October is Bullying Prevention Month, which means many counselors will be searching for resources to help bring awareness to bullying. It can be a challenge to find bullying resources that are not only helpful but also FREE! Listed below are 10 free bullying prevention resources that can be used for classroom lessons and school-wide programming in elementary and middle schools.
Free Bullying Prevention Resources for Lower Elementary
1) You Can Be an Upstander: Video and Lesson Plans (1st-2nd)
The Ned Show is a wonderful resource for school counselors. Not only do they offer engaging school assemblies, but they also have a wealth of free resources available on their website. The “How to Be an Upstander” video does a great job showing kids how they can step up to help their peers during a conflict. On The Ned Show website, you can also access lesson plans to use with the video, activity pages, and even an upstander bulletin board!
2) Storyline Online: Digital Stories (K-3rd)
Storyline Online is a fantastic place to find digital stories for your classroom lessons. The stories are read aloud by actors and actresses in an engaging way, and since the videos are digital, you can pause them at any time for discussion. There are 3 stories on Storyline that are great for classroom lessons on bullying awareness! Check out Chester’s Way, Carla’s Sandwich, and Enemy Pie, which focus on topics such as conflicts, accepting differences, and friendship. Many of the books featured on Storyline also offer resource guides for educators and parents!
3) BrainPOP Jr: Bullying Video (2nd-3rd)
Although BrainPOP Jr. is a paid subscription site for educators, the website offers its bullying resources for free. Check out the Bullying video, which provides a definition of bullying along with prevention strategies. Below the video, you can also access a quiz, writing prompt, and other activities to use in a lesson. Similarly, the BrainPOP Jr. website also offers a free Internet Safety video, which can be a great intro to the topic of cyber bullying.
4) Howard B. Wigglebottom: Digital Stories (K-2nd)
The We Do Listen Foundation is a non-profit organization that provides fantastic resources for young students. If you are a school counselor, you may own several Howard B. Wigglebottom books, but did you know that you can also find them on the We Do Listen website for free? What’s great about the digital stories is that they are animated and engaging. In addition to digital stories, you can also find games and activities that go along with a variety of topics. There are several Howard B. Wigglebottom stories that are great for bullying awareness lessons. Check out Howard B. Learns about Bullies, Listens to His Heart, and Learns We Can All Get Along. Below each story, make sure you look for the extra resources–some of the stories even have lesson plans complete with ASCA standards!
5) Sesame Street: Conflict Video (K-1st)
In your youngest classrooms, you may not use the word “bullying.” Instead, you may introduce students to the concept of having a “conflict.” This Conflict Video from Sesame Street does a fantastic job introducing young students to the concept of conflicts. The video is engaging and silly and is a great introduction to speaking up when there is a problem. If you are not able to access YouTube at school, you can use a site like Save Tube to download the video at home prior to your lesson.
Free Bullying Prevention Resources for Upper Elementary
6) 4 Ways to Deal with a Bully: Video (3rd-6th)
4 Ways to Deal with a Bully is a wonderful video from Kristina Kuzmic and her son. You may have seen some of Kristina’s parenting videos shared on Facebook. In this video, practical bullying prevention strategies are shared in a comical way. Your students will love the humor in this video! Several of my 4th grade students have asked me to share the link to this video, so they can watch it again at home–I call that a win!
7) Bullying vs. Conflict: Video (3rd-6th)
In the upper grades, it is important for students to understand the definition of bullying vs. conflict. This simple video does a great job of comparing both concepts in an easy to understand way. This video is also great to send to parents as a quick way to help them understand the definition of bullying.
8) Classroom Check-In: Tool for Teachers (2nd-6th)
While not specifically related to bullying, the Classroom Check-In tool is a wonderful resource to help teachers get an inside view of which students in their class may be feeling left out. As a counselor, you can present this tool at a staff meeting and instantly give teachers a way to get insight about relationships in their classrooms. The resource, which was inspired by a popular Facebook post a few years ago, is available for free on TPT. Â Encourage your teachers to give it a try and see what impact it can make at your school!
Free Bullying Prevention Resources for Parents
9) StopBullying.gov: Resource Website (K-12)
StopBullying.gov is a comprehensive website with resources for teachers, students, and parents. It is a good one-stop-shop if you need a site to refer parents to for more information about bullying. It provides parents with statistics, warning signs, ways to talk to their children, and more. The website is written in a parent-friendly manner and provides a wealth of helpful information.
10) 25 Ways to Ask Your Child “How Was Your Day?” (K-6)
One of the best ways to help bring awareness to bullying and conflicts is simply to improve communication. When children are open and honest with the adults in their lives, adults can begin to gauge the size of problems and help intervene before situations escalate. So often, we ask children, “how was your day?” and get a minimal response. I created a fun list of 25 questions to ask children “how was your day?” without asking “how was your day?” This year, I provided this list to parents at Open House and received a great response! It is a great tool to help parents improve communication at home.
I hope the free resources above provide you with a great foundation for your bullying awareness lessons. For more bullying resources, check out some of our other posts:
- Preventing Bullying: Tips for School Counselors
- School-Wide Bullying Prevention
- Responding to Bullying
Do you have any favorite free bullying prevention resources? Please share your ideas in the comments!
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