This is a pretty major update in regards to the Elliott being bullied issue we’ve been dealing with over the last few months.  To get current, please read back a few posts and you’ll be brought up to speed, or just click HERE.

I received a call from the principal, whom I have a great line of communication with and he wanted to let me know what his plan of attack was going to be.

We also spoke briefly when I picked the boys up from school and I was pleased to hear how things were handled.

Here’s the long answer short of it.

1) Kids were independently called to the office to discuss anything going on in the classroom that was concerning to them. Basic things like, was anyone being picked on or treated unfairly. There wasn’t a whole lot of useful information gathered, although some kids mentioned that they felt picked on.

2) He spoke with Elliott and they discussed what was happening. They talked about how he has a right to respond to things like this and that he can always come to him if anything happens.

3) This is may favorite part. The principal spoke with the entire class about the issues surrounding bullying or even just picking on someone. He talked about examples of bullying, what to do if you feel you’re being bullied and what to do if you see anyone else being bullied. He stressed how it’s absolutely unacceptable. No one was singled out (which I like) but he basically said that he knows what’s going on and that he was putting everyone on notice. He explained exactly what would happen if any of this behavior occurs in his school and that it wouldn’t be pleasant.

Elliott felt really good about this because no one was singled out and no one got in trouble. I feel really good about this as well because there’s nothing quite like instilling the fear of God in someone you know is doing something wrong but you can’t prove it.  It’s even better to do it in a way that is indirect like this.

Lizze and I have a meeting with the staff in the morning to discuss how to improve communication on issues like this going forward.

There is definitely a break in communication within the school walls and that needs to change.

All in all, I feel this was a very positive step in the right direction. While my priority is Elliott in this situation, I’m also concerned about the young students who may indeed be bullying others.

I feel like an intervention like this may be able to help change the direction they’re on before they get older. While I’m not happy with the behavior of the person who’s been bullying Elliott, I don’t think he’s a bad kid and I really hope that this approach proves to be a positive thing for all parties involved.