My friend is being bullied - What can I do to help? Information for kids

Nobody wants or deserves to be bullied.  It gives you a feeling of fear and sadness and nobody has the right to make you feel that way.  It can be very difficult to stand up to a bully or to tell on them, because you are afraid, but keeping quiet when you see that someone is being bullied is just as bad as doing the bullying yourself.

image source

There are a lot more kids who witness bullying than there are victims of bullying.  Often, people who see something happen are called bystanders. Wouldn't it be excellent if those bystanders would do something to help someone who's being bullied? 

First of all you need to realize that standing up against a bully and helping your friend will not be easy.  You can be caught in the 'cross fire' and the bully or other kids will turn against you, but you also need to understand that it will show that you are brave and caring.  

Rather be a brave, caring child than a person who ignores it when his friend is being bullied.

if you see someone bully another child, it is your right and you responsibility to let an adult know.  It can be your parents or a teacher.  If you are scared or shy to talk directly to the adult, write a letter, but make sure that they know what is going on.

Do not just tell on somebody because you want to get them in trouble, this must be something that you know for a fact or seen it happen.

If an adult knows about the bullying taking place, they can do something about it.  They can help the victim to stand up for himself, or feel better, but also talk to the people and help them to become more caring.  Many times bullies are children who grow up in a house where the are bullied or do not get the example of how to be kind to others.

You can also do something from your side.  Many times bullies are very lonely and unhappy people, so if you show them how to be kind by talking to them, or greeting them or even inviting them to sit with you at break time, it can make a huge difference.

This can help the bully feel that somebody are caring about them and that they have friends.  If you are among your friends and a bully feels welcome in your group, he will not bully you, since they do not bully friend.

Now is also the time when you can talk to the bully.  If they are part of your group and are mean to others, you can talk to him and tell him that it is not the way you treat others.  Show him by behaving in a good way, what the right way is to act towards other people.

 And when you see the bully acting mean, you can say, "Hey, knock it off, that's not cool," and invite the kid who's being picked on to walk away with you. You can just say, "C'mon, let's go." This can work even better if you get a couple of your friends to join you in standing up for the kid. Tell your friends ahead of time: "I'm going to stick up for that kid. Will you do it with me?" 

If you have told an adult about the bullying, make sure you update them on what is going on.

It is never ever okay to bully and it is also not okay to watch somebody go through it.  Bullying makes a person feel bad about themselves and we are all special and different and that is fine.  People need to accept you for who you are and if you see that someone is not treating someone with respect, you need to stand up for them... even if it scares you.  Afterwards you will feel so good to know that you helped and made someones day much better.

You can get extra information here if you are being bullied.

Team South Africa banner designed by @bearone