How Your Babysitter Can Empower Your Child While Navigating Bullying

Bullying is unfortunately prevalent in schools today. It is not a fun experience for children who are being bullied and it can leave them feeling powerless. As a parent, it is difficult to watch your kid go through this and know how to handle the situation. Luckily, you are not alone, especially if you have a babysitter. As you work to help your child, you can bring your babysitter on board to aid as well.

Read books

Books are super informative and can help you, your babysitter, and your child learn techniques for dealing with bullying. Children’s books often have lessons and techniques that demonstrate what to do if the child is being bullied and how the child’s “team” can all work together to mitigate the situation. Reading books can help give the child things to say and actions to take so they feel confident in dealing with a bully. Ideally, it is best to start before the child is bullied so they have a toolkit they can draw from in the instance they are bullied. Have these books on hand or ask your babysitter to bring some. Your local library may have some that you can check out as well. Having characters they can relate to, even if they are fictional, will allow your child to feel less alone if they are being bullied.

Have conversations

Talking to your child, and having your babysitter do the same, can help your child relay what is going on in their lives. Be sure to listen and respond with love, patience, and grace. Be open to listening and paying attention to the small things so they feel comfortable talking about the bigger things. Your child needs to know they can come to you when they are being bullied so they can trust you to help them. Be sure they also trust the babysitter, especially if your sitter picks them up from school. If your child does reveal that they are being bullied to your sitter, have your sitter let you know.  Your sitter should be filling you in on big things, so having them tell you about this should be routine. Listen with intent and avoid being distracted by your phone or TV.

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Build them up

Being bullied can take a toll on your child’s confidence. It can leave them feeling worthless and depressed. When you talk to your child, be sure to point out things they are doing great at and highlight their strengths. If you have to correct a behavior, do so gently without being harsh. Be on the lookout for things your child is doing well and point it out. Have your babysitter do these things as well. This way, your child can hear from multiple people how awesome they are. In instances where they are being bullied, they will have at least some foundation of confidence that they are good people and do great things. Having this will help them cope better as they can remember they have people who love and support them and who will be there to help them in the case of being bullied.

Do not overlook the bullying

Being bullied is a huge deal, and telling someone about it can seem scary, especially if the child does not want to get the other person or themselves in trouble. Tell your babysitter to take the child seriously if they reveal they are being bullied. While the babysitter may not be able to fix the situation, they can tell you what was said and be there for the child. The babysitter should not tell the child that it is not a big deal or they should fix the problem alone. Knowing they are being taken seriously and people are acting to protect them will give your child comfort and security in the fact they can trust you and the babysitter.

Stay informed

There are a lot of new forms of bullying going on, especially in the heightened popularity of social media. As such, it is important for you and your sitter to stay informed as to what has been going on. It is also important to know what laws are out there that are in place to help children who are being bullied. Be aware of what your child’s school has in place in terms of rules and policies so you and your babysitter can work together to support your child through this time. Know what kinds of resources can help your child in the aftermath, including counseling services or support groups. Being informed by you and your babysitter can help ensure that your child has access to any resources they need and that you are doing everything in your power to protect them. This will allow them to feel safe with you and your babysitter.

Being bullied can be devastating and even traumatizing for a child. Having your babysitter be a part of supporting them will allow them to feel supported, especially by someone outside the family.