This afternoon, Mrs Dorrian and some of our Primary 6 pupils delivered a special whole school Assembly around Anti Bullying and in particular the theme of "Make A Noise. "
Our Primary 6 pupils reminded all of our pupils that too often, we are silent when we see bullying take place, silent about the hurt bullying causes, and silent when we hear bullying dismissed as ‘just banter’. Together, we can make a difference and take a stand against bullying. It doesn't have to be this way. The challenge again was set for this Anti-Bullying Week for our schooling community to come together to have discussions about what bullying means to us, how banter can turn into something more hurtful, and what we can do to stop bullying.
In our class groups we discussed the difference between bullying and banter and then discussed this together as a whole school. Banter is defined as the playful and friendly exchange of teasing remarks. Pupils were reminded that it is not banter if
1.You would be upset if someone said it to you
2.It's hurtful
3.You're not friends
4.Someone's asked you to stop
5.The target isn't laughing
Bullying is defined as, "The repetitive, intentional hurting of one person or group by another person or group, where the relationship involves an imbalance of power. Bullying can be physical, verbal or psychological. It can happen face to face or online."
It was emphaised again that Bullying type behaviour is not welcome in our school and that it is important we use our voice to 'make a noise' if we suspect bullying behaviour is happening or if someone is directing bullying type behaviour onto anyone. We will finish this Anti Bullying Week on Friday with the prizes for our poster competition.
