PW invited parents of Delhi Public School, Raj Nagar, Ghaziabad to share insights on how they help their children to manage school bullies

“Our first lesson to our daughter Shreem (class XI) has been to act smart, brave and firmly tell the bully to stop and walk away. We help her practice ways to ignore a bully’s hurtful remarks and have drawn up a list of responses to keep handy. She is aware that showing kindness, displaying confidence and a positive body language are useful deterrants to bullying. Now Shreem has learnt to stand up for victims of bullying and encourage others to stand up to them. I am confident our daughter is quite capable of handling this social evil in school” — Kiran Bindal, teacher, Dayawati Modi Public School, Modinagar

“Together with my daughter Safia (class XI), our family practices body positivity at home which requires each of us to praise friends and family even if they have poor communication skills, attitude, size, complexion or height. Above all, we have learnt to love and embrace ourselves the way we are. This practice not only helps Safia to believe in herself but also develops her confidence to stand up for herself. When and how to react and when to ignore some folks is another lesson we are teaching her. It’s noteworthy that when children learn to love themselves, no bully can make them feel unworthy” — Charu Sharma, homemaker.

“Children habitually observe and learn from their parents’ reactions to different situations. Over and above this learning, we have taught our daughter Vaani (class X) to be emotionally strong and stand up by displaying confidence in what she believes is right. She is aware that bullying is wrong and unacceptable. And as important as it is to make sure our child is not the victim of bullies, it’s equally important to ensure she isn’t bullying others. Vaani and I have had long conversations about the importance of treating others as they would like to be treated. Our lines of communication always remain open” — Priti Goyal, businesswoman, Ghaziabad.

“We have provided a healthy and cordial home environment to our teenage daughter Kavya (class X). She is free to discuss anything at any time with us. As much as I am her mother, I am also her best friend, and try hard not to burden her with our expectations. To prepare her to handle any adverse situation, we are now focusing on developing her mental and emotional health by inculcating the values of self-respect and esteem. I also try to maintain a friendly relationship with Kavya’s peer group” — Reena Saran, homemaker.