Pearl Lorentzen
Lakeside Leader
The focus of Bullying Prevention Week at E.G. Wahlstrom Elementary School (EGW) was on giving children the words to talk about their experience.
Cristabel Encinas, EGW wellness coach, had a poster contest and provided information about the difference between being mean, rude, social conflict, and bullying.
“It’s just giving them the language, strategies,” says Encinas.
A brochure she made says, conflict is “occasional, not planned, both sides are upset, both sides will accept responsibility and there is an effort to solve the issue.” However, bullying is “repeated, planned and done on purpose, the target of the bullying is upset, the bully is trying to gain control over the target, and (bullying) cannot be resolved through mediation.”
The kids seemed to get the message.
One of the posters says “It isn’t big to make other people feel small.”
Another says, “Be a buddy not a bully.”
One focused on the fact that often bullies were bullied themselves. It has a picture of a person huddling from a bully and inside the bully’s head is the same image.
One of Encinas’ roles as a wellness coach is mediating conflict. She (and the wellness coaches at the other High Prairie School Division schools) provide a variety of supports in the schools. These include one-on-one support, social groups, and ‘universal’ programs, which are available to the whole school. These are on four pillars: physical activity, mental health, community engagement, and nutrition.
Encinas describes it as “a very well rounded program.”
The program also focuses on the core values of the school.
“Our school is a kindness school,” says Encinas. Each day, people are nominated for being kind. Each month, there is a different activity around kindness.
In November, each EG Wahlstrom class dropped off a kindness bucket at a local business or an institution (such as the library). These baskets had strips of paper for community members to write down acts of kindness. The students will then make a paper chain with the pieces of paper.
In September, they made kindness feathers.
In October, students wrote admiration letters to someone in their lives.
