Bullying Awareness Activities
Activity #1: "My Bully Book"Book to pair with: The Bully Blockers Club
Pair this book with The Bully Blockers Club because of the portion of the book where the teacher discusses bullying. Have a class meeting, just like she did, and talk about the various issues of bullying. This activity is geared toward students in lower elementary. Materials needed: plain white paper, three-hole punch, ribbon, crayons, markers or other writing and coloring materials. You may want to use a stapler rather than a three-hole punch, or any other small book binding tools. You may want a ruler as well, or paper that has space for drawing and lines for writing, depending on the age. Directions: In this activity, students will create their own “Bully Books” which will give them resources and help them form an understanding of bullying. Start by reading the book to the children, and then hosting a class meeting. Some questions to ask at the meeting include:
Step two: Have the children make the pages for the book. Here’s a list of possible pages and what might be included: Page 1: What is a bully? (Have children write things bullies do, or draw pictures) Page 2: How does bullying feel? (Have them draw pictures of feelings) Page 3: Who can I talk to about bullying? (Help students draw or write places they can go for help) Page 4: What can I do if I’m being bullied? (Have students make a list, or draw pictures) |
Activity #2: "The Bully Play"Book to pair with: Blubber (Any of the books would work, as this activity is very versatile and would adjust to different age ranges)
Pair this book with Blubber as the story has many very distinct bullying scenes that could be reenacted in a skit or play. Materials needed: There aren’t many materials needed explicitly, but some materials you may want to use include: costumes, props (such as a whale drawing if doing Blubber), or small set pieces such as shifting around the classroom, or creating a cardboard school bus. Directions: After reading the book, first have a discussion with students. Ask students what happened in the story. Ask students about very particular instances of bullying. If using Blubber, talk about the note that was passed around, or talk about what Linda must do before using the girls’ bathroom. Invite students to talk about their feelings toward the book and the situations. After having a discussion, introduce the activity. The activity is very open, but can be very beneficial. Have students help write a short skit or play about one of the scenes in the book, but tell them the play is about bullying awareness. As the students write the script, encourage them to include “pauses” where narrators could come in and point out what’s “wrong with the scene.” The first scene of the skit should be the scene from the story. The second scene from the skit would be the scene from the story, but modified. What should have happened? What could have happened to fix the situation? Invite students to talk about what solutions might be, and then encourage them to write this into the second part of the script. Finally, perform your play! Invite parents to watch the play, and encourage open discussion afterward as a community. |