Lesson 7 Grade Handout 7A: Bystander Power

Be part of the solution:

Don’t take part in bullying.

• Don’t laugh.

• Don’t stay to watch.

• Don’t encourage.

• Don’t pass on rumors.

Offer support. Be an ally to someone being bullied.

• Label the bullying.

• Talk to the person. Ask questions like, “Are you okay?”

• Offer help.

Take action against bullying.

• Distract the person doing the bullying.

• Walk away with the person been bullied.

• Tell the person doing the bullying to stop.

• Get support from a trusted adult.

You can make a difference!

Instructions

Fill in the blanks, using Handout 7A to help you.

Dear ,

You are a bystander to bullying. As a result, it sounds like you feel .

Here are some suggestions for some things you could do: You could make sure not to be part of the bullying by

. (give a suggestion)

You could also offer support by (the person being bullied) (give a suggestion) .

Or you could take action by . (give a suggestion)

If you decide you feel safe talking to the person (or people) doing the bullying, you could say:

You will need to decide how you can be part of the solution.

Writing the letter was a brave first step to solving the bullying problem.

Good luck,

[Name(s) of advice column writer(s)]

Letter 1 Dear Expert, There’s this kid (I’ll call him Eric) whose locker is next to mine. Every day for the past month, a mean kid forces Eric to give him his math homework. He wants to copy it. Eric tells him he doesn’t want to do it, but the mean kid threatens to make his life miserable. He’s really popular and could get a lot of his friends to gang up on Eric. It’s not like Eric is my best friend or anything, but I don’t like to see this happen every day. I feel like I should do something. But this kid is really mean. I don’t want him to start picking on me. What should I do?

Signed, Unsure

Letter 2 Dear Expert, The last time my friends and I got together at our friend Jen’s house, some weird stuff happened. We did our homework, and then Jen got online and showed us this Web page she made. It’s called “We Hate Sarah.” She and some other girls have been writing really bad lies on the page about this other girl, Sarah, who goes to our school. I don’t really like Sarah either, but I think spreading rumors about her on the Internet is wrong. Jen is one of my best friends and I don’t want to make her mad, but I think what she’s doing is really mean. What should I do?

Signed, Disappointed

Letter 3 Dear Expert, Something happened yesterday and today at lunch that really made me angry. This boy Jeffrey tried to sit down at a table with a group of kids. When he did, they all moved over so that there was no room for him. I heard them saying that he couldn’t sit with them. Jeffrey went and sat all by himself. What should I do?

Signed, Upset

Letter 4 Dear Expert, There is a girl in my school (I’ll call her Annie) who can’t walk very well. When Annie goes down the hall between classes, there is a kid who copies how she walks. His friends watch and laugh. Annie knows he’s doing it, and I can tell it really bothers her. I see her pretending it isn’t happening. What should I do?

Signed, Angry

Name:

How can you be part of the solution? Use your Bystander Power! Unlike the powers of superheroes or wizards, Bystander Power can be used by anyone—even you!

But not everyone may be familiar with Bystander Power. Explain what Bystander Power is to an adult family member. Then come up with suggestions and examples for a Bystander Power poster together. Write your suggestions and examples in the spaces to the right.

Don’t take part in bullying.

Offer support. Be an ally to someone being bullied.

Take action against bullying.

You can make a difference!

This homework assignment was completed on . (date) [adult] signature

Name:

Answer each question to explain what you learned. Then write a reflection to show how what you learned connects to your life.

What I Learned

A bystander can be part of the problem in a bullying situation by:

A bystander can be part of the solution in a bullying situation by:

Connecting to My Life

Two things I want to remember to try as a bystander are:

Preparation Make sure students have a blank copy of Handout 7B.

Instructions for Students 1. Work alone, in pairs, or in groups. 2. Write a “Dear Expert” letter similar to those in the lesson. Base the letter on a real experience. Do not use real names.

Dear Expert,

Signed,

3. Exchange your letter with another student, pair, or group. 4. Write your response on Handout 7B.

Language Arts and Social Studies What does this artwork mean to you?

Have student groups really look at the artwork on the Bystander Power poster. What do they think the artwork means? Encourage students to identify the lesson concepts that they think are represented by the symbols. Have small groups come up with words that represent main elements of the program or elements suggested by the posters. Then have the groups report to the class their words and what they mean.

Health and Science What is herd behavior?

“Herd behavior” is when individuals in a group act together without a planned direction. Have students work in groups to research (using preselected Web sites or search engines) animals that exhibit herd behavior, such as flocks of birds, herds of sheep, or schools of fish. What are the advantages of herd behavior for these animals? What are the disadvantages? Have each group present their findings to the class. Then discuss: When and why might crowds of humans exhibit the same sort of herd behavior? How can bystanders who exhibit herd behavior be part of the problem?

Media Literacy Is this really funny?

Use the same animated cartoon clips used in the Lesson 6 media literacy integration activity to show bystander behavior. Show the clips again. This time, ask student groups to notice how the bystanders to the bullying that they identified earlier behave. Then discuss the following questions: How do the bystanders react? Do they think the bullying is funny? How does their behavior encourage or discourage more bullying? What kind of message do you think this sends to young kids? Can you think of funny ways the bystanders can be “part of the solution?” Have each group report their responses to another group or the class.