Ocean City Schools Participate In Bullying Prevention Month

OCEAN CITY, NJ — We hope you've noticed over the past year that we've been focusing on bullying and cyberbullying, a confounding national crisis that turns youths' lives upside down with unimaginable angst and dread, sometimes with deadly consequences. With each story, we've heard poignant stories from Patch readers in New Jersey and others who were bullied and overcame it, but also many who continue to struggle with the damage done by bullies to their self-esteem.

Many common threads emerged in emails from our readers: Teachers and other educators have suggested everything from first-period decompression time to classroom contracts with students on how they're expected to treat one another. But for all the readers who said schools need to do more to foster an anti-bullying culture, as many said parents should talk more with their kids about bullying and keep closer track on their social media habits.

And in a loud chorus, they said Americans need to stop wringing their hands and work at all levels to create a world safe from bullying.

That's one of the purposes of National Bullying Prevention Month, observed annually during October to bring attention to the problem and involve people in New Jersey and nationwide in a conversation on how to create a world safe from bullying.

BULLYING AWARENESS AT OCEAN CITY PUBLIC SCHOOLS
All of Ocean City’s public schools will participate in anti-bullying events throughout October. Below is the list of events, broken down by school:

Ocean City High School
Anti-Bullying Week/Week of Respect

Tues, Oct 2 – 4th Annual Chalk Message Project

• Where: front of school sidewalk
• When: in the morning before school
• What: chalk positive messages to your peers and let them know they matter.

Wed, Oct 3 – Link Up Against Bullying

• When: during lunch all week
• Where: outside of the cafeteria, Wellness Room
• What: Students will pledge an anti-bullying message by tracing and coloring their hand on a paper ‘chain’ which will be linked together and hung on the school with a poster version of the pledge to promote a safe school climate

Thurs, Oct 4 – Red Raider Anti-Bullying Notes

• Where: outside cafeteria, gym
• When: during Community Lunch
• What: students will write kind thoughts/positive quotes on red or white sticky notes and place on a black red raider silhouette

Fri, Oct 5 – OC Rocks – Anti-Bullying Rocks

• When: all day
• Where: Wellness Center
• What: design and paint OC rocks with an anti-bullying message to place in rock garden in the court yard

** Faculty and Staff will wear their 100% red t-shirts. Students will be encouraged to wear blue for an anti-bullying message

Entire Week - Oct 9th – Sprinkle Kindness
•Where: Wellness Room
•When: Lunch
•What: take a selfie with Sprinkle Kindness Backdrop

Tues, Oct 9 – Kindness- Pass It On Sticker

• When: all day – stickers distributed in the first class
• Where: entire school
• What: Each person at OCHS receives 2 stickers- one to share with a person who is exhibiting unspoken/spoken kindness, and another to give to their recipient, so that person can pass it forward

Fri, Oct 12 – Positive Quotes Tee Shirt Day

• When: all day, Wellness Center
• Where: outside of the cafeteria
• What: design positive thoughts/anti-bullying t-shirt contest, wear positive quotes t-shirts all day

Fire Safety - Oct. 7-13
Members of the STOP, REBEL and SADD clubs will travel to OCFD three days this week with the kindergarten students from OCPS to support Fire Safety week.

Week of Non-Violence ( also Spirit Week)
Mon, Oct 15 – Women’s Center of Atlantic Cape May County - Patricia Miles- Jackson

• When: during lunch
• Where: outside of the cafeteria, Wellness Room
• What: Domestic Violence discussion with this author promote “chance for change” empowering students to make the right choices

Tues, Oct 16 – Kindness Bracelet Day

• When: all day
• Where: Wellness Center
• What: design kindness bracelets

Wed, Oct 17 – “Don’t Let Your Anger Get You in a Pickle…”

• What: Open Gym Club’s Mixed Doubles Pickle ball Tournament
• When: 7PM
• Where: Main Gym

Thurs, Oct 18 – “Strike out Anger”

• When: Lunch
• Where: Aux. Gym
• What: competitive throw clocked with radar gun, football tire toss

Fri, Oct 19 – “Stick it to Anger”

• When: Lunch
• Where: Aux. Gym
• What: hockey target, lax target

Red Ribbon Week
Entire Week of Oct. 22 – Natural High Video,

• Where: In the classroom setting
• What: Students will watch a video on Natural High https://naturalhigh.org/resource/?resource_id=54642
• Username: lsacs@ocsdnj.org; Password: R8rRed@!
• What: Students in all grades (TIES, Driver’s Ed, ) will watch a Natural high video and discuss reflection questions about a natural high drug-free lifestyle

