When I was in the 7th grade I won a scary story writing contest at my middle school. The prize was receiving a free signed book from a published author and being able to meet him at his book signing in Rochester Hills, Michigan. This experience was a pivotal opportunity for me. I was a girl who was bullied in school and tormented on a regular basis. I recall winning this contest not only being a confidence booster but also a sign that I was more than the insults that others hurled at me. I was able to put words on paper and make others interested. My thoughts mattered. I remember being in my happy place listening to the process involved in developing stories and thinking that one day I would love to do the same thing. This was an incredible treat for me. I am looking forward to seeing many of my readers this weekend at participating Barnes & Noble Booksellers. I love to meet my readers in the bookstore. It is an amazing opportunity to connect, listen, share and learn. I always look for kids that remind me of myself. Those who are eager to meet an author, those who are interested in their own dreams being realized one day and those who need to be reminded of their worth. In the spirit of paying it forward I would like to have a small contest of my own. This upcoming weekend I have a treat for those who purchase one of my books and who mentions this blog post. In the spirit of giving and bringing forward a positive harvest I am giving away a "mystery" item at each signing. Feel free to share with those who might be interested. Saturday: Rochester 11-1. Sunday: Troy 4-6. Monday: Northville 5-7. Read Something Great!
The role of bullying in suicide among our young people has been intensely scrutinized in both media and research. As the deleterious impacts on mental and physical health for both perpetrators and targets—suicide being the most severe—become more evident, calls for framing of the problem from a public health framework have increased. A scientifically grounded educational and public health approach to both bullying and suicide prevention is required.
So let’s look at the science regarding the connection between bullying and suicide. As with most highly emotional phenomena, there has been a tendency to both overstate and minimize the connection. As Jeffrey Duong and Catherine Bradshaw point out: while the prevalence of bullying is high (approximately 20% to 28%), “most children who are bullied do not become suicidal.” At the same time, children who have been bullied have an increased risk of mental and physical problems. Melissa Holt warns us that bullying should be considered one of several factors that increase a young persons risk for suicide. We must be careful, though, not to confuse correlation with causation. That is to say, that bullying most typically has an indirect effect on a young person taking their life, rather than being the sole cause. Finally, the suicide rate (both attempts and completions) among our young people is unacceptably high and requires systematic efforts for prevention and intervention.
Bullying is an abuse of power. By definition, bullying is seen as behavior that is intended to be hurtful and targets individuals perceived to be weaker and unable to defend themselves. Bully can be direct and face-to-face, or may be conducted through social media. Amanda Nickerson and Toni Orrange Trochia reviewed recent research showing that all children involved in bullying (targets, perpetrators, and those who are both) are at higher risk for mental health problems and subsequently higher risk for suicidal behavior. This risk increases with repeated involvement in bullying and, for targets, the belief that they are alone in their plight. At the same time, social environments (community, school, family, peer) that support differences and caring relationship provide greater protection from the harmful effects of bullying.
While the question of who gets bullied and why is complicated, we know that some groups are more likely to be the target of bullying than others. Those children who present themselves as “different” are more likely targets than those who fit in comfortably to school norms. Children from stigmatized or marginalized groups, including those with psychiatric problems, physical disabilities, sexual and gender minorities, are at higher risk for being targets of bullying and for suicidal behavior. Again, individuals from stigmatized groups with higher community, school, and family support fare better than those who perceive themselves to face torment alone.
A cultural perspective is important to understand the connection between bullying and suicide. The research on the complexity of ethnic differences in bullying and suicide is sparse and in some cases contradictory. By paying attention to bullying behaviors that happen between people of different ethnic groups and those that exist within the same ethnic group, a clearer picture arises. Different cultural patterns related to aggression and emotion expression help to understand and decode what behaviors warrant being labeled “bullying” within different cultures. Differences between ethnic groups of youth need to be taken into consideration when trying to understand whether bullying and/or suicidal behavior are on the increase. Finally, specific care and attention must be paid to the risk of both suicide and bullying among sexual and gender minority youth. Both of these groups are among the highest at risk.
