining something positive everyone could do about bullying.
Alanna Herdt Reflection:
I chose this picture because it ties into what we had talked about in the first blog. The state does not have good anti-bullying laws which is a big problem. Bullying is growing and expanding, more and more kids are being hurt and affected by bullying. And now with the internet it is more prominate and even more difficult to see and stop. This picture shows the few states still missing these laws that could save lives.
I think that this project/blog has allowed me to really think about bullying, and where I stand on the issue. Obviously I knew that I would be against it, but I did not think I would be this interested in the social issue. It is truly a growing issue, more and more children and being hurt, taking their lives, and taking other students lives. My heart sinks every time I hear about a school shooting or young deat because of bullying. There has to be something we can do individually, as educators, as members of our community and as United States citizens. I think its only right that anyone getting into the education field is aware of bullying and is able to stand up against it, aware of the laws, the rules, and the facts. It is not a small issue. These students wont just "toughen up". I think in a learning environment especially its important for the students to be comfortable and to feel safe. Bullying does not allow that. As a teacher, and as a person its important to speak out against it in any way possible. Do let people get bullied in front of you-- its consequences can be irreversible.
I chose this picture because it ties into what we had talked about in the first blog. The state does not have good anti-bullying laws which is a big problem. Bullying is growing and expanding, more and more kids are being hurt and affected by bullying. And now with the internet it is more prominate and even more difficult to see and stop. This picture shows the few states still missing these laws that could save lives.
I think that this project/blog has allowed me to really think about bullying, and where I stand on the issue. Obviously I knew that I would be against it, but I did not think I would be this interested in the social issue. It is truly a growing issue, more and more children and being hurt, taking their lives, and taking other students lives. My heart sinks every time I hear about a school shooting or young deat because of bullying. There has to be something we can do individually, as educators, as members of our community and as United States citizens. I think its only right that anyone getting into the education field is aware of bullying and is able to stand up against it, aware of the laws, the rules, and the facts. It is not a small issue. These students wont just "toughen up". I think in a learning environment especially its important for the students to be comfortable and to feel safe. Bullying does not allow that. As a teacher, and as a person its important to speak out against it in any way possible. Do let people get bullied in front of you-- its consequences can be irreversible.
Reflection
Melissa's Post
Through this blog, I have learned more about bullying than I thought that I would, but most importantly, I learned that I can make a difference. By simply signing a petition against bullying I immediately felt better. I also am blessed to be in a third grade classroom where I can spread awareness about bullying. I have always believed that bullying was going to become something that causes havoc in our country; and I believe that it has. Too often you turn on the TV and there are countless stories of kids getting bullied and taking the wrong way out: killing themselves or killing others. Bullying has morphed from teasing on the playground to violence and torment. With the rise of technology bullying has become even worse now that kids are able to bully others behind the scene and anonymously. This blog has gotten me to research bullying more in depth and it has shown me the horrible sides to bullying. I have learned about the current policies and laws about bullying. I think that this is a very important topic for everyone to know about and be aware of, and also try to prevent. As a future elementary school teacher I plan on educating my classes every year about the importance of preventing bullying from happening inside and outside of school. I want all of my students to always know that if they are being bullied, or know someone that is being bullied they can always speak up and tell someone, myself, another teacher, or the principal without being afraid. Too often students do not speak up because they are so afraid of what their bully is going to do to them, so they keep quiet in hopes that it will go away. To tie this into a classroom I would do something like create different role play bullying scenarios where they find a solution or written problems that the students have to find solutions too.
Here are some great anti-bullying websites:
http://www.stopbullying.gov/
http://www.thinkb4youspeak.com/
Through this blog, I have learned more about bullying than I thought that I would, but most importantly, I learned that I can make a difference. By simply signing a petition against bullying I immediately felt better. I also am blessed to be in a third grade classroom where I can spread awareness about bullying. I have always believed that bullying was going to become something that causes havoc in our country; and I believe that it has. Too often you turn on the TV and there are countless stories of kids getting bullied and taking the wrong way out: killing themselves or killing others. Bullying has morphed from teasing on the playground to violence and torment. With the rise of technology bullying has become even worse now that kids are able to bully others behind the scene and anonymously. This blog has gotten me to research bullying more in depth and it has shown me the horrible sides to bullying. I have learned about the current policies and laws about bullying. I think that this is a very important topic for everyone to know about and be aware of, and also try to prevent. As a future elementary school teacher I plan on educating my classes every year about the importance of preventing bullying from happening inside and outside of school. I want all of my students to always know that if they are being bullied, or know someone that is being bullied they can always speak up and tell someone, myself, another teacher, or the principal without being afraid. Too often students do not speak up because they are so afraid of what their bully is going to do to them, so they keep quiet in hopes that it will go away. To tie this into a classroom I would do something like create different role play bullying scenarios where they find a solution or written problems that the students have to find solutions too.
