Can You Name 5 Reasons For Being Honest?

When dealing with bullying, you will find that the issue of honesty often comes to the surface. It is important to be honest, and I emphasize this with students in presentations everywhere. But what is an actual, real-life reason for being honest?

Here are five specific reasons for honesty:

1/ Reputation – Honesty is one of the most important ways to build a solid reputation. It is a key element in almost everyone’s mind as to whether a person is desirable. If you are choosing a friend, would your first choice be someone you knew was completely honest, or someone whose honesty was questionable? The answer is obvious. Protect your reputation by being honest. That reputation will be with you for a very long time.

2/  Peace Of Mind — there is and gnawing feeling inside you when you say something that is not true. That feeling can remain for a very long time, and it can be more uncomfortable than many people realize. When you tell an untruth you may think that you can simply move on, but the fact is that your subconscious mind remembers you have told something which is untrue. Have you ever heard the expression, ‘that is something that really eats away at me?’ That’s what dishonesty can do. Subconsciously it can do harm over time. If you take a vow of honesty, you will be rewarded in your life. You will have an inner peace which will give you great comfort.

 

3/ Relationships — honesty can solidify a friendship or family connection and build the feeling of confidence that you have with the other person or people in your relationships. Whether we are talking about relationships of family, marriage, business, education, or religion, honesty is a vital part of those relationships. Honesty can create an environment where a relationship of any kind will flourish.

 

4/ Health And Well-Being — honesty can free us from guilt, worry, and other forms of psychological stresses. Dishonesty can cause many psychological problems, therefore it only makes sense that honesty can result in excellent mental health. There is a feeling of peace and calm that results from saying the right things, being honest, and living a life of integrity. We simply feel better when we are honest.

 5/ Being Genuine — after presenting hundreds of shows to children, one commonality that comes to mind is the answer to the question I often ask; “how do you make good friends and keep them“. The answer that comes from students time after time is simply two words; “be yourself”. If children see ‘being yourself’ as such an important aspect of relationships and friendships then it is obviously very important to be genuine. How do you be a genuine person without being honest? Of course the answer is… it would be impossible. To be genuine, you absolutely must be honest. So remember, be yourself, be genuine and most of all be honest.

Bruce Langford is an anti-bullying advocate and school speaker & presenter on all topics related to bullying.  www.standupnow.ca

 

Earth Day reminds us to consider what matters around us

Be willing to speak up in support of maintaining nature’s systems that make our earth so magnificent.  Treat the earth with consideration.
Do your part every day to make the earth a better place.

EARTH DAY is a day to consider the gift our earth gives us
including clean air to breathe and fresh water to enjoy.

We must preserve these gifts by all working together to maintain the natural resources the earth provides.

We must also work together to keep our relationships on track and
to maintain feelings of appreciation and thoughtfulness. Speak up when
something needs to be said. See a little of yourself in others and you will be
more understanding and sensitive to their needs. Doing these things will help to
keep your relationships filled with respect. Bit by bit the concept of bullying will become even more abhorrent than it already is. Beat bullying by building respect and living it everyday just as we celebrate Earth Day by showing respect to our planet.

Bruce Langford, bullying prevention advocate www.brucelangford.ca

Winston Churchill and how to Stand Up Against Bullying Using 5 Key Character Traits

Winston Churchill was a man known for his strong character traits. When we talk about ways to beat bullying, just imagine how Winston Churchill would have done his part to ‘Stand Up Against Bullying’.

He had
COURAGE. He was willing to move forward regardless of whether the majority of people agreed with him or not. That kind of courage requires an underlying
CONFIDENCE that is gained from experience and strength of character. Confidence can also be built through self-talk, study and
DETERMINATION. Think of a laser beam pointing in one specific direction and never wavering from its target. That is like the determination of Winston Churchill when he became Prime Minister at the age of sixty-five. It is also like the determination of a person who is focusing on making the world a better place by eliminating bullying. Winston Churchill also had tremendous
PERSEVERANCE as he wasn’t willing to give up easily. His perseverance helped him move through his election defeat in 1945 when he was voted out by the same people he had earlier led to victory. In spite of that defeat, he remained grounded and stayed on as leader of the opposition. Later he was elected as prime minister again in 1950.

