Presenter teaches pupils methods to prevent bullying

Bullying includes name-calling, rumor-mongering and exclusion.
By PETER H. MILLIKEN
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
WARREN -- The definition of bullying is much broader than the traditional notion of someone hurting, frightening or tormenting a smaller or weaker person.
According to Chris Dixon, known as Doc, creator and presenter of The Bully-Free Amazing Wonder Show, the broader definition is "more in tune with what the reality is. Kids are bullied just as much by being isolated as they are by hitting. The results can be just as serious."
Dixon presented his nearly hour-long bullying prevention program Friday to more than 400 pupils in an all-school assembly at McGuffey Elementary, the largest of the city's eight elementary schools. His appearance, organized by the school district's psychologists, included performances at all eight schools over two days.
Bullying isn't limited to physical abuse and includes verbal and written abuse, such as name-calling, teasing, spreading nasty rumors and "cyberbullying" using a computer, Dixon told the pupils. Exclusion of others from participating in group recreational activities is also a form of bullying, he added.
Keeping kids entertained
Dixon uses an entertaining format, including magic tricks, comedy and audience participation, to capture and hold the attention of pupils and convey a simple but serious anti-bullying message. "Don't be a bully: be a friend!," Dixon urges pupils.
In the McGuffey performance, he selected attentive pupils from the enthusiastic audience sitting on the gymnasium floor to help him with card, rope and disappearing coin tricks, among others. He asked pupils to repeat key slogans to reinforce his message, tapping his magic wand periodically on the audio speaker to ensure pupils' attention.
Children were taught the STAR formula, which summarizes the four steps they should take when they meet a bully: Stick together; Tell the bully to stop; Alert an adult at school and home; and Respect others and treat them the way you want to be treated.
At the end of the program, Dixon issues bully-free pledge cards pupils can sign -- promising they won't be bullies and they'll help victims of bullying and use the four-step formula. He also provides teachers with materials to reinforce his message after the assembly. His Web site is www.bullyfreeschools.com.
Dixon, of Smithton, Pa., who developed the anti-bullying program about six years ago, conducts about 250 anti-bullying assemblies annually. To date, more than 500,000 youngsters have seen and heard his presentation.
Changing times
The definition of bullying has changed with changing times, said Staci Direnzo, a city schools psychologist. "Bullying is not just a bigger kid beating up a smaller kid anymore. With technology, bullying has taken different avenues," she said, alluding to cyberbullying.
"You no longer have to be the big kid on campus to bully somebody. You can be a weaker person and cause just as much damage," she observed.
Girls were never perceived as bullies in the past, but today, Direnzo said, "They are equal partners in all of this. Sometimes their bullying is more subtle. It's not so much a fist, but it is more of the verbal bullying, writing notes, spreading rumors, and all of it causes just as much harm as punching somebody."
Direnzo concluded: "Sometimes the words are a precursor to the violent behavior, and, by stopping bullying at the first level, then maybe we can avoid some of those more physical violent things later on."
milliken@vindy.com