A bully, a victim, and a bystander—far from the beginning of a joke, cyberbullying is no laughing matter. Bystander or upstander? As part of the study of cyberbullying, high schoolers first read a series of articles about cyberbullying and suggestions for ways to deal with this form of abuse. Pairs examine a series of scenarios and talk about how they might handle the situation. Groups craft and perform a skit that explores the role of the bystander in a bullying situation.

Concepts

cyberbullying, bullying, social-emotional learning, casel, healthy habits, online communication, internet safety, identity, sexual harassment, sexual abuse

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Additional Tags

health

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Instructional Ideas

• Have pupils craft and display posters that illustrate anti-bullying strategies or how to act as an upstander rather than a bystander
• Divide the class into nine groups, assign each a different background article, and have groups report their findings to the entire class
• Laminate the scenarios to permit reuse

Classroom Considerations

• Requires computers with internet to access the related articles
• Carefully observe class members as they are working and report any concerns to the counseling staff

Pros

• Includes information about how to respond to cyberbullying safely
• Provides a comprehension quiz and its answer key

Cons

• None

Common Core

RI.9-10.1 RI.9-10.5 SL.9-10.1.a SL.9-10.1.b SL.9-10.4 RI.11-12.1 RI.11-12.5 SL.11-12.1.a SL.11-12.4