The statistics are there to prove it, or perhaps you have
some first-hand knowledge about bullying and its devastating affects on the
lives of many children. As much as parents want to protect their children, they
can’t always be at their side. Parents can help keep their children safe from
bullies, according to Shawn Trickett who teaches bullyproofing skills at Kicks
for Kids.
“I think the most
important thing is to give your child the tools to deal with the situation,” he
advises. Most kids just have the fight or flight response. They don’t have the
tools to defuse the situation or to control the bully.”
A bully-proofing course at Kicks for Kids, gives children
those tools, 12 of them in fact. The
first lesson is that your mind is your strongest weapon, not only does it
command your physical movements, it controls everything else that you do.
Children are taught to use their minds to ignore the bully and walk away. They
are also encouraged to use an authority figure against the bully.
Trickett explains that basically a bully is looking for a
reaction from his or her victim. The bully wants to make his victim cry or
otherwise humiliate them in front of others. The bully feeds off of this power.
“Take away the power and the bullying will stop,” says
Trickett, head instructor at Kicks for Kids.
Being made a victim comes down to self esteem, according to
the instructor. A bully-proof child knows to believe in himself and not to
believe the names that the bully is hurling at him. A strong belief in who you
are is a powerful defense that takes power away from the bully.
According to Trickett, the idea is to diffuse the situation
and bully-proofing provides those skills. Kicks for Kids presents workshops on
bully-proofing for adults and children. Skills are also reviewed after regular
martial arts classes or during PA day and summer camp programs at Kicks. Role
playing and discussions get the message across.
Equipping a child to deal with a bullying situation before
it happens is beneficial says Trickett. If a bully’s power play doesn’t
succeed, it’s doubtful he or she will try again. Once a child has been a victim
a few times however, it’s more difficult to apply the tools and diffuse the
confrontation. That’s why advance training, like Kicks for Kids offers, can be
so beneficial.
To find out more about bully-proofing programs as Kicks for
Kids, visit the website at
www.kicksforkids.ca.
