Teach Your Child To Face Teasing

Find out below how you can teach your child to deal with teasing in a respectful, healthy and effective way.

Many times coexistence in the school environment is not always ideal. For this reason, we must help our children deal with teasing from an early age.

Yes, teasing between children may seem like a small or minor matter. However, the impact it can have on your psychological development can be enormous if the situation continues over time.

The frequency and cruelty of teasing can vary. One of the main reasons that children can develop this form of interaction is due to ignorance and lack of empathy. 

In other words, when children are faced with a novelty, not knowing how to act, they can start making fun of it. They generally believe that it is the best way to interact and have fun.

Factors influencing teasing

1. Age of children.
2. Family support.
3. Home values.
4. Sociability of children.
5. Presence or absence of the academic advisor.
6. Behavior of the teacher in charge of the school group.
7. Form of presentation and introduction of the new classmate.

Science reveals the impact of teasing

It is already scientifically proven that humiliation has an impact on the brain of people, even more intense than emotions such as joy or anger.

A group of scientists from the University of Amsterdam conducted an experiment to measure the impact of humiliation and teasing.

To do this, he selected a group of individuals and read them a series of stories. During the readings, people had to put themselves in the place of the protagonist. This allowed us to check the different emotions that people experienced.

The humiliations activated areas of the brain related to pain and this is what led scientists to intuit that a humiliation is perceived by the brain as a very intense sensation of pain.

How to teach children to cope with teasing?

Parents need to find out what’s going on and discuss what the options are. What is the origin of the teasing? What is its frequency? How does the child react to such a situation? And then, how to make my child know how to deal with teasing in a healthy way?

You have to know how to distinguish these elements well to be able to solve the problem on time and in the best possible way. Likewise, it is important to differentiate if our child is the object of ridicule or, on the contrary, who is teasing and bullying another.

Children  should be taught to react quickly to teasing. In this way, they will attack the root problem and will be able to disarm the mocker and he, by not obtaining the effect he wants, will get bored and stop mocking.

We should not label our children as “cowards” or “whiners” because this does not solve anything or make them stronger. The best option is always to give them respect, love and understanding.

Once the child explains his problem to us, it is important that we sympathize with his feelings and tell him some personal anecdote that comforts him.

We must emphasize the positive aspects of our reaction back then and let you know that it was possible to reach a solution.

Key tips

1. We must never incite violence. 
2. If the teasing is mild, we must teach our children to ignore the bully until he is tired.
3. If the teasing is moderate or severe, it is best to go to the educational institution and talk with both the teacher and the school counselor to put an end to the situation. It is very important not to prolong the discomfort.
4. On the other hand, we must teach our children to be respectful to all people. In this way, he will know how to deal with teasing in a more successful way.
5. Once the situation is well known, we must  support our children unconditionally. For them, feeling loved and supported is key.
6. Every situation has its positive side and an important lesson for everyone. It is essential to reflect on this.