One primary program focus at the club is character development. We implement several programs that teach and encourage character development. I my opinion, one of the most important character development topics we cover is anti-bullying. We have done the Bully Busters project (Service Recipe Guide 01) through Million Members, Million Hours of Service over the summer and we will be pulling that out again for Blue Shirt Day including creating our own bulletin boards showcasing our BGCA Bully Busters Club.
So, you might ask what exactly Blue Shirt Day is (because I know I was when I first heard about it). Blue Shirt Day is part of the Stomp Out Bullying campaign. You can utilize some great resources included in the toolkit to get meaningful dialog started with your kids.
There are a wide range of statics involving bullying, but one of the most impactful I have found is that in a poll of kids, 49% in grades 4-12 have reported feeling that they have been bullied in school within the last month. Nearly half of our kids are saying that they are being bullied - NEARLY HALF! This is staggering - every day kids are taking their own lives because of the stresses they feel from bullying. This problem is a national crisis and it will take everyone working together to have the most impact in the lives of our youth.
In our club, we will be encouraging all of our members to wear blue to show their support. It's a small step that will show a large visual impact. If you would like to take part in Blue Shirt Day, some additional ideas could include things like having a mental health professional visit with your kids (which could be a wonderful Career Launch activity as well) as well as incorporating some anti bullying skits. You can find loads of examples on youtube for kids to watch and if you want to expand the activity have them work in groups and write their own skits.
Is your group recognizing Blue Shirt Day? What are you doing in your groups to fight bullying? Let me know!
No comments:
Post a Comment