Think of Churchill and these four character traits when you deal with bullying situations. What would Churchill have done? Would he have given up, or continued to persevere?

We visited Winston Churchill Public School in Chatham yesterday and were impressed with the students and the serious attitude they had in regard to Standing Up Against Bullying. Principal, Leslie Boulton was very pleased with the three assemblies and told us they were “even better than our last visit to her school”. That was when she was principal at Harwich Raleigh Public School (Lambton Kent District School Board) in 2005.
Remember to ‘Stand Up Against Bullying’.

6 Ways to Keep From Crashing Due to a Pre-Teen Dilemma

1. Assess the situation rationally by writing down the details in a factual way
2. Talk over the dilemma with a trusted adult. This could be a parent, teacher, councillor, friend or other relative. Call a confidential counseling service like ‘KidsHelpPhone’ if you don’t have anyone else to talk to.
3. Continue to eat regular, nutritious meals and snacks. Stress can cause many people to lean to junk food or foods and drinks containing ‘uppers’ like caffeine. So called ‘energy’ drinks can also throw your body out of equilibrium.
4. If you have pets, they can help lower your stress level. Walk your dog, play with your cat, watch your fish or ride your pony. Spend extra time caring for your pets and you may start to feel more relaxed.
5. Make sure you maintain your sleep schedule so you don’t get over tired. That can add more stress to a situation that is already difficult.
6. Keep up your regular schedule of physical activities. Consider adding more activities if you are not a very active person. Even a simple walk can help you feel better.

We offer ideas to help kids deal with bullying situations and other challenges. Visit our website at http://www.standupnow.ca

Assemblies Motivate Students to Stand Up Against Bullying

Bullying – It takes hard work and determination to prevent bullying. Bullying Prevention starts with one word – RESPECT.

Treat others with respect and you will usually be treated with respect in return. But how do you know how to be respectful in the first place?

There are some basics to follow when it comes to respect:

1. Be honest. Tell the truth even if you are the only one who could possible know the difference. You see, honesty is part of who you are, deep down.
2. Be considerate. Treat others the way you want to be treated. Sometimes you really have to stop and think how you would feel if you were in the other person’s shoes. That’s called empathy.
3. Help others. That means, don’t just stand by and do nothing if someone is being treated badly. There are usually a few different things you can do to help like; speak up when the meanness is happening, talk to the person later and tell them you care, tell an adult you trust. Reaching out to offer your friendship is one of the greatest things you can do.

But what if you do these things and you still feel like you are being bullied? That’s a tough question. The fact is, this happens too many times. Hang in there. Realize things will get better. Change things in your life. Hang around different people. Spend time in different locations. Find people to be friends who really make you feel good and are not being mean, even in a teasing kind of way. Believe that things will improve and then go about changing things you can change. Like your attitude about life. That doesn’t mean the bullying is your fault. It just means if you start by changing what you can change in your life, sometimes good things will happen.

Maybe you sometimes bully other people. Make up your mind to stop doing that. It might not be easy, but you can do it. Keep reminding yourself that you want to change and use your determination. This really works for most people. You will find that your own life will improve if you stop being mean to others.

Most of all, don’t give up. Believe that things can be different and make the effort to make it happen. Be motivated by others. You can learn from them. Learn tips from assemblies or from people you admire. We can be inspired by others and learn how to improve our own lives.  Who knows, you may end up inspiring others!

www.standupagainstbullying.com

 

Action Steps to Stop Being Bullied

1. List all the places where you have ever been bullied
2. Describe how you dealt with the bullying each time
3. Write down different ways you could have dealt with each incident
4. List places where you have never been bullied
5. Name the activities that give you the happiest feeling
   

Vow to stand up against bullying by making the decision to speak to someone you trust following any upsetting bullying experience.

