Vine Grove Elementary School
Anti-Bullying Policy
Statement of Intent:
We are committed to providing a caring, friendly and safe environment for all of our pupils so they can learn in a
relaxed and secure atmosphere. Bullying of any kind is unacceptable at our school. If bullying does occur, all pupils
should be able to tell and know that incidents will be dealt with promptly and effectively. We are a TELLING school.
This means that anyone who knows that bullying is happening is expected to tell the staff.
What Is Bullying?
Anyone that repeatedly uses physical, verbal (including spoken and written language), and/or cyber forces in a
negative manner towards or in regard to another person that negatively affects him/her or his/her learning
environment.Boys report more physical forms of bullying: girls tend to bully in indirect ways, such as gossiping and
excluding.
Bullying is NOT a single event. It is an unwanted repeated pattern of events.
Bullying can be: physical, verbal, cyber, or a combination of these three
Physical Bullying:
It is the repeated use of force towards a person’s body or personal belongings. Examples: Hitting, punching, shoving,
kicking, tripping, spitting, elbowing, shoulder checking, pinching, flicking, throwing objects, hair pulling, restraining,
inappropriate touching, damaging physical property
Verbal Bullying:
It is repeatedly using negative and/or damaging words (including both spoken and written) towards or in regard to
another person (with mal intent). Examples: Negative comments, name calling, lies, rumor, racial slurs, teasing,
cussing, threats, fake complements, sexual orientation attacks
Cyber Bullying:
It is repeatedly using social media, electronic mail, or electronic devices in a negative manner towards or in regard to
another person. Examples: Posting negative comments, fake profiles, sexting, making fun of photos, tagging photos,
twitter fights, posting negative videos, texting inappropriate or harmful photos, negative status post, hate blog, hate
pledges, texting rumors, hacking profiles, nasty emails, sending mean forwards
Why is it Important to Respond to Bullying?
Bullying hurts. No one deserves to be a victim of bullying. Everybody has the right to be treated with respect.
Students who are bullying need to learn different ways of behaving. Schools have a responsibility to respond
promptly and effectively to issues of bullying.
Objectives of this Policy
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All teaching and non-teaching staff, pupils, and parents should have an understanding of what bullying is.
All teaching and non-teaching staff should know what the school policy is on bullying, and follow it when
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bullying is reported.
All pupils and parents should know what the school policy is on bullying, and what they should do if bullying
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arises.
As a school we take bullying seriously. Pupils and parents should be assured that they will be supported
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when bullying is reported.
Bullying will not be tolerated.
Signs and Symptoms
A child may indicate by signs or behavior that he or she is being bullied. Adults should be aware of these possible
signs and that they should investigate if a child:
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is frightened of walking to or from school
doesn't want to go on the school / public bus
begs to be driven to school
changes their usual routine
is unwilling to go to school (school phobic)
begins to be truant
becomes withdrawn anxious, or lacking in confidence
attempts or threatens suicide or runs away
cries themselves to sleep at night or has nightmares
feels ill in the morning repeatedly
begins to do poorly in school work
comes home with clothes torn or books damaged
has possessions which are damaged or " go missing"
asks for money or starts stealing money (to pay bully)
has lunch or other monies continually "lost"
has unexplained cuts or bruises
comes home starving (money / lunch has been stolen)
becomes aggressive, disruptive or unreasonable
is bullying other children or siblings
stops eating
is frightened to say what's wrong
gives improbable excuses for any of the above
is afraid to use the internet or mobile phone
is nervous & jumpy when a cyber message is received
These signs and behaviors could indicate other problems, but bullying should be considered a possibility and should
be investigated.
Procedures
Step 1 Reporting:
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Report bullying incidents to staff verbally if less severe
In cases of serious bullying, the incidents will be recorded on VGE Bullying Report Form
In serious cases parents should be informed and will be asked to come in to a meeting to discuss the
problem
If necessary and appropriate, police will be consulted in extreme cases
Step 2 Investigation(s):
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Interview the alleged bully victim
Interview witnesses
Interview alleged bully
Any additional research determined necessary
Step 3 Results of Investigation(s):
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Report may be classified as bullying based on definition
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o The bully and bullied will be taken through our Bully Intervention Program
Report may not be classified as bullying based on definition
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The issue will be dealt with as determined by appropriate school policies
Step 4 Response:
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Student accused of bullying will be notified
Student being bullied will be notified
Parents of both the accused bully and the bully victim will be contacted to have the policy and procedure
reviewed with them
Person reporting will follow confidentiality guidelines while working through the process
Step 5 Resolution:
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Staff must be notified again if bullying continues or escalates
If there are no NEW notifications it will be understood that the interventions worked
Interventions for the Bully:
Due to the severity of bullying incidents some tiers may be skipped to further tier interventions
Tier 1: (Depending on the situation one or all interventions may be included)
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Admonishment
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Restitution/Restoration
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Temporary removal from the classroom
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Loss of privileges
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Student conference
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Verbal/written warning
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Review and sign bullying policy
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Teacher/Team notification
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Parent contact (if warranted)
Tier 2: (Depending on the situation one or all interventions may be included)
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Mandatory parent conference
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Counseling sessions with school counselor
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Peer mediation session
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No Contact Contract
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Classroom or administrative detention
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Referral to disciplinarian
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In-school suspension during the school week or the weekend, for students
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Out-of-school suspension
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Saturday School
Tier 3: (Depending on the situation one or all interventions may be included)
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Additional in-school counseling and/or other school district interventions will be implemented as appropriate
Interventions for the Bully Victim:
Due to the severity of bullying incidents some tiers may be skipped to further tier interventions
Tier 1: (Depending on the situation one or all interventions may be included)
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Student conference
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Review and sign bullying policy
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Teacher/Team notification
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Parent contact (if warranted)
Tier 2: (Depending on the situation one or all interventions may be included)
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Counseling sessions with school counselor
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Peer mediation session
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No Contact Contract
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Parent conference
Tier 3: (Depending on the situation one or all interventions may be included)
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Additional in-school counseling and/or other school district interventions will be implemented as appropriate
Resources
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Center for Problem-Oriented Policing, http://popcenter.org/Problems/problembullying.htm
Cooperative Educational Service Agencies (CESA)
National Education Association, www.nea.org/schoolsafety/bullying.html
National Resource Center for Safe Schools, www.safetyzone.org
Olweus, D. (1993). Bullying at school: What we know and what we can do. Malden, MA:
Blackwell.
School-wide Prevention of Bullying, Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory,
www.nwrel.org
Stop Bullying Now, Health Resources and Services Administration,
www.stopbullyingnow.hrsa.gov
U.S. Department of Education, Office of Safe and Drug Free Schools, www.ed.gov
U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Community Oriented Policing Services,
www.cops.usdoj.gov
Operation Mojo: No Bullying Tour, http://www.nobullyingtour.com/
Our Vision Is to Guarantee Every Student Success