Mon, Oct 22 – “Knock Out Drugs”

• When: Lunch
• Where: Aux. Gym
• What: soccer target, basketball hoops - knock out

Tues, Oct 23rd – “Can’t Be Replaced” – Assembly

• When: period 1 -11th - 12th grades 9:50 am – 10:45 am
• periods 7 - 9th - 10th grades 11:40 am-12:35 pm

• Where: Auditorium
• What: Chip and Melissa Dayton – anti-drug/alcohol assembly, promotes positive choices, how to be mentally well and how to deal with set-backs/depression

Wed, Oct 24th – Second Floor Youth Helpline Student Program and Red Ribbon Stamps
•Where: Wellness Room
•When: Lunch
•What: the organization 2nd Floor Youth Helpline (based in Monmouth County, NJ) will be coming to speak about the free services provided by second floor, educating students on how to help a friend, and to pledge to tell 3 peers about 2nd floor- students will be walking around with red ribbon stamps during lunch to encourage drug/alcohol free

Thu, Oct 25 – What’s Your Natural High Activity

• Where: Outside the cafeteria
• When: Lunch
• What: Students will be able to write their natural high on the whiteboard and take a picture to share their natural high with the OCHS community.

Fri, Oct 26 – Pledge to be Drug-Free Activity

• Where: OCHS
• When: During the school day
• What: Students will have the opportunity to take the drug-free pledge and get a sweet treat for a drug-free lifestyle

OCHS will be also be participating in the National Red Ribbon Campaign Poster and Photo Contests “Life Is Your journey – Travel Drug-Free”

SADD Club Red Ribbon Week Activities
SADD Club members will participate in annual Red Ribbon Week during October 22-26 to support continual anti-drug awareness at Ocean City High School. Each day, students will join in different awareness activities along with wearing a red ribbon and red bracelet, to discourage substance abuse. The following days will occur:

EVERYDAY: Red Ribbons!
Monday: Give Drugs Da Boot! wear Western (cowboy/cowgirl) gear and/or boots
Tuesday: Team Up Against Drugs! any type of team shirts—OCHS, professional teams, etc
Wednesday: Wacky Wed Wibbon Day! wear wacky or mismatched socks
Thursday: Denim Against Drugs wear jeans and/or jackets
Friday: Red Pledge To Be Drug Free! wear any red shirt, club picture in A118 beginning of lunch

Ocean City Primary and Intermediate Schools:
Week of Respect:

Monday, October 1:
Wear Blue to STOMP OUT BULLYING
Across the country, students will wear BLUE to STOMP OUT BULLYING
and to stand for kindness and friendship.

Tuesday, October 2: Don’t throw shade! Wear it!
For $1 (drop off at office), wear sunglasses or hats. Only in hallways & lunch area.

Wednesday, October 3:
Class Colors / Switch Your Seat Day
Wear your class colors: 8th - BLUE; 7th - ORANGE;
6th - GREEN; 5th - RED; 4th - PURPLE

Thursday, October 4:
Band Together Against Bullying
Wear your favorite band or music group’s shirt.

Friday, October 5: RAIDER Spirit Day
Please make sure to follow the school’s dress code during Spirit Week.

For Week 2, anti-bullying Olweus lessons will feature lessons cyber protocol, texting and internet safety. The Intermediate School is sponsoring a “Walk to School Together” day (on National Walk to School Day) as well as hosting a team dodgeball night for a healthy, fun, and cooperative weekend option for students.

During Week 3, the monthly character trait of “caring” be caring about others…training 8th graders in CPR. There will also be an assembly on caring and respecting the planet. This goes along with Recycling Month activities and America Recycles Day.

During Week 4, the Intermediate School is still finalizing Red Ribbon Week activities with the theme “Your future is Key:So Stay Drug Free.” There will be various dress up theme days. It will conclude with character education assemblies titled “It’s My Life” and “Count on Me.” In early November, there will be an assembly on the dangers of vaping and the Cape May County Prosecutor’s Office will discuss cyber safety.