Read over your answers to the above and be determined to work toward a better life by letting others help you.

How to teach children not to bully… (Peel School Board)

Whitehorn Public School in Mississauga has some answers to this question. ‘Soaring to the Peak’ is an answer you will hear from the children. You see, Whitehorn Mountain is in Mount Robson Provincial Park in British Columbia, Canada. It is a 2,621 metre high mountain of pure natural beauty.

The students of Whitehorn School know they must strive to meet the challenge of ‘Soaring to the Peak’ by:

Participation
Effort
Achievement
Kindness

Q. What is a person called who sees and hears meanness, but they don’t do anything about it?

A. Scared.

That is the answer we heard yesterday from a student who watched a role-play in our ‘Stand Up For Respect’ assembly and felt empathy for the person being bullied. In the adult world, the correct answer to the question is ‘bystander’. Children need to know that a bystander is not a bad person. A bystander may not know what to do, or the incident may have happened so fast, they didn’t have time to react. It is important to teach children what bystanders can do to reduce bullying behaviours, but let’s not blame children for not stepping in when we also tell them to always look out for their safety.

Whitehorn Public School is a respectful place because people care. People know that teaching respect means modeling respect. Principal, Mrs. Margaret Patterson is a great example of how to nurture respect in a caring environment. Mrs. Patterson and her staff definitely ‘Soar to the Peak’ at Whitehorn Public School!

Building respect assembly in Waterloo Region District Schools

Building a better world, one student at a time.
This is the slogan at New Dundee Public School near Kitchener, Ontario.
These students really understand RESPECT. They work on these things every day:

1. Friendly language
   

   New Dundee Dragon

2. Including others
3. Cooperation
4. Helping each other
5. Being polite

New Dundee Principal, Mrs. Debbie Scholl makes sure the students are thinking about respect. She has made sure the walls are covered with positive messages and character-building reminders. See for yourself. Even the New Dundee Dragon mascot is a respectful fellow! Here are just a few of the positive messages we saw here at New Dundee Public School.

Mrs. Scholl was totally enthusiastic about the ‘Stand Up For Respect’ assemblies.
“You really made respect come alive to our children!”, she exclaimed. “We were completely delighted!”
Mrs. Deb Scholl, Principal, New Dundee Public School

Bystander couldn’t bear to walk away from the bullied victim at Toronto School

Anti-bullying in Toronto Middle School

John G. Althouse Middle School in Toronto is the setting. The students are acting out a role-play in front of the other grade 7 students. It was rehearsed, but we pull four more students from the audience who are supposed to just walk away from the victim with all the others. Then we plan to replay the role-play again showing what should have happened. One or more of the bystanders could have done something to help the victim.
But this time things were different. One of the girls, who had come up from the audience, just couldn’t bear to walk away from the victim, even though she was being urged by the other actors to do so.

Stand Up Now in Toronto District School Board School

That really showed that girl’s inner spirit and integrity. She just hung back like a magnet was pulling her to do something to help the victimized girl. The audience cheered. We went on to talk about what every person can do to help, who sees bullying behaviour. That girl made the point crystal clear to an audience of nearly two hundred. That girl made my day!

John G. Althouse Vice-Principal, Jennifer Newby was impressed with the Stand Up Now assemblies.
“Great strategies with the students, good interaction and effective role-plays. We were very pleased with the Stand Up Against Bullying intermediate assemblies!” 

Contact Bruce Langford at Stand Up Now Productions at www.standupnow.ca

Ottawa Students Stop Bullying Now

Maple Ridge Elementary School, Ottawa

Intermediate Grade 7,8 bullying Prevention Assembly (Ottawa) at Maple Ridge Elementary School gets thumbs up from principal Madame Celine Leduc. “The assembly was not about the songs or the performance, it was about the message. I really liked it.”

