Blue Shirt Day Makes the News!
Brian Scott, CBS 2 & Fox 28 News
ANAMOSA, IA (KGAN) – Most probably wouldn’t expect to hear about bullying in an elementary school; it seems like a problem for teenagers in high school or middle school, but educators say it is a problem, even at that young age.
"It does happen in elementary schools," said Nicole Cox a councilor at Strawberry Hill Elementary in Anamosa.
As a school counselor Cox has helped individual students deal with bullies for years, now she and her fellow staff at Strawberry Hill are fighting the issue of bullying head on.
"For us the biggest emphasis is just having kids understand what bullying is,” said Cox, “there's a big difference between bullying and just disagreeing with someone."
Along with wearing blue on Monday to take part in “National Wear Blue against Bullying Day,” they're participating in the "Olweus Bullying Prevention" program; a nationwide movement that actually works the problem of bullying into the teaching curriculum
"It goes to preventative and the different rolls and teaching what to do if they are being bullied or feel like they're having a conflict with someone," said Greta Vaughn, another councilor at the school.
"It's just an opportunity to bring awareness to bullying issues, not just in school, but in society in general," said Principal Josh Lyons.
Anti-bullying has even become a sort-of “rule of the road” in Anamosa. They even post their “4 Anti-bullying Rules” on signs along the road side throughout town, and many of the students can recite the rules from memory.
It’s all small steps, but Cox says they’re leading to big change in her students.
"The kids all want to be the lion because that's the defender and they know to intervene and help others and I think that's the biggest emphasis that we want for kids."
They say that's a message they're trying to spread to the entire community; that bullying is not just a part of life and needs to be addressed. They say that dialogue about it really does make a difference.
Brian Scott, CBS 2 & Fox 28 News
"It does happen in elementary schools," said Nicole Cox a councilor at Strawberry Hill Elementary in Anamosa.
As a school counselor Cox has helped individual students deal with bullies for years, now she and her fellow staff at Strawberry Hill are fighting the issue of bullying head on.
"For us the biggest emphasis is just having kids understand what bullying is,” said Cox, “there's a big difference between bullying and just disagreeing with someone."
Along with wearing blue on Monday to take part in “National Wear Blue against Bullying Day,” they're participating in the "Olweus Bullying Prevention" program; a nationwide movement that actually works the problem of bullying into the teaching curriculum
"It goes to preventative and the different rolls and teaching what to do if they are being bullied or feel like they're having a conflict with someone," said Greta Vaughn, another councilor at the school.
"It's just an opportunity to bring awareness to bullying issues, not just in school, but in society in general," said Principal Josh Lyons.
Anti-bullying has even become a sort-of “rule of the road” in Anamosa. They even post their “4 Anti-bullying Rules” on signs along the road side throughout town, and many of the students can recite the rules from memory.
It’s all small steps, but Cox says they’re leading to big change in her students.
"The kids all want to be the lion because that's the defender and they know to intervene and help others and I think that's the biggest emphasis that we want for kids."
They say that's a message they're trying to spread to the entire community; that bullying is not just a part of life and needs to be addressed. They say that dialogue about it really does make a difference.
Brian Scott, CBS 2 & Fox 28 News
