Having trouble distinguishing the difference between bullying and a simple act of aggression or even a minor misunderstanding? In this unit we will discuss what bullying and cyberbullying is and how they are defined. We take a look at how to determine if bullying is occurring or if this is just a one time situation and we explore the history of combating bullying. We also check in with our case study and use it to give an example of how bullying can get started.

Bullying and cyberbullying have become a serious problem that is finally being talked about more openly. Nevertheless, many parents are unaware of its scale. We invite you to familiarize yourself with the surprising and eye-opening statistics on bullying.

The ability to recognize aggressive behavior is one of the basic weapons in the parents' anti-bullying arsenal. After reviewing our video material, you will be able to distinguish physical bullying from verbal and relational bullying. Our worksheet will help you consolidate and use this knowledge.

Try to identify behaviour which may indicate bullying according to you (try to distinguish it from an ordinary misunderstanding or conflict situation).

Is this just everyday aggression or is it the beginning/continuance of ongoing violence that leads to bullying? Kids, like adults, can be aggressive and they sometimes don’t think about their actions. This can lead to them hurting each other. In this unit we discuss what aggression is, how it is defined, and how to determine if this is nothing to worry about and a one time event or if it is the start of something serious. We explore physical aggression as well as passive aggressive behavior and we use our ongoing case study to give you an example of how simple aggression can quickly turn to bullying.

For many people, passive-aggressive behavior becomes their second nature, making them difficult to coexist with. It is worth getting acquainted with examples of passive aggression, in order to be able to recognize it in everyday life and, for everyone's sake, try to change the attitude of people who use it.

Most cases of aggression can be stopped or at least mitigated. Using certain techniques on people who use violence, we are able to find out what causes them to act this way while also making them think about their future behavior. Learn the steps to take in this situation.

Since you already know different types of aggression, familiarise yourself with Greg’s story and try to define what forms of violence were used in his case.

Greg was attacked by a group of his schoolmates one day after school. It all started with just calling names, then one of the boys started pulling Greg’s jacket. Encouraged by the lack of reaction from the boy, three of the most aggressive boys approached Greg, took his schoolbag, and then put a trash bin on his head.

The whole incident was recorded on a mobile phone and then shared on a school Facebook page with a mocking comment.

Worried that your child is being bullied online? In this unit we discuss the various forms of cyberbullying. From cyber stalking to harassment on social media, identity theft to technical aggression, we discuss the various ways cyberbullies attack other children. We use our case study to give you a good example of how cyberbullying can manifest itself.

Many parents are reluctant to accept that the rights and freedoms of their children should be limited in some way. We think that in the case of the Internet, which is a completely new medium that carries very specific threats, the activity of young people should at least be monitored. Read how to properly define the limits of your child's online freedom.

While the dream of the Internet was to be a repository of knowledge, allowing everyone to access the collective wisdom of the entire world, it has quickly turned out that it is not particularly friendly to young people. Sexting is one of the most serious threats to the safety (real and mental) of our children, so it is worth knowing as much about it as possible.

Even the seemingly innocent behavior of young people on the internet can have serious consequences. Cyberbullying is being treated more and more seriously - mainly because many children do not realize that their jokes and pranks can sometimes bring serious trouble for them and their friends. Work with your child to study the worksheet below to help him or her identify activities that should not be done online.

Review the stories below and try to answer the question if they show examples of cyberbullying.

The age old question is: are bullies born or are they made? Research has shown that both of those things might be true. This unit explains the various spheres of influence that can eventually cause a child to become a bully. We examine the specifics within these spheres to see just how bullies come to be and we take another look at our case study to see how this cycle of bullying has affected his life.

Most cases of bullying begin with insignificant conflict situations, sometimes invisible to others or downplayed by everyone around. When violence grows, and there are more and more acts of aggression, we refer to this growing aggression as "The Pyramid of Hate".

This worksheet will be very helpful in determining if your child is exposed to bullying in his or her immediate surroundings - at home and school. Talk to your child to get his point of view on each of the topics presented.

As with other phenomena that reach the general public, bullying has many myths that often interfere with a full understanding of the problem. See which of the common opinions about peer violence are false.

Review the stories below and try to answer the questions.

Worried that your child is vulnerable to being bullied? This unit discusses the ways in which a child becomes a victim of bullying. We dispel some of the myths and focus on the facts to show you different ways to identify if you child is being bullied even if they won’t tell you themselves. By using our ongoing case study and other examples, we give you the information and tools you need to determine if your child is vulnerable to bullying or perhaps is already a victim of bullying.

