When Gifted Kids Are Bullied

Even with zero tolerance policies in place in many schools, bullying is still a prevalent problem. It is often the topic of magazine articles, news reports, and newspaper headlines. While it has always been a widespread problem for children, there are a lot of programs in place to help teach teachers, parents, and children deal with this problem. The goal is for all children to be able to go to school and have a positive learning experience free of the fear, stress, and sadness that comes with bullying.

Gifted children are frequently targeted by bullies. They are singled out for being smart or a “know-it-all." Gifted boys and girls struggle with maintaining academic success as they move through middle and high school, and still being accepted by their peers. When students reach puberty, they tend to mask their giftedness in order to fit in with non-gifted peers.

There are many excellent books that have been written about bullying that can be used to discuss this topic. Teachers can provide students with stories that have bullying situations and allow them to share their own thoughts, experiences, and suggestions about the problem. Literature can also be used for role play. Students can act out various bullying scenes from the stories and have a discussion about how the situation could be handled.

Games are another excellent way to teach students how to deal with bullying. Games provide a great opportunity to pool resources with your colleagues as well. For example, you could conduct a P.E. class with the physical education teacher and the guidance counselor. You could present students with scenarios in which a bullying situation occurs, and allow them to move through a room once they provide the best way to respond to the situation.

Introducing anti-bullying ideas and strategies to gifted students early in the year is imperative. Not only do they need to be provided with social-emotional lessons on being gifted, but they also need to know how to identify a bullying situation, and how to respond to it. Making these lessons interesting and engaging will hook the students and make learning enjoyable and meaningful. Here are some other lesson plans which will give you excellent methods designed to prevent bullying in your classroom.

Anti-Bullying Lesson Plans:

Teaching Peace through Literature and Song

The teacher reads the book "Thank You, Mr. Faulkner" by Patricia Polacco. The reading is followed by a class discussion addressing the feelings of the characters in the book, and how the situations compare to a real classroom setting. Students write songs about bullying as a way to share their personal feelings. 

Stump the Bully

This lesson helps students practice strategies for dealing with a bully by playing a game called "Stump the Bully." students are presented with a variety of scenarios in with they must choose a strategy in order to beat the bully. The counselor plays the role of the bully while the students respond by working cooperatively to choose the best strategy. A very effective lesson!

"Bad Case of Stripes" Lesson Plan

"A Bad Case of Stripes" by David Shannon is used the first week of school to discuss bullying and respecting the feelings of others. After discussing the book, the students are given chart paper in which they share one of their own bullying experiences. The teacher creates a bulletin board to share the students’ projects. A great beginning-of-the-year lesson!