Anti-Bullying Youth Rally at Schools

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Pep rallies for our middle and high school athletic teams have been going on for decades, and are always great ways to get fired up about the sports season, or the next big game.  They serve multiple purposes, all of which are quite important.  For one, it really heightens school spirit – and if I am a student I want to be excited about my school, and believe in its chance and ability for success and victory.  Second, it’s related to our identity, and our desire to be part of something bigger than ourselves.  In this case, if you are a student, you belong to a group – whether you are the Rams, or the Fighting Owls, or the Blugolds, or the Vikings.  You’re not alone; you are supporting something and working towards something together, with your peers – people you know and hopefully care about.  Third, pep rallies break up the monotony of the school routine, and provide a fun, energetic, and inspiring outlet for everyone.  This matters – students need this, on a regular basis.

In recent years, some schools are starting to hold pep rallies to promote academic success (instead of only athletic success), and figure out a creative way to recognize those on the Dean’s List, or Honor Roll, or otherwise doing awesome things towards their academic goals or for the betterment of the community.  Well, we are also starting to see a trend where some schools – as spearheaded by motivated and passionate teens – decide to put on an anti-bullying  pep rally.  Now, this is a bit tricky because everyone will be like, “Why are we being called into the gymnasium (or auditorium)?” “What is going on here?” “Man I hope this doesn’t suck!”  And so it will be up to interested students and faculty/staff to come up with a really enjoyable, meaningful experience where you:

1)    Talk about how bullying, drama, and other conflicts are specifically affecting your school and the students in it (be real, be honest, and speak from the heart!).

2)    Share about how in order for everyone to have a great school year, it has got to stop.

3)    Tie it into the fact that everyone is a Greyhound, or Dolphin, or Chippewa (etc.), and how being a part of this group means that we all should act in a certain way (and not be jerks towards others).  There is a responsibility to do the right thing, and that most ARE doing the right thing, and we just need everyone else to get on board.

4)    Invite a speaker who can do a great job getting everyone to truly understand the pain that bullying/cyberbullying causes, and how we have got to put a stop to it at our school.

5)    Invite a DJ who can create a party atmosphere and once again get everyone pumped up about belonging to the school, being a Yankee or Titan or Warrior, and doing the right thing (even when it’s hard).

The objective isn’t to preach, or lecture, or drone on and on with a furrowed brow about how kids shouldn’t bully each other.  They know that.  The objective is to create a formal event at your school where everyone can get together and rally around a cause and honestly, have a fun and memorable time (with some thought-provoking built in).  This requires a delicate balance to the contents, and a strategic approach to the event’s structure, but it is very doable.

Have you done this, or anything like this?  Has it been successful?  Did it fall short?  What did you learn from the experience, and what do you think about the idea and its value in your specific school environment?  We really look forward to hearing your thoughts on this.

4 Comments

  1. None of that is going to work. Kids do bully each other. No amount of training will stop it. The difference is teh power of the weapon. The cyberbullies attacks are on the record, for ever. The inevitable result of new cyberbully laws which make it a crime to cyberbully a child, means that the schools will be sued when inevitable cyberbullying occurs on their grounds. The schools are in locus parentis. So soon some schools will be sued a LOT of money, starting with saratoga after Audrie Potts.
    The only answer for the schools will be to make the kids stop using smart phones during school hours. This will mean that any cyberbullying of children will not be done on their watch. Its a really simple solution that for some unknown reason the law hasnt yet thought up. Its no great loss to the kids anyway. They use them recreationally when they would be better running around in the sun anyway.

  2. None of that is going to work. Kids do bully each other. No amount of training will stop it. The difference is teh power of the weapon. The cyberbullies attacks are on the record, for ever. The inevitable result of new cyberbully laws which make it a crime to cyberbully a child, means that the schools will be sued when inevitable cyberbullying occurs on their grounds. The schools are in locus parentis. So soon some schools will be sued a LOT of money, starting with saratoga after Audrie Potts.
    The only answer for the schools will be to make the kids stop using smart phones during school hours. This will mean that any cyberbullying of children will not be done on their watch. Its a really simple solution that for some unknown reason the law hasnt yet thought up. Its no great loss to the kids anyway. They use them recreationally when they would be better running around in the sun anyway.

    • Or it could work you never know i mean yes bullying has been around for ever and a lot of kids are effected by it. But the more people try to limit it the more it goes away. Look at the same sex marriage issue people are fighting for something that is and should be already there. Why can’t we fight to stop it? Why shouldn’t we try? My school would do it we had an inspirational speaker talk to us on bullying it isn’t much diffrent.

  3. This will work! I think having anti-bulllying rallies would raise awareness and stop some of the cyberbullying. Some people don’t even realize they are cyberbullying;they believe they are just kidding the other person. Raising awareness alone will help, and having the school come together as “one” to make it a better place is a great idea. Having a motivational speaker present at the rally gives the students something to think about and discuss afterwards informally with each other. Music played during the “chat” time is a positive background for the conversations that will take place between the students. The students have to “own it,” just like their learning!

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