November 23, 2015
Anti-Bullying week this year runs from the 16th to 20th November. This is a busy week for us, as our facilitators are up and down the country with our various Anti-Bullying workshops spreading awareness about bullying, and empowering children and young people to act when they are being bullied or know somebody who is. The theme this year is ‘Make a Noise About Bullying’!
Bullying can come in many forms: physical, verbal, which includes written such as over the internet, and mental. Anti-Bullying week aims to initiate conversations about bullying, which in turn can help children and adults to be able to detect when somebody is being bullied and how to deal with it. Bullying can be very silent and secret; a study conducted by the Anti-Bullying Alliance this year found that nearly a quarter of children don’t tell anyone if they’re being bullied, which in turn can lead to an increased probability of experiencing social anxiety and depression.
We want to get people talking about bullying, and Anti-Bullying Week is the perfect opportunity to start making a noise about it! We believe that children and adults both have a fundamental role in stamping it out, as we want children to have the confidence to approach an adult and the adult to be able respond effectively. Communication is therefore fundamental, as by talking about it, bullies are more likely to realise the impact it has on the victim, and the more confidence children will have to approach an adult for support.
Our KS1 workshops, ‘Blast Off!’ and ‘Welcome to Happy Town’, initiate these conversations by allowing children to creatively explore anti-bullying scenarios, emotions and where to turn for help. Our KS2 workshops go into a little more detail, focusing on ‘Being Different, Belonging Together’, and our ‘Stop! Think! Words Can Hurt!’ workshop explores issues linked to bullying in school, using improvisations, role-plays and show backs.
We are also touring the country with our whole school performance, ‘Ugly’, which focuses on Cyber-Bullying and how this can extend out into the playground. The play demonstrates bullying in its many forms (ie. written over the internet and physical) and asks challenging questions based on different bullying scenarios. With plenty of music and singing, One Day Performance are making a lot of noise about bullying, so let’s join them and stamp it out for good!
Love, Aimee and the One Day Team x