Teaching Kids How To Handle Bullies

Kristina Kuzmic, hilarious YouTube video star, has teamed up with her son to bring us this helpful and entertaining list you can watch with your kids.  If you're not sure how to talk to your kids about bullying, try this video clip. Kuzmic's son does a great job explaining how to handle bullies, from one kid to another.

Here are his 4 steps:

1. Be confident.

We all know it's really important for our kids to be confident in themselves. Not only does having confidence help our children to be successful, it can also protect them from bullies.  Kuzmic's son says being confident means “being proud of who you are.” He goes on to explain that it's not really important what other people think of you or your choices.

I love his metaphor about BBQ sauce! He says that BBQ sauce is awesome and you shouldn't care if someone doesn't think it's awesome, because their opinion doesn't have to change how you feel about it. Throughout the video Kuzmic and her son remind the viewers that we are BBQ sauce and we are awesome.

2.  Don't feed the bully.

This is a strategy I teach my students. It's especially helpful for handling online bullying, but can be used to handle bullying in person too. Kuzmic's son explains that bullies just “want a reaction” and we shouldn't give it to them.

He explains that sometimes ignoring bullies is hard or doesn't work as well as delivering what he calls ‘one-liners.'  One liners, Kuzmic says are short come backs that make it sound like you don't care.

In the video, he gives several examples that will help kids learn to practice the skill in real life.

3.  Stand up for others.

Kuzmic's son says kids should “make it [their] business to get involved” to stop bullying whenever they see it happening. He explains that just because the bullying isn't happening to you or a close friend doesn't mean you should let it happen without doing/saying anything.

I think it's important to teach our kids to tell an adult when they see bullying and remind them not to participate or provide an audience for the bully.

4. Tell an adult.

Finally, Kuzmic and her son stress that whenever and wherever kids see or experience bullying, they need to tell an adult “to stop others from getting bullied.”

I agree with this strategy. Our kids need to know that we are here for them and we can help. They need to know they aren't expected to handle situations where they feel unsafe or scared by themselves. Giving them the tools to handle bullying is important. It's also important that we let them know we're here to help.

Have you talked with your kids about bullying? What strategies do you think are most effective? Do you agree with the tips Kuzmic and her son shared in the video?