Summary of Article
The article “Bullying Among Young Children: Strategies for Prevention” by Emily Levine and Melissa Tamburrino addresses the issues of bullying in young children and strategies that early childhood educators can implement to prevent bullying from happening in their classrooms. According to Levine and Tamburrino (2013), the two common categories of bullying that occur in preschools are physical aggression and relational aggression. Physical aggression involves causing direct harm to the other party such as biting, hitting, pushing, and kicking while exclusion and control over peer relationships are forms of relational aggression (Levine & Tamburrino, 2013). Since bullying among young children has been an increasing problem …show more content…
Over the years, bullying is becoming more common in preschools and is a large stressor that affects young children. In such situations, I feel that educators often lack experience and knowledge on how to manage bullying among young children. In most preschools, educators would often reprimand the child or give a time-out for the child during playtime. I feel that these strategies are not as effective as the child often become more defiant. However, after reading the article, I believe that I can apply these strategies in my classroom to educate young children about bullying. In the article, the authors mentioned the idea of offering a leadership role to bullies in the classrooms, as bullies often want power and authority over something (Levine & Tamburrino, 2013). As an early childhood educator, I believe that simple leadership roles of getting the child to be in-charge of the stationaries at the work tables, or ensuring that all toys are kept after playtime are not only opportunities for children to see positive outcomes of their skills, but also prevents bullying from happening. Another effective strategy that I can apply in my teaching is the use of children literature to address the issue of bullying, without pinpointing on a child or embarrassing the child. In the future, I can also use storybooks to discuss about the character’s situations and actions with the children and invite them to identify if the behaviours are right or wrong. In addition, I believe that the use of children literature allows children to build empathy for the characters, as they identify the feelings of the bullies and the victims. As an educator, I also agree that it is pivotal for educators to educate children on how to deal with bullying and how children can resolve problems on their own. When children have the opportunity to address and resolve
The article “Bullying Among Young Children: Strategies for Prevention” by Emily Levine and Melissa Tamburrino addresses the issues of bullying in young children and strategies that early childhood educators can implement to prevent bullying from happening in their classrooms. According to Levine and Tamburrino (2013), the two common categories of bullying that occur in preschools are physical aggression and relational aggression. Physical aggression involves causing direct harm to the other party such as biting, hitting, pushing, and kicking while exclusion and control over peer relationships are forms of relational aggression (Levine & Tamburrino, 2013). Since bullying among young children has been an increasing problem …show more content…
Over the years, bullying is becoming more common in preschools and is a large stressor that affects young children. In such situations, I feel that educators often lack experience and knowledge on how to manage bullying among young children. In most preschools, educators would often reprimand the child or give a time-out for the child during playtime. I feel that these strategies are not as effective as the child often become more defiant. However, after reading the article, I believe that I can apply these strategies in my classroom to educate young children about bullying. In the article, the authors mentioned the idea of offering a leadership role to bullies in the classrooms, as bullies often want power and authority over something (Levine & Tamburrino, 2013). As an early childhood educator, I believe that simple leadership roles of getting the child to be in-charge of the stationaries at the work tables, or ensuring that all toys are kept after playtime are not only opportunities for children to see positive outcomes of their skills, but also prevents bullying from happening. Another effective strategy that I can apply in my teaching is the use of children literature to address the issue of bullying, without pinpointing on a child or embarrassing the child. In the future, I can also use storybooks to discuss about the character’s situations and actions with the children and invite them to identify if the behaviours are right or wrong. In addition, I believe that the use of children literature allows children to build empathy for the characters, as they identify the feelings of the bullies and the victims. As an educator, I also agree that it is pivotal for educators to educate children on how to deal with bullying and how children can resolve problems on their own. When children have the opportunity to address and resolve