LIPEN will hold a 45 minute interactive parent workshop.  The workshop will give parents an opportunity to learn and understand how to identify bullying behavior.  This workshop identifies five types of bullying, defines the characteristics of the victim and the silent majority.  Through role-playing, film clips and a powerpoint presentation, parents learn how to deal with bullying behavior.  Dangers of the internet, cyberbullying and sexting are discussed in detail. Anytime a child is online, including children’s games that access chatrooms, they are easy prey for pedophiles.

Community/Parent Outreach-LIPEN proposes to increase awareness and parent/student communication about bullying through workshops including the award winning book, Bully Frog, overheads, films, written materials and role-playing.  The solution must be a holistic one, involving students, parents and professional school staff.  All are stake-holders in building toward a more positive future.

The program objectives are:

• Parents learn to define and to recognize bullying behavior
• Parents learn how to use empathy to create a climate in which bullying will not be tolerated
• Parents learn how to explain what the silent majority is.
• Parents will teach their children to distinguish between tattling and telling
• Parents will learn about the dangers and impact of cyberbullying

One of the primary goals of the Bully Frog Parent Workshop is to change children’s habits of thought through higher level thinking skills.  It is self-directed, initiated by the children who then take ownership.  One example is to ask a child to think of a non-aggressive way they could have chosen to handle a specific situation.  The focus is not just on the bully or the victim but on the silent majority who observe and do nothing.  The concept of empathy is explained and promoted.  Children learn cooperation and non-violent solutions to conflicts.  These concepts are needed to create caring, cooperative and kind classrooms.