5 Reasons to Celebrate National Bullying Prevention Month - Episode 5

It’s October and that means it’s the start of National Bullying Prevention Month! This month we are talking all about how to get involved and unite together against bullying. In this episode, we’ll give you five reasons to celebrate National Bullying Prevention Month and become involved in your school or community.

Transcript

Hey there, welcome to PACERtalks about bullying. I'm Bailey. We are glad you're here.

We're so excited that it's the month of October which is National Bullying Prevention month. This is a campaign that PACER actually created back in 2006. And it's an awesome time for schools and communities, businesses and organizations to get involved and support bullying prevention.

In this episode we're going to share the five reasons to celebrate National Bullying Prevention Month. Let's get started.

Reason number one. Together, we can create safe and supportive schools and communities. For so long, bullying was viewed as an accepted childhood rite of passage. That it was just part of growing up. But National Bullying Prevention Month is a nationwide call to action providing schools, and students, and parents with educational resources and tools to better respond to bullying behavior.

Reason number two. Wear orange all month long and be united. Orange is the color of national bullying prevention month so you can show that you care about kids being safe at school, online, and in the community By wearing orange throughout the entire month and, specifically, on Unity day with his October 25th.

Reason number three. Learn that what you do matters. We hear from students all across the country who experienced bullying, and so often, the main message they say, is that they feel so alone. Your support and being there for someone who experiences bullying can make a huge difference. PACER has tool kits that educates students and adult and community members on ways you can support someone who's experiencing bullying. Kindness and help and support are things that everyone can give. During October, you can use these toolkits to create communities that send a message to kids who are bullyed that they are not alone.

Reason number four. Release your inner artist. During October PACER has a ton of opportunity opportunity to show that you support bullying prevention in creative ways. Whether it's through artwork or videos or other opportunities. For example, you can plant a seed of unity in school using the unity tree. Just like this one. It's a powerful experience that shows the importance of supporting those who are experiencing bullying.

And the last and fifth reason, is to know that you're helping one in every five students. More than one in every five students report experiencing bullying. This probably means that it's happening to someone that you know and care about. But there's also good news. Students who experience bullying share that the biggest thing that made a difference was receiving support from their peers and adults and community members. So know that your actions make a huge difference.

And so those are five of the reasons to celebrate National Bullying Prevention Month. There are so many other reasons why. If you want to ideas on what you can do in your school or community, visit our website, pacer.org slash bullying.

So, that wraps up this week episode. We'll see you right back here next week. And remember, when we stand together, no one stands alone. See you.