Middle School

I have used these Dateline videos the past two years with my 7th and 8th grade students. Hosted by Rosalind Wiseman teenage boys and girls are put in bullying situations and video taped as their parents watched. It is great for students to see what the kids in the videos do and there are many discussion points.

Dateline video link - My kid would never bully

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Dateline Video – My Kid Would Never Bully

Discussion Points

o   Bystanders?

o   Is ignoring the right thing to do?

o   Would your parents be proud of you?

o   How is bullying different with boys and girls?

o   Mean Girls Movie

o   What do you think after watching this video?

Video Questions

            For Boys Video

·         Review negative comments (you suck, running like a girl, sissy, anti-gay slurs)

·         Getting on the floor as a distraction

·         How do you think Brandon felt when he found out his Mom was watching?        

·         What would you do if you were Isaiah?

For Girls Video

o   Do you know a Veronica? NO NAMES

o   How would your Mom feel if you were laughing?  How would you feel knowing your Mom saw your laughing?

o   Do you know a Lilly?

Free bullying curriculum & downloads

The Ophelia Project is now offering all FREE resources. There are fact sheets, handouts, parent information sheets, and curriculum guides available. The Ophelia Project has materials for all age groups from elementary through high school.  The Ophelia Project is a great tool for bully, cyberbullying, and relational aggression.

RUMORS....

I don't know what it is about this time of year but it never fails. Middle school girls start going CRAZY! Maybe they are sick of being trapped inside. Maybe they are burnt out from school and need a break before spring break.  It seems like the past few weeks have been a string of she rolled her eyes at me, she won't let me be friends with so and so, she is leaving me out, and so on and so on. It is during these times I'm thankful I will never have to be a middle school girl again. It is also during these times I dread the thought of my own daughters walking the halls of middle school. 

There is a great activity called he said she said I like to play with my students to reinforce how quickly rumors can be spread and how information changes. Select 3/4 students to be volunteers (don't tell them why). One student stays in the room and you read the story below. One by one each student repeats the story to the next student. Tell students in the class they may not say anything to help the volunteers and can only observe. Most likely by the end the story will be missing a lot of detail. 

Ask students what message this activity is about. Discuss what to do when they hear a rumor and how to stop rumors. After a class discussion I follow up with a game of telephone which is always a big hit with the kids. 

He Said/She Said

This is an idea to help students learn how rumors begin and spread and how the information changes from one person to the next.  

Ask the class for 3 volunteers and ask them to go in the hall.  Ask for one more volunteer from the class and have them come to the front.  Read a detailed description of a person to the student.  Then invite one person from the hall to come in.  Ask the student who just heard the description to repeat it to the student from the hall.  Repeat this process with the next 2 students.  

Conclude by asking students to share their observations and ask them how they will handle the situation the next time they hear a rumor.  Below is an example but feel free to make up your own.  

Susan is 12 years old.  She is wearing blue jeans and an orange shirt.  She has sneakers on her feet.  Her hair is brown and her eyes are blue. She is wearing a Boston Red Sox baseball cap, turned around backwards and her hair is in a ponytail.  In her hands are a lunch bag and 2 books. She is also carrying a black book bag with white polka dots.  

SweetTweets

I have been talking a lot about cyber bullying this week with my fifth graders. Yesterday we made Sweet Tweets which the kids will update each day when they come into class.


Materials - strips of paper, markers, dry erase markers, magnets

Day 1 - Discuss definition of cyberbullying (bullying using technology) and different ways cyberbullying can occur. This may include texts, emails, Facebook, video games, and Instagram to name a few. I also do an informal poll of how many students have a Facebook account to twitter account. Pass out strips of paper and have students write their names any way they would like. Explain to them the idea of a sweet tweet. Basically they can write down anything that does not hurt or offend another person, including themselves.

Laminate the students strips of papers.

Day 2 - talk about sweet tweets again. No put downs. Can say hi, say something nice to another person, make it positive. Pass out wet / dry erase markers for students to write their sweet tweets. Share the tweets with the class. The next day when students come to class they erase the previous days sweet tweet and make a new one.
*** stress that online tweets can never be 100% deleted ( the same with texts, Facebook posts, ect). Once the student posts a message online it is there forever.

Have fun!

My kids are having a lot of with their messages.

No Name Calling Week

No name calling week is fast approaching. January 21st thru the 25th is dedicated to a week without name calling. The No name calling week website will provide you with all the tools you need for a successful program. There are free posters to print, lesson plans, and activities to get you started. The lesson plan are divided into elementary, middle, and high school levels.

I am planning on having a Mix It Up Day at lunch during the week. Another activity in the works is a friendship chain. Students will have a slip of paper with their name on one side. On the other side students in the class will write positive statements or compliments (you're a great friend, thanks for helping me with my homework, ect).  After students have a chance to see all the nice things about themselves the links will be connected into a chain. Think of this as a chain made during Christmas for classroom decorations. I'm not sure what other activities I'm doing the rest of the week but will keep you posted. What are you doing for No name calling week?