The Ocean City Primary School will join other schools across the state in observing School Violence Awareness Week from Oct. 15 through Oct. 19. The children will:

• participate in lessons on safety
• take pictures during the week
• display books in library related to character
• hold classroom meeting using safety as an opening topic

Classroom Lessons provided by Mr. Dougan and Ms.. Williams:
Lessons on safely arriving at school (bus, walking and riding bikes).

Playground Lesson provided by recess duty teachers:
Lessons on safely using playground equipment and outside rules.

Computer Lab Lessons provided by Mr. Kohr:
Lessons on internet safety and security.

A PUBLIC HEALTH ISSUE

Once viewed as a childhood "rite of passage" that toughened kids to handle the pressures of adulthood, bullying and its more insidious digital twin, cyberbullying, is seen by many experts as a major public health issue — on par with heart disease, cancer and diabetes — with devastating and often long-term effects like the loss of self-esteem, heightened anxiety and depression.

We want to hear from you. Do you have a story to tell about bullying or cyberbullying, a suggestion about how to stem it or an event to publicize? Comment at the end of the story, or email anthony.bellano@patch.com and copy bullies@patch.com. You can post Bullying Prevention Month and many other events right on Patch.

Statistics vary, but an aggregate of 80 different studies on bullying suggests one in five American students between 12 and 18 is bullied at some point during their middle or high school years. Traditional bullying — name calling, public humiliation, isolation, physical violence and that sort of thing — occurs most often, with 35 percent of kids reporting they've been targeted in one of those ways. The studies cited by the PACER Center, which established National Bullying Prevention Month, show that 15 percent of kids surveyed report being cyberbullied.

And though it occurs less often, cyberbullying — which has resulted in a disturbing string of suicides by adolescents and teenagers — is especially hard to stop. While experts say most cyberbullied kids don't kill themselves, the long-tailed internet makes a taunt live longer than one flung on the schoolyard. Kids can escape traditional bullying in the safety of their homes, but because social media is so intertwined with how kids communicate, they never really escape it.

READ: Bullied To Death: When Kids Kill With Words

And because cyberbullies have the stealth of anonymity, "empathy tends to fade to zero," NoBully.org founder Nicholas Carlisle told Patch.

He was knocked around 40 or so years ago as an awkward 12-year-old. The torment persisted through high school, but as tough as it was, his experience was markedly different from the torture kids endure today, he says — and it's not just that he was attacked in a physical as opposed to online space.

"Online, you can't see the whites of their eyes," Carlisle said. "If you can see someone, that's often a break upon people's aggression — not always, but it does seem to have some break upon crossing the line."

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The full consequences of bullying on the brain aren't fully understood, but kids who are targeted by bullies in childhood and adolescence are at increased risk for psychological problems that can stretch into adulthood, according to experts. In the moment, bullied kids may be unable to sleep or suffer a range of stomach issues and headaches. Later on, they're at risk for depression, anxiety, and alcohol and drug use.

OCT. 24 UNITY DAY
Among the marquee National Bullying Prevention Month activities is Unity Day, observed on Wednesday, Oct. 24, when everyone is encouraged to wear and show orange to send a message that no child should ever experience bullying.

"Orange provides a powerful, visually compelling expression of solidarity," Paula Goldberg, the executive director of the PACER Center, said in a statement. "Whether it's hundreds of individuals at a school wearing orange, store owners offering orange products or a community changing a landmark to orange, the vibrant statement becomes a conversation starter, sending the supportive, universal message that bullying is never acceptable behavior."

Here's more about Unity Day:

THE BULLY MENACE: WHAT'S AHEAD
During October and beyond, several experts have agreed to answer readers' questions about bullying, ranging from how to keep their kids from becoming targets to what to do if their kids are the bullies. We'll also delve into some of the issues surrounding bullying.

Take a look back at some of the stories in our series:

• America's Shameful Truth About School Shooters And Bullying
• They All Failed Changed Child: Malden Bullying Detailed
• Bullies, Their Targets The Same In A Surprising Number Of Cases
• 'Everyday, I Wear Your Words,' Teen Tells Bullies In Video
• Teen's 'I Wear Your Words' Video Inspires Nashville Songwriters
• Bullying Of Mallory Grossman, 12, Spelled Out In Wrongful Death Lawsuit
• Poetry Teacher Helps Bullied Kids Open Their Tortured Minds
• Why These Kindergartners Start Each Day With A Simple Handshake

If you have a question or want to share your story, please email bullies@patch.com.

Photo via Shutterstock