It was so wonderful to see so many students and staff wearing pink for Pink Shirt Day last Friday. In doing so we were showing our collective commitment to stopping bullying by celebrating diversity and promoting kindness and inclusiveness. One key way to do this everyday, is to be an Upstander.

An Upstander is a person who uses words and actions that can help someone who is being bullied. Here are the 5 steps to being an Upstander, which were read out by the Student Leaders in assembly last week (sourced from the Pink Shirt Day website).

1. Support the person being bullied: For example, standing by them and letting them know you are there for them and supporting them to talk to a teacher.

2. Distract: If you are confident to, ask the bully to walk away and do something else.

3. Call it: With kind and supportive words let the bully know what they are doing is not okay. This can be a hard and brave thing to do but it can make a huge difference.

4. Leave and act: If you do not feel safe at the time move away but be sure to check in with the student later and ask if you can help them.

5. Get help and seek support: Talk to a trusted adult, teacher or other staff member to seek support and advice. Remember that our school counsellor, Jenelle, is here to help students who are experiencing bullying and students who may be bullying others - all students deserve to feel supported and included.

As adults we need to role model being an Upstander so that we can support our children to be Upstanders as well. I do hope that you are able to discuss this with your children so that as a community we can work together to stop bullying by celebrating diversity and promoting kindness and inclusiveness.

Image by Siran Wang 5O, T-shirt design as part of Pink Shirt Day activities.

Jenelle Hooson

Jenelle is a fully registered member with NZAC (New Zealand Association of Counsellors).

If you wish to discuss the services the School Counsellor can provide, please talk to your child’s homeroom teacher or make contact with Jenelle directly: jenelle.hooson@medbury.school.nz