The best way to prevent our children from becoming bullies is to promote kindness in them from the early childhood days since it is the time of their emotional development, just like their cognitive, and social development. We often fail to notice and address, and sometimes, do not give it much importance knowingly when preschool children make fun of kids.
The reason is the mindset that they're just little children. However, if adults do not intervene at an early stage, the teasing child will have to face serious consequences in their development, to say the least.
As adults, we have the most important role to play in helping children who are bullies and changing their aggressive behavior.
Let's discuss how to address a bully, and what to do in order to prevent a child from becoming one!
How to Address Bullying in Children
According to NCES, one in every five school-going children reports being bullied and the majority of these children think that they would face it again. In addition, bullying has increased significantly in recent years and now has become one of the major health issues we have to deal with.
This indicates the seriousness of the issue and the urgency to act to prevent our children from becoming one.
As daycare providers, we must intervene in situations where we see young kids teasing others to prevent children face serious consequences in their development. If we do not act, the bullying child may face:
· Poor learning at school
· Poor social skills
· Increased aggressiveness, personal insecurity, low self-esteem, and ignorance of social norms and behavior
If you see a child bullying or teasing others:
· Talk calmly to them about the incident. Tell them why it was a bad thing and what their actions might have done. Ask them the reason behind their behavior, and if they've seen someone doing it.
· Make clear that bullying is unacceptable. To teach children not to make fun of others, you have to work from home and be constant so that the child understands that it is an unacceptable behavior at home, and everywhere.
· Positive reinforcement is always more successful in changing behavior than negative reinforcement. For this, look for when your child is behaving well and do not hesitate to compliment them for it.
· Be informed about the child's behavior and analyze them closely if you see them teasing other kids. Changing their lifestyle and routine sometimes helps change their behavior.
· Involve parents. If you've witnessed it in your daycare, immediately talk to the parents. Anyone in charge of the child's activities must be involved. Teachers and parents must act consistently to help the child develop social skills. A good way is to use Daycare Daily Report Forms to keep the parents informed about what their child does in daycare that day. Likewise, as daycare providers, when the parents first arrive at your daycare, you can ask them to fill out the Getting-to-Know-Your-Child Form, to learn about the child.
· Make kindness the norm, the innate ability that we all have. We need to encourage it in children, because although it is a natural ability for all of us, as children grow, they immerse themselves in the individuality that characterizes our societies today and they lose contact with that kind essence.
· And of course, do not hesitate to give the child real affection and love to make them feel loved so that they do not have to express their insecurity or aggressiveness with other people.
Here’s how you can foster a culture of kindness!
How to Foster a Culture of Kindness to Prevent Bullying
Start with Setting an Example
Of course, setting an example is one of the first steps in fostering a culture of kindness. The way you address the little ones is the starting point.
· Treat them with respect
· Address them with the same consideration and care as you would address a person you don't know
· Respect their views, needs, and opinions
· Value their emotions
· Acknowledge them
Being a good example of kindness requires adults to understand that children deserve the same respect as we do.
Secondly, whether you are a teacher or a parent, the way you talk about others in their absence and the way you treat others, is the "master class" in encouraging kindness. You cannot demand respect from children if we do not show it. We, as adults, need to watch our words and be careful when addressing others because we are the best school for children.
Talk to them About Kindness
Tell the children why kindness is important and what others feel when they're kind. The best way to make them aware of kindness and to teach them how to be kind is to talk to them about it.
Make use of little situations that we encounter every day, for example, making them help an elderly person to get off the bus, asking the supermarket cashier how he is, thanking the doctor, the waiter, etc.
Add a Kindness Game to Other Classroom Activities
Add a kindness game to other fun activities children do in their daycare classrooms. For this, you need:
· A glass jar
· Small pom poms or other small balls
Put the vase of kindness in a visible place. Every time a child performs an act of kindness, such as helping their classmate, lending someone something they need, giving a compliment, etc., they should go to the vase of kindness and put a pompom and tell the other classmates what the act of kindness was. Ask everyone else in the class to applaud, and when the vase is full, reward them with something they love to do.
Work the Magic of Empathy
It is not easy to learn to put yourself in another's shoes, and yet, when you do, you see life from different perspectives. Teach children what empathy is through emotional education since they need to understand how others feel when they are being teased.
Keep a Positive Attitude
Help children approach their days with a positive attitude. Explain to them that all our choices have an effect on our environment and, of course, our way of approaching life as well.
With these simple steps, we can surely foster a culture of kindness at daycares and our homes.
Learn more about reinforcing positive environment at your daycares, and manage them effectively by becoming a member of Standout Daycare. You can enjoy the numerous benefits the membership offers: use high-quality resources, attract more parents, and help grow your daycare organically. You can also benefits from the Standout Coaching to get where you want your daycare to be.
For more information, and to become a member, contact Standout Daycare now!
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