Morning Pages 4.5.16

Personally I have never had any expereince with bullying, but I have known kids who have. It tears them apart, makes them feel like their ideas are insignificant, and lowers their self esteem immensely. Just recently for one of my other classes, I interviewed a 6th grade student at Lesher Middle School here in Fort Collins. One of my questions was, "is there anything you dislike about this school? what is it and why?" Sadly, his answer was bullying. He explained to me that he rarely gets bullied himself anymore, but that he witnesses it happening to so many others and it makes him uncomfortable. Keep in mind, this student explained to me earlier in the interview that he wants to join the military someday so that he can "protect all the women and little kids in America" - he has a huge heart. Bullying doesn't just effect those who are direct victims, it effects the entire morale and feel of the student body. Lesher has the best moral and student enthusiasm I've seen, they hold themselves to a very uplifting and positive vibe. But even then, bullying still sneaks in. Answering the question, "how do we stop bullying?" is a tricky one. All I know is that we need to continue addressing it in each individual situation, support/encourage students to rally against it, and hope for the best.