Here are some great anti-bullying websites:
http://www.stopbullying.gov/
http://www.thinkb4youspeak.com/
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Reflection on Bullying & Service Learning Project
Jenn's Post:
Participating in this blog has really pushed me to research more about bullying and understand ways to help prevent it. Working with Melissa and Alanna to research the effects and laws of bullying has made me understand how big and serious this issue really is. Interviewing others about bullying helped me to see it from others peoples perspectives and not just my own. I think that it is important to get the community involved to help brainstorm various ways to prevent bullying and make school systems a safe environment. I do not feel that schools are doing everything in their power to help prevent bullying and it is sad to see how many children commit suicide, run away from home, or curl up in a corner because of what other children put them through. I feel that the government needs to take a higher position against bullying and realize the severity of it. If teachers talk on a daily basis to students about bullying and how it effects other students, it may absorb into their heads and force them to stop. Doing activities and lessons around bullying will eventually get these children who are bullies to see what they are like and hopefully change their thoughts about bullying someone again.
Our group has decided to do our service learning project at the Boys and Girls after school program in Salem. We are going to do a small activity and presentation with the students to help them understand everything they need to know about bullying. We decided to do this because we thought it would be a great way to get students from the community involved and really impacts their opinions and thoughts about bullying. It is important to get these students involved in some way so that they can be the ones to tells their peers to stop bullying and stand up for what it right.
Bullying prevention websites and school discussions regarding bullying:
http://www.wickedlocal.com/westborough/topstories/x535933631/School-officials-discuss-bullying#axzz1npM2eAWh
http://www.wrightslaw.com/info/harassment.index.htm
http://www.kcl-law.com/node/117
Participating in this blog has really pushed me to research more about bullying and understand ways to help prevent it. Working with Melissa and Alanna to research the effects and laws of bullying has made me understand how big and serious this issue really is. Interviewing others about bullying helped me to see it from others peoples perspectives and not just my own. I think that it is important to get the community involved to help brainstorm various ways to prevent bullying and make school systems a safe environment. I do not feel that schools are doing everything in their power to help prevent bullying and it is sad to see how many children commit suicide, run away from home, or curl up in a corner because of what other children put them through. I feel that the government needs to take a higher position against bullying and realize the severity of it. If teachers talk on a daily basis to students about bullying and how it effects other students, it may absorb into their heads and force them to stop. Doing activities and lessons around bullying will eventually get these children who are bullies to see what they are like and hopefully change their thoughts about bullying someone again.
Our group has decided to do our service learning project at the Boys and Girls after school program in Salem. We are going to do a small activity and presentation with the students to help them understand everything they need to know about bullying. We decided to do this because we thought it would be a great way to get students from the community involved and really impacts their opinions and thoughts about bullying. It is important to get these students involved in some way so that they can be the ones to tells their peers to stop bullying and stand up for what it right.
Bullying prevention websites and school discussions regarding bullying:
http://www.wickedlocal.com/westborough/topstories/x535933631/School-officials-discuss-bullying#axzz1npM2eAWh
http://www.wrightslaw.com/info/harassment.index.htm
http://www.kcl-law.com/node/117
Thursday, February 16, 2012
alanna post 1D
The Bullying petition I signed had the following to say :
I think its important for not only me but for everybody to have a voice. Speak out when you see a student being bullied or looks as though he or she has been bullied. As a future teacher its important to be aware of the signs and to know your children well enough to know what and when something is wrong. I think signing this petition and doing this project shed light on the already known fact; bullying is wrong and it effects more and more students everyday. I want to stand against it and make my students aware of the negative affects it can have as well as how to be aware of yourself, what you do and what you say.
Bullying is a problem that affects millions of students of all
races and classes. 1 out of 4
kids are bullied and 43% of teens,
97% of middle schoolers and 47% of older teens 18-24 are
cyberbullied. 9 out of 10 LGBT
students experienced harassment at school. As many as 160,000 students stay home on
any given day because they're afraid of being bullied.
Child and teen Bullying and Cyberbullying are at an all-time high. Some kids are so tormented that suicide has become an alternative for them. It has everyone worried. Not just the kids on its receiving end, but the parents and others who may not understand how extreme bullying can get.
Child and teen Bullying and Cyberbullying are at an all-time high. Some kids are so tormented that suicide has become an alternative for them. It has everyone worried. Not just the kids on its receiving end, but the parents and others who may not understand how extreme bullying can get.
I think I felt really good about signing the petition but I also felt as though I really hadn't done anything. I typed in my name but did I really help anybody? I hope so but I think apart of me knows that helping to stop bullying it is more than just typing in my name and email. If ninety seven percent of middle school children are being bullied, what can I do? I looked deeper into and ended up signing more and more petitions and would really like the chance to actually volunteer. 160,000 students stay home every day! I just cannot believe the numbers associated with this issue. If so many why is there so little being done?
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