In conclusion, even one suicide death that is triggered by a recent torment of bullying is too many. As we move to better our responses to the threat of suicide due to bullying, we are assisted by the careful scientific exploration of differential risk and protective factors. By taking community oriented, culturally informed approaches, we believe that current interventions can be improved and new interventions can be created.
The post Youth suicide and bullying: what’s the connection? appeared first on OUPblog.
Today marks the 1st day of National bullying prevention month. I am often asked at what age should we talk to our kids about bullying and related behaviors. I am pleased to share that many pre-schools and early learning centers have asked me to read my books to their students and talk to parents about pro-social education. It is never too early to teach our kids to be kind. To share with them the importance of caring about others and to try to use practical examples to allow them to work on compassion development. As many of you know I have my own little tot and we are already working on feelings identification exercises. Bookstores and resource stores like Self-esteem shop carry many tools to begin this process. If we can teach young people early how to recognize emotions it is a great step in the process of pro-social learning. Does your center need assistance? Can your family benefit from a personal consultation on emotional understanding and prevention? Please let me know. This Friday I will be at Kindercare centers reading my picture book series to students and beginning the process of pro-social education. If you need an Unbully kit we send great resources through the mail that includes information, tools and resources that aid in prevention. -Read something great
Meet
11-year-old Jack.
He’s
funny. He’s inventive. He has a rich and loving family that includes his very
busy Mum, his rather odd Nana, his sort-of-stepdad Rob and his sister Samantha.
He
likes everything most boys his age do, whether they live in the U.S. or
Australia: going to school, learning, hanging out with his friends.
How
perfect his Life would be if only his classmate George Hamel vanished!
Alas,
a lame joke on Jack’s part led to George calling him a “Butt head.” Once the whole
school joined in, Jack’s school days spelled D-A-N-G-E-R.
Jack
shares his plight in the award-winning I AM JACK, a rite-of-passage children’s
book in Australia lauded as “accessible and hilarious…an absolute must.” Published
in the U.S. by KaneMiller in 2012, School Library Journal called I AM JACK “a
solid addition to the growing collection of books about bullying.”
Jack’s
first engagingly-told novel was adapted into a successfully-touring play in
Australia and will begin its U.S. run in 2014.
His
second and third novels include ALWAYS JACK (which deals with cancer in
families) and SUPER JACK (which deals with blended families.)
Now
meet Jack’s creator, Susanne Gervay, the award-winning, Order of Australia for
Literature author whom I proudly call friend, colleague and SCBWI Kin. (Susanne
serves as the Regional Advisor for SCBWI’s Eastern Australia and New ZealandChapter.)
Jack,
it turns out, was based on Susanne’s real-life son Jack.
“When I
discovered that Jack was being bullied, I fulfilled my Jack's worst nightmare.
Yes, I went up to the school. Yes, he was scared. Yes, the school acted. Yes,
the bully was called up.
It took
six months for things to really change. Eventually my Jack worked through the
bullying with the support of family, friends, the school. By the end he felt
good about himself, had great friends, loved his school, did his school work,
played soccer and learnt that society can be a fair place.”
Susanne
shared with me an email that followed her recent school visit to a multicultural state
school, the Bankstown Public School in Sydney.
Here’s what Akila in 5p posted on the class blog:
“At first if someone calls you names like Bumhead
(poor Jack) it's funny, the next time it's just nothing, a million times feels
like ok you can stop now and a jillion times equals AHHHHHH I had enough!"
Remember what Susanne Gervay said. Teasing is not bullying. Bullying affects
you in a different way. It makes you scared. We can help stop bullying in many
ways! You've got to give a helping hand and help someone else in trouble. And
remember George Hamel? Well I remember Susanne saying that he had supporters
which can happen here too. Bullying can happen at anytime and anywhere. If
you're bullied then tell somebody. Your family and friends are there to love
and help you so appreciate that!”
Exploring
the website for National Bullying Prevention Month, sponsored by Pacer, I was
taken with the Pacer Center tag – “Champions for Children with Disabilities.”