It is often rare for the people in the child's inner circle to know right away that they are a victim of cyberbullying. Even the closest family is often unaware of it. The following article will show you why victims are not looking for help and how serious cyberbullying is.

Talking about experiencing violence is never easy. The following worksheet will provide you with plenty of information showing you how to start and conduct a conversation so as not to deepen the trauma that your child has experienced. This conversation (done with respect for his/her feelings) will help you decide what steps to take next.

A case of bullying occurred at school. One of the children was harassed, made fun of during breaks, and eventually even beaten. Meanwhile, there were some offensive and discrediting photos and posts about the victim published on Facebook and Instagram. All these incidents at school were observed by another child who attracted the aggressor’s attention causing him to become a victim himself.

Read this character study of three students and try to define which of them is most probably the culprit and which of them are the victims.

How can an otherwise normal kid become a bully that hurts other children? Here we discuss the other side of the coin, exploring what makes a seemingly normal kid become a bully. You will learn to see the signs in your child’s behavior that could lead to them being aggressive towards other children and we explore the various ways parents, family, school, and other surroundings can affect a child in a way that causes them to become a bully. We also get back to our ongoing case study to discover how our victim’s bullies became who and what they are.

One of the most difficult tasks you will have is convincing your child that his or her actions, which they think are all in good fun, can be a source of great suffering for other people. This section will show you how to clearly explain things to the child.

Even if you only have a trace of suspicion that your child may have been the perpetrator of violence, starting a conversation with them about this subject can be very difficult. This worksheet will help you get that conversation started.

While working with your child, don’t forget that they are just a piece in a larger puzzle, so teachers and other parents should be involved as well. Thanks to this worksheet, you will be able to plan activities that will include all the necessary people involved in the case.

According to you, which of the boys described below has a greater chance of becoming the culprit of violence and cyber violence in his school?

When is watching, not just watching? Bullying often takes place because those who see it in action don’t act. In this unit we discuss the different types of witnesses to bullying that exist and what parts they may actually be playing to make the bullying worse. We also give you information and ideas regarding how to teach your children the correct way to respond when they see someone being bullied.

Bullying witnesses are often in a position to stop the bullying by simply speaking up in opposition to what is happening. However, in most cases, they end up doing nothing. Does this mean that deep down they agree with the bully’s actions or were they just afraid to speak up?

As you have learned in this lesson, being a witness to bullying is sometimes an experience that is no less traumatic than being the victim. It is worth getting to know the child's thoughts on being a witness to bullying so you can help him or her understand the situation better.

Review the stories below and try to answer the questions.

It's hard to believe how many problems are caused by acts of bullying that were not stopped in time. Victims of this unpleasant practice suffer in many different ways, from emotional problems associated with lack of acceptance in a group of peers, to constant fear of being humiliated, to health problems such as diarrhea or various forms of pain. When we add educational and social problems (such as the inability to establish closer relationships), the picture becomes even gloomier.

As you know by now, bullying is not a simple issue, and the suffering associated with it affects all parties involved in the conflict. It is worth finding out what dangers the perpetrators, victims, and witnesses of violence are exposed to.

Have you ever wondered how to recognize if your child has been a victim of violence? With this worksheet, you can conduct a preliminary investigation that will help you decide how to proceed with your child.

Many parents do not allow themselves to think that their child could be the victim of violence from their peers. It’s no wonder they feel this way, because the symptoms are sometimes hard to notice, and although there are obvious symptoms, such as physical injuries, most of them are more subtle. Once we are convinced that something is not right, it is important to intervene without doing the child an even greater harm. That's why it's so important to have the first conversations about this subject the right way.

Talking to a child who has been the victim of violence is always difficult. You will find yourself wondering how you control the fear of such a conversation or which questions you should ask and which you should not? This article will give you the necessary guidance and help to prepare you for this difficult conversation.

Just like adults, children should be prepared for situations where peer aggression takes place. By working on the assertiveness of your child, you will equip them with a great tool for dealing with situations involving conflict.

Violence against a child is a problem that indirectly affects entire families. It is not difficult to imagine what emotions parents are tormented by when they find out that their child was the victim of bullying. It is important to try to deal with this problem within the family while making sure to not forget about the child and their needs.

Assertiveness is a skill that can be practiced. We have prepared a series of examples from which you will learn how to wisely guide a child to correctly react to potentially dangerous situations.

When planning a conversation with a child, it is easy to mistakenly misunderstand the child’s intent or needs in order to reach closure on the issue. In this short worksheet we will show you how to behave before, during and after the conversation so as to avoid this possible confusion.

