Yarraville West Primary School kids bulldoze bullies

Yarraville West Primary School pupils are making moves to stamp out bullying once and for all.

The pupils launched their own ‘Bulldoze Bullying’ brochure last Friday as part of the National Day of Action Against Bullying and Violence.

Teacher Fiona Short said a group of pupils spent the day visiting classrooms to distribute the brochure, exchange wristbands with ant-bullying messages, and explain to other students how to deal with bullying.

“Last year, we surveyed the students and identified what issues were happening for the kids,” she said.

“Over 85 per cent of our issues were happening in the yard.”

Ms Short said it was possible to find a lot of information and material about bullying, but having the students involved in creating their own brochure was a way to give them ownership of the problem and help the message sink in.

“We think having this made by the kids, and for kids, is much more powerful,” she said

Yarraville West’s actions to tackle bullying have secured the school status as an eSmart School.

An initiative of The Alannah and Madeline Foundation, the program helps schools improve cybersafety and reduce cyberbullying and bullying in general.

For further details, go to www.esmartschools.org.au.