Take the TIME to learn about bullying

Mac Olsen
South Peace News

On Oct. 10, two Grade 5 classes and one Grade 6 class at High Prairie Elementary, as well as parents and community members learned about what would happen if they choose or do not choose to act on incidents of bullying. Lisa Dixon-Wells and Dwayne Peace of Calgary-based Dare to Care Inc. held the workshop in the gym. (They held another workshop at HPE the next day, and one at Prairie River Junior High School on Oct. 9.) Dixon-Wells, the founder of Dare to Care Inc., explains that she developed Take the TIME because Grades 5-8 are the peak years of bullying, when the code of silence is at its very strongest. “What we want to do is (have) follow-up sessions with them so that we can help them understand that they really can make a difference, and that together they are more similar to each other than they are different. So we’re providing them the support and skills to really make some changes in their school at a young age, instead of waiting until they’re in high school when some of the damage is already done.” Dixon-Wells holds games and small group activities with the students, teachers and community members. The idea is to build unity and a sense of safety within the group, she says. Each group has an adult facilitator. One of the activities they participate in is sharing bully stories. “Once you get to know the person’s story, you have more respect for them, and more compassion for them,” says Peace. “Once you have that story, you treat them differently. All of a sudden, bullying is definitely not the way to go. Treating everybody as an equal, bringing them in, coming together and helping each other – as opposed to hammering each other – is really the way it’s supposed to be.” The adults and students also participate in activities called Degrees of Courage. They think about how much courage it would take to deal with certain situations like helping someone who’s being bullied, versus helping a puppy that’s being hurt. Dixon-Wells or Peace have the participants stand on one line, and then give them the scenarios like those described above, and they would decide whether to cross over to another line under the circumstances. The participants cannot discuss any confidential information or the bullying stories with anyone else, to ensure everyone’s privacy. What is discussed during the workshop and the small group activities remains there. Peace adds that students learn about the power of the bully and the powerlessness of the victim. Students also learn that those being bullied should seek support and can’t deal with the situation alone. “They’re going to need other support, and that might be in the way of administration, teachers or friends, to stand up and say, ‘Look. You can’t treat our friends this way, and turn around and walk away,’ in a non-confrontational, non-violent manner,” says Peace. “They have to say, ‘Our school is not about this anymore. We’re not going to do this. If you continue to pursue this, then we’ll have to get outside people involved. It’s your choice if you want that to happen. We don’t want it to happen. But if you continue to push this, then that might be the way that we go.’” Janice Wilson and her daughter, Blake Wilson, participated in the workshop. Blake says it was a good meeting, and she liked participating in the Degrees of Courage games. Janice Wilson says the lessons have taught her daughter how to deal with bullying. She also says that the children understand that adults have gone through bullying too. “The kids could see that adults have been bullied, and they have fears too, just like kids,” says Janice Wilson. In addition to Take the TIME, Dare to Care Inc. offers life skills presentations for junior and senior high schools. The presentations are about drugs, alcohol and tobacco. There’s also a presentation, the Truth About Sex, which is for parents and teens only. For more information about Take the TIME, call (403) 835-DARE (3273), or go to their website at www.daretocare.ca

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