BULLYING AND DYSLEXIA

BULLYING

Children with disabilities, such as dyslexia may be at a higher risk of being bullied than other children.

What is bullying?

Bullying among children is aggressive behavior that is intentional and that involves an imbalance of power or strength. Typically, it is repeated over time. ( Dan Olweus )

Many children do not tell their parents or teachers at school about being bullied. It is important that as a parent you watch out for possible signs of bullying.

Bullying is a serious problem in schools in Turkey .However very little research has been done on this subject.We need to raise the awareness of students, teachers, school principals, and parents to the problem in Turkey !!! In other countries there are central policies and guidelines concerning bullying.

Students Who are Bullied -
can suffer these types of effects , which can last long into their future:
· Depression
· Low self-esteem
· Health problems
· Poor grades
· Suicidal thoughts

Warning signs ( from the stopbullyingnow.hrsa.gov leaflet)

Possible warning signs that a child is being bullied:

1. Comes home with torn, damaged, or missing pieces of clothing, books, or other belongings;
2. Has unexplained cuts, bruises, and scratches;
3. Has few, if any friends, with whom he or she spends time;
4. Seems afraid of going to school, walking to and from school, riding the school bus, or taking part in organized activities with peers (such as clubs) ;
5. Has lost interest in school work or suddenly begins to do poorly in school;
6.Appears sad, moody, teary, or depressed when he or she comes home;
7. Complains frequently of headaches, stomach aches, or other physical ailments;
8. Has trouble sleeping or has frequent bad dreams;
9. Experiences a loss of appetite; or
10..Appears anxious and suffers from low self-esteem.

What to do if you suspect that your child is being bullied?
If your child shows any of these signs, this does not necessarily mean that he or she is being bullied,but it is a possibility worth exploring.

What should you do? First talk with your child and then you will need to discuss the problem with the staff at your child's school.

For a very useful article about dyslexia amd bullying see :
http://www.dyslexia-parent.com/bullying.html

For general information on bullying:
http://stopbullyingnow.hrsa.gov/

For a very good brochure about bullying in Turkish:
go to Google type in‘ Zorbalık nedir kocschool.net’

THE JCB SONG- about a boy who was dyslexic

The JCB Song by Nizlopi

The JCB song is about a little boy riding in his father’s digger and it was a No 1. hit in the UK. It was written by Luke Concannon and tells how great he felt when he was five and his builder dad used to pick him up from school in a JCB (digger) .Luke struggled in his studies because of dyslexia and says he was often bullied by both pupils and teachers.The JCB Song celebrates how all his troubles at school disappeared when he was riding in the cab of the big digger with his father.

Luke is one half of double act Nizlopi. He recorded the track with fellow dyslexic John Parker, who has been his best friend since they were 13.

Luke recalls ‘My grandad and dad are both builders and my dad used to give me a lift home in his big JCB. He even let me drive it sometimes.All that rubbish with school just used to be left behind for a while.”

Luke said about the song ‘There’s a good story behind this track. I hope some people can relate to it and hopefully take some comfort from it. I don’t look at dyslexia as something that should hold you back and I hope other people don’t as well.

The song and accompanying video — can be viewed on the internet. Go to :

http://www.jcbsong.co.uk/