In a few short days, the Amazing Smiles team will begin celebrating National Bullying Prevention Month for the whole month of October! Bullying prevention and awareness is something near and dear to our hearts, and we hope you will join us in working towards a brighter, kinder future.
Here are a few ways you can get involved:
Participate in our ‘It Starts With Us’ contest
This one is for our teachers and classroom parents! We’re challenging students to explore what they can do to promote kindness and reduce bullying in their schools and communities. Classrooms grades 2-8 can submit up to 3 ideas to our team, and we’ll choose a winner who will receive sponsorship for their initiative as well as a $500 donation for their class!
Take the ‘Stand Up and Smile’ pledge
What’s the best way to make bullying a thing of the past? By empowering our kids to stop it in action! The Stand Up and Smile pledge encourages kids to be a good friend to others, accept people for their differences, and most importantly, not just stand by if they see bullying.
Visit our website with your child to take the Stand Up and Smile pledge. Not only will you have taken a step towards a brighter future – we’ll also send a Buddy Box with some Amazing Smiles swag to say thanks!
Start the conversation at home
It can be challenging to bring up a complicated subject like bullying around the dinner table, but having those conversations can help open up the lines of communication between you and your child. Have they ever witnessed bullying at their school? Have they experienced it themselves? Maybe they are on the other side of the spectrum, and realized they have not always been kind to the people around them?
In honor of Bullying Prevention Month, check in with your family and learn about their experiences with friendship, relationships, and bullying. Feel free to share your own perspective as well! You may be surprised what you can teach each other, and how you can exchange encouragement to do better in the future.