What to do if your child is a bully

Michael Pritchard, Child & Bullying Advocate, shares advice on what to do if your child is a bully and how to teach them to stop bullying others
What To Do If Your Child Is A Bully
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What to do if your child is a bully

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Well the first thing is not to be in denial, and to know that it's really powerful and important to accept the fact in a practical way that your kid may be so injured and hurt that you're not around to see why they're so hurt. We don't know what happens to them when they go to school. They get in the socialization process and they get wounded. They run a gauntlet of words and cruelty sometimes in school that can really damage them long-term. And if they choose to start pouring the poison back out, the toxicity back out, the acid trash talk and the viciousness back out, it's important not to look the other way. The line is if you do not know it is bad. But if you do not want to know it is worse. You have to know that the best disinfectant is sunshine. When somebody comes to you and says, hey, your son's a bully. Your daughter's a popular girl who's viciously mean to others. Don't sit and get in denial. Don't sit and say, oh I can't believe that of them. This is gossip. No. Find out the truth. Become a detective of the spirit and go, sweetheart, are you hurting people because you're so hurt? And confront them. Intervene on them. And confront them with their own look. Show them a mirror of spirit, and say, hey, if this is you, this is not good. I had one teacher who said - my little daughter is extremely beautiful. And I showed her a picture of me when I was little, and she goes, oh my God. We'd put her up on the ugly row. And she goes, honey, this is me. And my daughter burst into tears. That's how you teach them. You teach them we're connected to each other. You might have been the person. I tell the kids, some day you'll be a mom or a dad. And what would you do? Laugh at your own child who is autistic? Ridicule your kid who is ADD? Laugh at the kid who is dyslexic and make him feel so bad he doesn't want to come to school anymore? Take that sensitive, shy, sweet kind loving kid who might be gay but you don't know but who cares, and make him feel so bad about trying to fit in that he hurts himself and he becomes self-destructive now or later? It's not who we're here to be.

Michael Pritchard, Child & Bullying Advocate, shares advice on what to do if your child is a bully and how to teach them to stop bullying others

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Michael Pritchard

Humanist & Child Advocate

Michael Pritchard is a nationally acclaimed keynote speaker praised by the Wall Street Journal, CNN and Time for his ability to use humor to inspire and educate his audiences on communication skills. Michael Pritchard is a big guy with a warm heart who as one student described him, “truly walks as he talks.”

He began his career on both the comedy stage and as a juvenile counselor in San Francisco’s Youth Guidance Center. In 1980, Michael Pritchard won first place in the San Francisco International Stand Up Comedy Competition as well as winning the prestigious California Probation Officer of the Year.

Michael’s offers from Hollywood rolled in including a guest appearance on an Emmy Award winning episode of “Taxi”. His sensational standup comedy billed him with Robin Williams, Jerry Seinfeld, Dana Carvey and Whoopi Goldberg playing venues as Caesar’s, the Comedy Store, Universal Ampitheater and opening for such names as Diana Ross, the Grateful Dead, Kenny Rogers, Mike Mc Donald and Boz Scaggs. But Michael rejected offers from Hollywood to focus on using his comic talents for inspiring youth and adults.

Drawing from his counseling background, Michael Pritchard began using humor to inspire, teach communication skills, anger management, diversity, conflict resolution and overcoming burnout and stress.

His broad base of audience from corporate employees, healthcare workers, government and state officials have honored him with countless standing ovations and numerous awards including: President’s Volunteer Action Award, Commendation - Office of the Attorney General , Paul Harris Fellowship - Rotary International, Toastmaster’s International Speaker, Outstanding Performance - Federal Executive Board , Josephine Duveneck Humanitarian Award and the Key to the City of San Francisco.As a result of his work, Michael Pritchard has been featured on CNN, NBC’s “The Today Show”, “The Tonight Show”, CBS “Sunday Morning” with Charles Kuralt, “Time” magazine and “People” magazine.

His seven educational series for PBS and distribution has been seen by millions and focuses on youth guidance in the areas of violence prevention. “The Power of Choice” “You can Choose”, “Big Changes, Big Choices”.

Forming Heartland Media, he continued with “Red Ribbon Week” and “PeaceTalks” teaching students to make positive choices.“SOS: Saving Our Schools from Hate and Violence”, featured in both Time magazine and on CNN, filmed after the tragic Columbine disaster. His new series: “Lifesteps” builds the social and emotional intelligence in youth and has already received the Parents Choice Award

For his work in promoting nonviolence with youth, Dr. Michael Pritchard was awarded an Honorary Doctorate in Humane Letters from Hartwick University and winning, 2001 Lewis Hine’s Award for Service to Children & Youth Certificate of Appreciation and the 2002 Marin Community Foundations Beryl Buck Fund Award for achievement in Promoting Nonviolence.

As an extension of Heartland Media, he established Heartland Media Foundation building character and emotional intelligence, violence prevention, inciting motivation and leadership in both youth and adults to improve schools and communities. The foundation provides youth guidance programs, including video, print curriculum, and live presentations by Michael Pritchard to aid in schools and communities where the funding is limited.

In the fund raising capacity, Michael Pritchard has help raise millions of dollars by donating his time and talent to events and various charitable organizations including: Boys and Girls Club – Ronald McDonald House –Salvation Army - Jewish Family Services – SF Giants Community Fund – American Heart Association –Women’s Wellness Forum – Special Olympics - CASA Court Appointed Special Advocates - Bread & Roses – Recreation Center for the Handicapped –– DARE –– Texan’s War on Drugs –– Vietnam Vets of America - Guide Dogs for the Blind

More Parenting Videos from Michael Pritchard >
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