“Disables,”
I said to myself. “That’s what bullying – in any form, does. It DIS-ables the victim.”
But
as Jack says in the KaneMiller book sticker that introduces this post,
reading
stops a bully.
Reading
EN-ables
– the victim, the aggressor, the observer – to take action.
Or
at least it can and should, with the right book.
I
applaud MaryAnn and April for sharing their vulnerability so honestly in last
week’s posts, and in the books and poems they write.
I applaud Susanne Gervay for doing the same in I AM JACK.
Marian
Dane Bauer spoke the Truth in WHAT’S YOUR STORY?: we need to put our own
stories in the stories we write if they’re ever to resound in our readers’
hearts, if they're ever to enable them to do what needs doing.
Now,
go
read a book and stop a bully!
Esther
Hershenhorn
P.S.
Don’t
forget! The October 9 deadline looms for our Book Giveaway of Alexis O’Neill’s
newest book The Kite That Bridged Two Nations.
National Bullying Prevention Month
As
April and
Mary Ann have pointed out in their moving and helpful posts, October is National Bullying Prevention Month. Resources for parents, teachers, students, and communities are available at
PACER’s National Bullying Prevention Center.
Wednesday, October 9, is Unity Day, when people who care will wear orange to show their support. More information is on
UNITY DAY, 2013's Facebook page.
When I started exploring what to write about for this post, I began (as I often do) with a search on the
Milwaukee Public Library's web site. The subject "Bullying" brought up 53 categories of books about bullying, including Bullying in Schools, Bullying Juvenile Fiction (477 titles!), and Bullying Prevention Juvenile Literature.
Overwhelming, isn't it?
I decided to focus on one classic book,
Bootsie Barker Bites by Barbara Bottner, illustrated by Peggy Rathmann. I've always liked the satisfying way the young narrator triumphs in the end.
At first, her mother tells her she has to play with Bootsie. When the girl resists, her mother tells her she has to "learn to get along with all kinds of people."
When the poor girl "can't stand it anymore" and shouts, her mother looks surprised. (Ack. How clueless can we parents be sometimes?) The girl goes to her room to think over her response to her mother's suggestion that she tell Bootsie she doesn't want to play that game.
A light bulb flashed when I reread the book after seeing what an expert on disruptive behavior said in April's post:
- Bullies pick on people who are weaker than they are.
- You need to stand up to a bully.
- Be empathetic.
- Create clear boundaries.
In her room, the girl in
Bootsie Barker Bites invents her own creative way to handle the situation. She stands up and looks Bootsie in the eye. She's not exactly empathetic, but empathy is a lot to ask of a kid who's been tormented. She does create a clear boundary by refusing to play along with the bully's demands. What's satisfying about the conclusion is that she solves the problem for herself. I love books that inspire kids to take control when they need to. How I wish all bullied kids could find one book or person or piece of advice that would empower them to stand up for themselves. I hope these resources help.
Book Giveaway
Enter by October 9!
Check out the details in
April's September 27 post for the
Teaching Authors Book Giveaway, featuring
The Kite That Bridged Two Nations by Alexis O'Neill.
Birthday Sale
Besides being Unity Day and the last day of the Book Giveaway, October 9 is my birthday—mine and my twin sister Judy's, that is. I'm celebrating with a Birthday Sale: Order
Write a Poem Step by Step from
Lulu.com through Wednesday and save 20%! Here's a poem from the book, written by a third grader in one of my poetry workshops. This is what today looks and sounds like in Wisconsin.
Thunderstorm
Wet.
A big flash of light and a BOOM!
Drip drop drip drop.
Dark.
Melanie Gilmore, Grade 3
Poetry Friday
Today's Poetry Friday Roundup is at
Dori Reads. Enjoy!
JoAnn Early Macken
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Thanks, Esther, for introducing us to Susanne Gervey and her wonderful books!
Kane Miller Books offers an Americanized version of the curriculum study guide for I Am Jack. Click on the I Am Jack cover at http://www.friends.kanemiller.com/teacher-tips-and-study-guides.html.