Everyday, a boy named Jimmy goes to school. He loves to learn, but school isn’t very fun for him because there are always other students making fun of what he wears, how he talks, and what he looks like. Jimmy just wants to be happy and get good grades, but it can be really difficult for him when people are always dragging him down. Eventually, Jimmy can’t take it anymore. He starts staying home from school because he dreads what the school day could hold for him. Jimmy isn’t a real person, but his scenario is a very real one. Bullying is a big issue in Schools throughout America and nothing good can come out of it. I think that we all agree that bullying is bad, but I believe that we need to work together to prevent bullying. There are some important things that we need to know about bullying in order to work to prevent it. It is important to know: the statistics of bullying, why we need to stand up for the bullied person, the peer pressure that can be involved in bullying, bullying that takes place in activities, and what we need to do to make sure that we never start bullying.

The statistics of bullying can really be an eye opener. When I first saw these numbers, I realized how much of a problem that bullying actually is. There are over 3.2 million students that are bullied every year, according to Andrea Canter, Ph.D. Also, according to the website NEA,  there are about 160,000 students that skip school each day because of bullying. That’s 160,000 kids that don’t want to go to school and learn because someone else is making their school day miserable. That’s not quite right. The website Eschooltoday says that people bully to direct frustrations, hurt, anger and difficulty at home or in the classroom to you through bullying. Students also bully to get attention that they don’t normally get. A lot of students don’t bully just to bully, a lot of times they have some insecurity that makes them feel the need to bully. Also, when students bully, they do so to a student who to them is smaller and weaker than they are. Honestly I see bullies as cowards that are trying to run away from their own problems. That’s why I feel that it is super important to stand up for kids getting bullied and to put the bullies in their places.

If I was ever getting bullied, I think that I could hold my own and stand up for myself and put the bully in his place. For others however, they need support to get rid of bullies. It makes it a lot easier for people to face bullies if they aren’t alone. It also shows the bully that he isn’t getting support, and that people don’t think what he is doing is very cool. Kare11 had a news story in June 2016 that is a great example of this. Last year in Mankato, MN, a 5th grade boy with autism was getting bullied. Two boys on the playground saw this, and they didn’t like it. They then went and told three more of their friends, and they decided to invite the boy to their lunch table. The five students are now best friends with the boy and they have found out that they have a lot of the same interests. That’s why it’s important to offer support to bullied peers, because it can make their lives a lot better and it could also improve your life.

Peer pressure can be involved in bullying also. Peer pressure is the influence of one’s friend group. We may not realize it, but the people that we are around every day influence the way that we act, and the things that we do. According to Sherri Gordon, a bullying analyst, kids just want to “fit in”. So unfortunately, that causes some kids to do things that they aren’t proud of, like bullying. Parents should always encourage their kids to be themselves and that that’s more important than fitting in.

Bullying doesn’t always have to occur during school hours, it can also occur in our after school activities. Bullying in sports can come in a form called “hazing”, which is when a person has to take part in tough, normally embarrassing tasks to become initiated into a team or club. The people who are conducting the hazing might not even realize that they are bullying, but they are. They are in a position of power over a new member on the team. Players on teams can also make other players feel bad if they make fun of them if they make a mistake in an activity. This can really drag the player down. Instead they should try to bring them up and make them know that the team has got their back when they make a mistake.

In my opinion, the best way to prevent bullying is to never start. The best way to do this is to try every single day to be a good person. Work the hardest that you can to not drag others down, but to lift them up. A simple way of doing this is complimenting someone on their shoes, or their shirt, or their hair or just saying something that should make them feel good. If you do this, it will not only make the other person feel good but it should make you feel good as well.

Bullying hurts lots of people, and I think that it’s important that we work to try to end that from happening. Our elementary and high school years can be some of the best years of our lives, but if you have to spend them like Jimmy did then they definitely won’t be as good. They could be miserable because of a bully. So always make sure to stand up for yourself and your peers so that you, and them can have a good opportunity to do well in school . Then we will also be able to enjoy going to school and the good times that it can hold. Sadly, bullying will never be completely stopped, but we can work together to prevent it the best that we can.