Using your WITS!

In an effort to address bully prevention, our Principal Ms. Alce held a short assembly where she quickly reviewed what bullying was and how to use a strategy that empowers children called WITS in order to deal with confrontation. WITS is an acronym.  W stands for "walking away", I is for "Ignore", T is for "Talking it Out" and S stands for "Seeking teacher help".  Each of the strategies was modelled for all the Kindergarten students.  We also review them in class on a regular basis.  We are lucky, as Mrs. Kinsman had previously introduced this approach so our students were somewhat familiar with the terms.  On an ongoing basis, when the students tell us about something they are unhappy about, we ask them if they have used their WITS!! Maybe your child has told you about it, but it is definitely a strategy that can be used outside of school as well.

In an effort to understand and address any bullying issues, Ms. Alce also mentioned to the students that if they were speaking to an adult, it is important to tell them how many times someone was bothering them.  Obviously, bullying is not an incident that happens once or twice, and before making any decisions about  consequences, it is imperative for the adult to know how often it is happening.  

Thank you so much for your understanding and support!