When Mike got back home with a black eye, he refused to answer his mum’s questions about what had happened. Another attempts to get some information from his over the next few days were also not successful. Eventually, after having talked with his father, Mike admitted that he does not feel well at school: the other students bully, mock and call him names and on that fateful day he was hit while walking down the corridor. At the end of the conversation, Mike said he feels helpless and does not know what to do.

What should Mark’s parents do in that situation?

Would you ever think that your child could use violence against other children? And yet it is not so unlikely - where there are victims, there must be perpetrators. The point is not to assume that the problem will solve itself. Just like in the case of bullying victims, the perpetrators should be approached with great delicacy, with an aim at solving the problem rather than punishing the culprit.

There may be many reasons why a child begins to use aggression. Sometimes the beginnings of this aggression can be invisible to parents and teachers. Getting to the bottom of the problem is one of the most important stages in diagnosing what is really happening with your child.

At any stage, when working with a child, it is normal to ask for a professional psychologist’s or psychotherapist’s help. Their professional knowledge will certainly help in diagnosing the basis of the problem, and often you will receive a psychological profile of the child as a summary of the work.

Although everyone often sees the matter in their own way, it is not uncommon for problems with the child's behavior to have no grounds in their family life or upbringing. Aggressors occur in both pathological families as well as those where a lot of work is put into raising a child.

Young people easily come to pigeonhole others based on individual behaviors, especially negative ones. That's why one event can cause a child to be remembered for a long time as a bully and aggressor, even when he does not feel that way at all and may not even deserve this label in the greater picture.

The headmaster has just told Logan’s parents that their son is bullying other students at school. According to some information given by the school headmaster, Logan is supposedly using psychological and physical violence towards other students, and especially one of his friends. His parents are terrified having heard about the things their son has done.

How should Logan’s parents react?

If you have succeeded in preventing further violence, congratulations. Do not, however, stop here- it is important to continuously work with your child to ensure that he does not fall victim to bullying again. Many useful responses can be practiced. Assertiveness, the ability to cope in crisis situations, rebuilding trust towards friends and family, these are all excellent weapons in your child's arsenal.

As in adulthood, the rules of cohabitation among children and adolescents can be determined by negotiation. This principle works well during conflict, because it allows you to stop the violence, letting you decide what form your peers' contacts should take.

Something worth remembering: never be afraid to ask professionals for help. In many cases, the sooner we turn to them, the more likely they will be to help the child without him or her being hurt. However, we must know when to do it, and whom to choose: a school psychologist or a psychotherapist?

Self-esteem is one of the most important weapons against bullies. A child who is self-confident is much more likely to oppose attempts to insult, push, or humiliate him or her. It is worth learning ways to increase the child's self-esteem.

No matter what your character is, conflict situations are sometimes unavoidable. However, there are ways to minimize the risk of trauma when they do happen. This worksheet will show you how to prepare your child for situations in which the aggressor will go into action.

When all the indications show that the problem has been solved, you will wish to speak to your child about what has happened so that you can understand it all better. The child will probably willingly talk about his/her feelings and emotions, however, he/she will not want to recall the events. For example, who had hurt him, when and how many times – you would like to know that, it is your child after all!

School is a place that naturally fosters the creation of conflict situations between children. Nowhere else are there so many young people staying together for such a long time. That is why it is so important for the school to become a safe environment, free of violence. How do we achieve this? A few examples of effective actions are, setting clear rules for behavior, educational campaigns among students and teachers, responding to every incident of bullying, and a ready plan of intervention once it has happened.

The fight against bullying was started years ago by many countries and numerous people. In some cases, regulations were provided via national law (Scandinavian countries lead here), elsewhere there are actions organized by individual people. It is always worth taking a look at how others deal with the problem of aggression in young people.

As parents, we should pay special attention to how the school cares for the safety of our children. What do you do, however, if you do not know where to start? This worksheet will help you check if the school provides at least minimum attention to the problem of violence among students, and thus cares for their peaceful education.

Try to answer the questions as honestly as you can.

What happens to people who have already grown into adulthood, and in their youth were victims, perpetrators or witnesses of bullying? Contrary to how it may appear, many people experience the resulting trauma of bullying for many years, or even their entire adult life. Problems with maintaining close relationships with other people, symptoms of high stress in conflict situations, and broken self-esteem are just some of the problems that accompany the victims of peer violence.

Bullying does not end when a child finishes school or moves to another place. Unpleasant experiences from youth remain with us for a long time, sometimes even for a lifetime. The greater the trauma, the greater the long-term effect it has.

It is surprising how many common elements can be found in trauma associated with bullying and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Although it would seem that the battlefield has no real connection with school experiences, the reality shows us otherwise.

Read Tom's, Andrew's and Patricia's stories and answer the questions according to how you understood them.