- Middle School (5-8)
- Bully Prevention
Social & Emotional
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In the Jordan Public Schools we take the issue of bullying very seriously. Starting in elementary school all students learn the importance of being safe, responsible and respectful. These three basic tenants are part of our School-wide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (SW-PBIS) program.
We give a great deal of positive reinforcement for acts of kindness towards others. Children who go out of their way to do something kind for another student or staff member are often rewarded with a “caught you being good” award. The importance of safety, responsibility and respectfulness are routinely reinforced by staff during classroom meetings and all-school assemblies.
While every effort is made to catch students engaging in an act of kindness, we are also vigilant about addressing issues of bullying when they do happen. At the elementary school level we understand that kids are just learning to work together in a cooperative manner. When students exhibit behaviors that could be characterized as bullying we see it as a teaching opportunity for all students involved. We spend time working with students who have been the victim of bullying behavior; we reinforce that no one deserves to be intentionally harmed either emotionally or physically. We encourage them to stick up for themselves by saying “stop” to those who are bullying them and then walking away. We also work with the students who have demonstrated the bullying behavior to get to the root of their anger. Consequences for bullying behavior are tailored to each individual situation so that they are both meaningful and logical.
While working directly with the individuals involved is essential to resolving each specific situation, the goal behind our SW-PBIS efforts is to create a school-wide culture in which bullying behavior is not acceptable. We work very hard to build a sense of community so that if any student sees a classmate being bullied they will immediately either tell the student bullying to stop, get the victim out of the situation or go get an adult for help.
You, as parents, are one of our greatest resources. If bullying incidents happen at school or on the bus and your child comes home to tell you about it, please send an email to your child's teacher or a school counselor. You can also use the online JMS Bully/Incident Report Form. We want both you and your child to feel like we are on the same team with the common goal of learning in a safe environment.
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HELP IS AVAILABLE
Jordan Middle School Counselors are available to support students. If you have questions or are facing challenging times, don't hesitate to call or stop in the Counseling Office for support. Your teachers and school counselors can be your first stop when concerns arise.
Definitions
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Definition of Conflict
CONFLICT: a serious disagreement or argument
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Definition of Teasing
TEASING: comes in two major forms - playful and hurtful
- Playful is friendly, reciprocal, teasing between peers.
- Hurtful is upsetting, unkind, cruel wounding or insensitive from the victim’s point of view, regardless of the intention of the teaser
- Is unwelcome from the victim’s point of view
- Is verbal
- Is a singular incident, and
- The motivation is not intended to exert power or control over the victim
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Definition of Bullying
BULLYING: means intimidating, threatening, abusive, or haming conduct that is objectively offensive and:
- An actual or perceived imbalance of power exists between the student engaging in the prohibited conduct and the target of the prohibited conduct, and the conduct is repeated or forms a pattern; or
- Materially and substantially interferes with a student’s educational opportunities or performance or ability to participate in school functions or activities or receive school benefits, services, or privileges
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Definition of Harassment
HARASSMENT: consists of physical or verbal conduct, including, but not limited to, electronic communications, relating to an individual’s or group of individuals’ race, color, creed, religion, national origin, sex, gender, age, marital status, familial status, status with regard to public assistance, sexual orientation, or disability when the conduct:
- Has the purpose or effect of creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive working or academic environment;
- Has the purpose or effect of substantially or unreasonably interfering with an individual’s work or academic performance; or
- Otherwise adversely affects an individual’s employment or academic opportunities.