"Groark Learns about Bullying"
in the DVD series Getting Along with Groark
featuring the Popcorn Park Puppets™
HOW NOT TO BE
A BULLY
Sometimes it is difficult to know what is or is not bullying. Often, actions start out just being fun, but may at some point actually turn into bullying. If you are not sure whether something has become bullying, stop and think and ask yourself these questions:
Are my actions or words hurting someone else's feelings?
Are my actions or words hurting someone else physically or making that person feel afraid?
Would I want someone else to do this to me?
Am I unfairly taking my anger out on someone?
Am I trying to control someone against his or her will?
"Groark Learns about BULLYING" the video |
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This video teaches children: • To recognize different forms of bullying behavior—in themselves as well as in others. • What's wrong with being a bully. • Why they should never participate in bullying situations. |
• Both English and Spanish on the same DVD.
• Closed Captioned for the Hearing Impaired.
"GETTING ALONG with GROARK" the series |
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These five DVDs teach young children valuable lessons that help them get along well, work out conflicts fairly and peacefully, and treat each other with respect. more. . |
For more information about individual videos in this series, click on a topic below. |
| • Controlling Anger • Working Out Conflicts • Being Good Listeners • Bullying & Teasing • Prejudice & Respect |
If your school or organization does not have these videos, you can purchase them from Live Wire Media, or request them from your local library.
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Meet the
Puppets
Nubbs, Burna, Muggsy, Essie, Groark
Ventriloquist Randel McGee with Groark
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
If you are using the video, ask the first two questions before viewing.
1. What is a bully?
2. Can someone be a bully without meaning to be?
3. The kids in the discussion part of the video said Groark was being a bully. Do you agree or disagree? Why?
4. What's the difference between bullying and just fooling around?
5. Which of these is bullying (and why)?
• Making fun of somebody's looks.
• Chasing away younger kids when they want to play on the swings.
• Accidentally bumping into someone in the hall.
• Calling people names because of the color of their skin.
• Making the other kids play the game your way.
• Teasing someone about the clothes he/she wears.
• Telling someone that the hat he's wearing doesn't look good on him.
• A group of kids won't let you sit with them at lunch even though there's room.
• Telling someone that he or she is not being nice.
• Joking with people by "putting them down".
6. When does something become bullying?
7. What can be done to stop bullying at school?
8. What did you learn from this video?
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To find teaching guides on related topics for this and older grade levels |
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STUDENT ACTIVITIES
1. Using some of the bullying situations listed in the discussion section (above), have the kids role play or use puppets to act out effective ways to handle those situations.
2. Have each child write down a bullying situation on a piece of paper. For younger children, list different situations on the board. Discuss ways to handle the situations without fighting. Have the kids role play or use puppets to act out these situations.
3. Have the children create a mural showing various situations at school where bullying takes place. Have them draw cartoon word balloons or thought balloons showing what the characters would be saying or thinking if they were handling those situations effectively.
4. Read aloud stories where bullying behavior is demonstrated and discuss how the characters handle the situation. Decide how the story would be changed if the situation were handled differently.
5. Select some students to act as "roving reporters". During recess, lunch or another selected period of time, have them observe, record, and tabulate how many different situations, dialogues, or actions demonstrated bullying behaviors. Have them report to the class and then discuss the results.
6. Have a brainstorming session to come up with ideas for how to prevent bullying behavior at your school. Put these ideas into a booklet and pass it out to the other students.
(If you wish to copy or use any material from this website, please click here for Terms of Use.)
Other teaching guides in this series:
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• Controlling Anger • Working Out Conflicts • Being Good Listeners |
• Bullying & Teasing • Prejudice & Respect |
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WRITING ASSIGNMENTS
1. For younger children, following recess or lunchtime, have students identify, without using names, situations they observed where bullying behavior occurred. List these situations on a chart with the date. Discuss how the situations could be handled better. Continue this each day for a week and have children observe if there are any changes in the number of bullying situations or how they are handled.
For older students, have each student keep a journal to record bullying situations he or she observes each day. These can be discussed as a group on a daily or weekly basis. For the class, a chart can also be kept tabulating the number of incidences observed over a period of time to see if there are any changes.
2. Have students create pictures showing how to handle different bullying situations. These pictures can then be compiled into a book with titles for each page or section. Older children can create their own cartoon books individually or in groups.
3. Have students write letters to Groark giving him suggestions on how to handle other bullying situations he might encounter. For younger children this can be done as a group with the teacher writing down the ideas given by the students and having the children draw pictures to accompany the letter.
4. Write a letter to an imaginary bully, telling this person what he or she is doing that you don't like, why you don't like it, and how you want this person to behave instead.
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HOME ASSIGNMENTS
To enlist the involvement of parents, make copies of the "For Parents" block (see below) and send them home with the children. Tell the children to discuss the video with their parents, and to perform the following activities.
1. Take home Groark's How Not to be a Bully checklist (from the top of this column) and post it in a place where your family can see it. Discuss it with your parents or other adult family members.
2. Ask family members to share with you bullying situations they may have experienced when they were your age. Discuss how those situations were handled and what happened because of them. How did they feel about them?
3. Illustrate through a poem, story or picture the feelings of the "bully" and the feelings of the "victim" in a bullying situation.
4. Pick one television program and watch it with your family. Afterward, have a family discussion about things people did in the program that were examples of bullying behavior. Make a list of these examples.
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(Copy this block and send it home to the parents.)
FOR PARENTS
Dear Parent,
Your child is learning some valuable skills which will help him or her get along well with others, solve conflicts peacefully, and avoid violent situations.
The current lesson is about bullying. We have shown your child a video entitled "Groark Learns about Bullying", which presents a puppet show and discussion about what bullying is and how to be sure we don't ever bully others.
Here are some things you can do to help your child become more aware of bullying behaviors:
• Ask your child to tell you about the video program and what he or she learned from it.
• Discuss with your child what bullying is and what kinds of behaviors demonstrate bullying.
• As you watch television with your child, help him or her identify language, dialogue, or actions that demonstrate bullying behavior, such as "put downs" in comedy shows.
• As your child deals with bullying situations at home or school, be open to discussing ways in which he or she can safely handle those situations. Discuss how to avoid bullying situations.
• Help your child become sensitive to his or her own behaviors or language that may be of a bullying nature as he or she deals with siblings or friends.
TERMS OF USE 
© Copyright Elkind+Sweet Communications, Inc. All rights are reserved. The material in this website is intended for non-commercial educational use. If you wish to copy or use any of this material, please click here for "Terms of Use." Except as provided in "Terms of Use," this material is for private use only and may not be republished or copied without written permission of the publisher.
*Popcorn Park and the Popcorn Park Puppets are trademarks of Elkind+Sweet Communications, Inc./Live Wire Media.