Bullying on the Playground

How Can We Take Matters into our Own Hands?

By Beth Polsky

The P.E.A.R.L.S. Hawthorne School

bjpsmile25@optonline.net

 

 

 

1. Introduction

 

After reading, The Ant Bully we became familiar with a story about several children who are the victims of a bully. Many of our classmates related to this story because they had experienced similar uncomfortable feelings, firsthand, when they had been the subject of teasing and physical tormenting on our school playground.  

 

In the story, the children are intimidated by a child that is bigger and not afraid to use both verbal and physical threats to intimidate others. The children succumb to him out of fear. Our goal throughout this Webquest Activity is to empower ourselves to confront these types of people and respond to their threats using proactive methods that enable us to deal with bullies, and therefore, put an end to their negative behavior toward us.

 

 

2. Task

 

  1. You will write a diary entry as if you are one of the children being harassed in the story, The Ant Bully.
  2. Along with two of your classmates, you will write a script and perform a skit based on that script about an example of bullying.

 

3. Process

 

A.  Reading Response Activity

Our first step is to re-read the story, The Ant Bully. In response to this literature piece, you will write a diary entry. You will pretend that you are one of the children who is being harassed by the Ant Bully. You will include, at least, two examples of situations from the book that made you uncomfortable. In addition, your writing should be in the first person in order to reflect your emotional state. You will try to elicit empathy and actively engage your reader.

 

B. Role-Play Activity

You will pretend that you are partaking in a real life situation that involves bullying. In groups of three, you will work collaboratively with your partners to write a script. Your teammates will decide upon a troublesome situation that could occur on the school playground involving a bully. Then, you will assign roles having two children play the victims and one child pretend to be the actual bully. Each group will identify a difficult situation that they would like to grapple with. For example, a time when a bully insisted on taking your lunch money. As you perform the skit, the audience members will take notes with the purpose of being able to describe the situation to the rest of the class after you have finished the performance. In this way, we will be able to identify your problem and reflect.

 

As active participants we will have a four-point rubric and utilize it to critique your work. (See attached rubric) Problem solving will continue, as children offer suggestions and rubric scores are tallied after each performance. Then, audience members will volunteer ideas and step in as actors who put an end to negative, bullying behavior in any given situation. As a final project, your groups will film the work during class time. Teams will be expected to hand-in a written copy of their plays, as well.

 

Use the steps of the PPA to figure out the causes as well as develop solutions for the problem of bullying.

 

Steps of the PPA

Define the Problem                                                  Worksheet 1

Gather the Evidence                                                Worksheet 2

Identify the Causes                                                  Worksheet 3

Evaluate an Existing Policy                                   Worksheet 4

Develop Solutions                                                   Worksheet 5

Select the Best Solution                                           Worksheet 6

 

 

4. Resources

 

 

5. Evaluation

Rubric for Bullying on the Playground

 

Learning Objectives:

You will learn to solve problems that you have during lunchtime.  You will tap into your verbal abilities in order to prevent other children from bullying you.  You will work collaboratively to simulate real life situations that involve these sensitive issues.

 

Evaluation Process

You will watch one another perform their skits and evaluate their work on a scale from 1-4.

 

                                    1                      2                      3                      4

 

Scoring

Circle the score you deem appropriate and anonymously place it in the box. We will tally the votes for each group at the end of the activity. The team with the most fours was obviously the most effective in conveying their message about bullying. In this way, we analyzed and reflected as a whole class upon the work done throughout this Webquest process.

 

4        The team members always worked effectively by conveying a powerful message about the negative affects of bullying. They always solved their problem by implementing strategies that involved collaborative team work, role playing, problem solving, and verbal expression.

 

3        The team members often worked effectively by conveying a powerful message about the negative affects of bullying. They often solved their problem by implementing strategies that involved collaborative team work, role playing, problem solving, and verbal expression.  

 

2        The team members showed some evidence of working effectively, however, the message about the negative effects of bullying was not always clear. They showed some evidence of solving their problem by implementing the strategies that involved collaborative team work, role playing, problem solving, and verbal expression.

 

1   The team members did not work effectively or convey a clear message about the negative effects of bullying. They did not solve their problem by implementing strategies that involved collaborative team work, role playing, problem solving, or verbal expression.

 

 

6. Conclusion

 

Congratulations!!!!!

 

Now, you can walk onto your school playground with your head held high!! You are not afraid of that bully who once tormented you.

As a matter of fact, He is the one that is shaking in his boots.

But remember Mr. Big Guy or Gal,

You get a lot further with a little bit of honey than a lot of vinegar. 

Have fun at lunch tomorrow!

 

 

 

7. New York State Standards

Language Arts Performance Standard #5 (fourth grade)- The student uses the writing process to produce six types of writing products: (1) a report, (2) a procedure, (3) a response to literature, (4) a narrative account, (5) a persuasive argument, (6)invitations, letters, and notes.

(New York State Standards continued)

 

Language Arts Performance Standard #7 (fourth grade)-  The student analyzes and subsequently revises work to clarify it or make it more effective in communicating the intended message or thought. The student’s revisions should be made in light of purposes, audiences, and contexts that apply to the work.

 

Social Studies Standard #  (fourth grade)-

The student will use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of… the roles, rights, and responsibilities of citizenship, including avenues of participation.