We certainly felt a high level of respect from the students at Maple Ridge. They answered questions, participated in role-plays and responded with enthusiasm to the music.

Maple Ridge Mural

They really proved they know what it means to ‘Stand Up Against Bullying’. Being a bystander accomplishes nothing. You need to do something when you see bullying behaviour.

1. Tell someone
2. Talk to the targeted person later
3. Speak up when you see meanness happening
4. Be a good role model with others
5. Don’t participate in the nasty behaviours

Book assemblies for your school. Visit our website at www.standupnow.ca

National Gallery of Canada Inspires Creative Ways to Stop Bullying

Artists get bullied more than the rest of the population.

National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa

Do you believe the above statement? Some people do. Artists think outside the box. They are unique. They have a creative side that much of society doesn’t understand. Go to the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa like we did today and we think you will agree that we must encourage creativity. It is people with creativity who create everything from new inventions to games to entertaining movies &

National Gallery Looking Up

 books. Creative people are inspired by that which is artistic. We would be lost in this world without those people who are able to create.
So we must stand up against bullying of creative and artistic people. How to stand up against bullying?
1. Don’t just look the other way, do something.
2. Speak up for the person.
3. Talk to them later with encouraging words.
4. Let people know you don’t agree with bullying.
5. Be a role model who will inspire others.
6. Live your life as a positive example for people to see.

Stand Up Now Productions (Bruce Langford) visited St. Anne Catholic School

St. Anne Catholic School, Kanata

 in Kanata (Ottawa) today to teach children how to stand up against bullying.
Principal, Mrs. Jane Hill of St. Anne School spoke highly of the Stand Up Against Bullying assemblies and will recommend Stand Up Now to other schools.
Arrange ‘Stand Up Now’ Programs to take place at your school. Visit the website at: http://www.standupnow.ca</object

London Crimestoppers Keynote Speaker Bruce Langford

Bruce Langford, Keynote Speaker at Crimestoppers Symposium

London Elgin Middlesex Crime Stoppers played host to a Symposium on October 30, 2009 at the Four Points Sheridan. Keynote speaker, Bruce Langford delivered a speech at the conference on ‘The Effects of Cyberbullying on Today’s Youth’. London Police Chief Murray Faulkner also addressed the crowd as did Director of Education for the Thames Valley District School Board, Bill Tucker. Bruce included videos and stories as part of his talk which emphasized that anyone in the audience could decide to make a positive difference in the world, just like Greg MacAleese who started the Crimestoppers Organization in 1976 in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Constable Scott Mills,  Toronto Crimestoppers Community Youth Officer delivered a presentation on ‘Social Networking Security’ which covered Internet Violence Prevention.
Bruce Langford can be contacted through his website at www.bruce-langford.com

What Does Barbara Coloroso Say About Bullying?

Barbara Coloroso is an internationally recognized speaker and author who talks about parenting and bullying. I recommend her books and agree with many of her ideas about how to deal with bullying.
She believes there are a number of ways to stop bullying.
After reading her books, I was left with some ideas which made me feel very positive and hopeful about what we can all do to help eliminate bullying.
It is important to encourage empathy and friendship skills in children and to closely monitor screen activities. She says that adults should help create opportunities for children to do good and help others. Discipline including restitution, resolution and reconciliation should be considered when dealing with bullying behaviours.
I encourage you to google Barbara Coloroso and read her materials. Barbara has extensive experience and expertise on the topic of bullying. Check out the writings of Barbara Coloroso!
I totally believe we can all make a positive difference by working together and making the right choices.

