Bullies/Bullying

John's Most Recent Articles

School Anti-Bullying Policies Are a Farce

Posted on 3/3/2020

Q: We homeschooled our son through the sixth grade. This past fall, per his wishes, we sent him to a public school for the seventh grade. Last week, he was attacked by the class bully. This...

The Most Powerful Love Is Tough Love

Posted on 7/2/2019

Q: On several occasions over the last six months or so, our 12-year-old son has told us he’s been thinking about suicide. Apparently, he’s been the target of a couple of school bullies and...

The Definition of Bullying Has Been 'Dumbed Down'

Posted on 6/18/2019

Q: Our son is 13 years old and in the 7th grade. Last week he came home from school complaining about how a few of his friends have been bullying him. These same boys were at his birthday party...

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Recent Questions

FOMO in ISO, and Bud-Nipping: Consequencing an 11-yr Old Bully

Posted on 11/18/2023

My 11 year old son frequently hits, pushes, his younger siblings, ages 6 and 5, when no adult is around. It is very much intentional in trying to hurt the others. He will provoke his siblings...

6 Year Old Boy Can Put Bully To Bed

Posted on 9/12/2023

Good afternoon, my 6yr old son is being bullied in kindergarten. Day 1 a little girl came up to him, randomly and said she didn’t like him, the following week she did the same, and also said she...

What Do I Do if My Child Is the Bully?

Posted on 4/1/2023

What do you do when you find out your child is the bully? Recently, I read my 13-year-old son's text thread and learned he was verbally bullying another child. Reading further, he also...

Natural Consequences Are EffectiveTeachers

Posted on 7/9/2022

My 9 year old boy frequently acts like a baby and very odd in a socially unacceptable way like a feral child. When leaving his friends he will say “bye friends” in a silly voice. He also was...

Perfect time for a reset

Posted on 1/18/2022

Our 9yo girls currently rule the roost. They speak to us flippantly, complain constantly, whine and pester after receiving a "no" answer, expect others to fetch/carry for them, ignore directives...

Nip It. Nip It Good.

Posted on 11/17/2021

Hi ParentGuru, I have a question about our 5yr old son who has come home from prep (1st year of primary school here in Melbourne Australia) after an incident in which he threw another student's...

Hang in There!

Posted on 6/1/2021

When using the kicked out of garden method for target behaviors, do you have the child stay in the room? (We are assuming you do.) We have a 10-year-old boy who has been stealing things and lying...

No Good Reason For 7-Year-Old's Threat

Posted on 7/30/2020

I got a call from our daycare provider today saying our 7-year-old told his best friend that he was going to bring in a real gun and shoot him because the friend had taken something that belonged...

Seeking Friends

Posted on 11/5/2019

Hello! We have a wonderful 5 year old boy who started kindergarten this past August. He is wonderfully sweet, but a bit naive. As his mother, a lot of my interests which can definitely be...

Beating the Bullies

Posted on 6/20/2019

Here’s a topic I’ve been struggling with that I just saw John address in a Facebook post – mean kids. My oldest son (9) was complaining about some kids at his summer camp saying things like...

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