This week is PINK WEEK, with a focus on Anti-bullying. Every day this week there have been activities with a focus on kindness. Our week will culminate in PINK SHIRT DAY This Friday 17th May, where students are encouraged to wear pink clothing. We will also have a special Wā Ngākau (assembly) at 9am on Friday. All welcome!

It’s easy to assume everyone knows what bullying is, but often the term bullying is used to describe other aggressive behaviour.  This can make it hard for schools, parents and whānau, and the wider community to consistently identify and deal with bullying when it happens.

Defining Bullying
Whether bullying is physical, verbal, or social (relational), four widely-accepted factors can be used to identify it:

• Bullying is deliberate - harming another person intentionally

• Bullying involves a misuse of power in a relationship

• Bullying is usually not a one-off - it is repeated, or has the potential to be repeated over time

• Bullying involves behaviour that can cause harm - it is not a normal part of growing up.

What is not bullying?

Bullying is a word often used to describe behaviour that is not actually bullying — not all verbal or physical aggression is bullying. For example:

• a one-off fight or argument, or difference of opinion between friends where there is no power imbalance and they can sort it out between themselves

• not liking someone or a single act of social rejection

• one-off acts of meanness or spite

• isolated incidents of aggression, intimidation or violence

• using sexist or racist terms but doesn’t mean to cause harm

• theft: taking someone else’s things once is theft but not necessarily bullying.

These other behaviours may be just as upsetting and serious, but may need to be dealt with in a different way.

This diagram shows the typical elements of teasing/hassling, aggression and bullying.