Programs to reduce bullying at www.standupagainstbullying.com

Parent Reaching Out (PRO) Grant to get Bullying Speaker Bruce Langford

Paul Clark, Parent Council Rep at Sts. Peter and Paul School

I (Bruce Langford) have just presented an hour-long keynote talk including videos, songs and student role-plays at Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic School in Mississauga. The topic was bullying, cyber-bullying and parenting. Parent Council member Paul Clark commented that “Bruce Langford’s parent program was really good. It was interactive, it had music and a lot of parents found it very helpful.”
We received many positive comments about the role-plays, the songs and the tips and ideas about bullying and parenting. The program is called ‘Stand Up – Keep Your Kids’. When we visit a school during the day, we encourage children to bring their parents back in the evening for some different videos, songs and role-plays. This really helps to get lots of people out in the evening.

One of the messages in tonight’s talk was about being a good listener. As adults we need to remember to listen to our children, and as children, we need to be good listeners to our friends, our teachers and parents.

To book Bruce Langford as a guest speaker at your school, call Stand Up Now at bruce@standupnow.ca

Bullying Tip From The Stand Up Against Bullying Guy

Sometimes parents can have a tough time finding out what really happened in a child bullying situation. Take a few minutes to have your child act out what happened. Ask about the details and say to your child; “I’m going to pretend I’m you and you pretend you are the one doing the mean thing.” You can also have another child play the part of one of the participants. 
Another method is to act out what happened with action figures or dolls. You may be surprised how much information you can piece together by having your child do some acting!

For government approved school anti-bullying programs, contact Bruce Langford at bruce@standupnow.ca

Be Your Own Coach to Achieve Self-Respect

Bruce Langford at Beverley Acres School in York Region

Here is a tip about self-respect we shared in the Intermediate Grade 7,8 ‘Stand Up For Respect’ assembly at Beverley Acres Public School in the York Region District School Board yesterday:

Self Respect is remembering that sometimes you have to be your own coach or cheerleader to encourage yourself that everything will be fine. We all go through difficult situations, and we all have to give ourselves a boost of self-encouragement sometimes. Remember that every one of us is valuable and important. No matter what happens, you need to be able to feel good about yourself. That is why it is important to learn to give yourself a boost to achieve self-respect.

We presented ‘Stand Up Against Bullying’ assemblies to the Grade 4-6 students at Beverley Acres as well. After the presentations, Principal Ramon Andrade gave us positive feedback and told us he would recommend our Stand Up Now programs to other schools.
Contact Stand Up Now Bullying Prevention at bruce@standupnow.ca . Visit our website at www.standupnow.ca

Confidence is Your Key to Success

Keep your chin up! Are you feeling discouraged or defeated? Think of all the times a winning athlete may need a boost. Keeping your confidence is one of the key skills a winning person must conquer. Be your own cheerleader! Don’t let those thoughts of discouragement grab hold. Be strong, be confident, be a winner!

Alexandre Bilodeau Wins Gold

Alexandre Bilodeau has won Canada’s first gold at Vancouver’s 2010 Olympics. He says his inspiration is his brother Frederic. Those two are certainly an inspiration to all of us as we work toward our dreams.

Our dream of eliminating bullying is something we are working on bit by bit. Visit us at www.standupagainstbullying.com

Superbowl Star Tracy Porter’s Winning Attitude Helps Win the 2010 Superbowl

Tracy Porter intercepted Peyton Manning with only minutes left in the game and returned the pick 74 yards for a touchdown. That sealed the New Orleans’ Saints first Super Bowl victory on February 7, 2010!

Cornerback Tracy Porter’s winning attitude and absolute focus can be an inspiration to those of us teaching others how to reduce bullying and increase respect.

Have a look at our website at www.atfm.ca for more winning ideas.

Bullying Prevention and Inspiration for Olympic Athletes

 “The steeper the mountain the harder the climb the better the view from the finish line.”
Anonymous

 I find this quote inspirational as we at ‘Stand Up Now’ work on the challenge to increase respect and reduce bullying in our society. I think this quote must also be inspirational to athletes as they prepare for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver to take place February 12 to 28, 2010. Go athletes, go!