Dealing With Bullying In Special Needs Children

 

Sadly, special needs children are often the easiest targets for bullies. Don't miss our top tips for Dealing With Bullying In Special Needs Children.

Unfortunately Dealing With Bullying In Special Needs Children is a fact we must have to face.  Sadly, special needs children are often the easiest targets for bullies, and quickly become victims that struggle to defend and fight for themselves.  As parents, teachers, friends and caregivers we must focus to provide our children with the best situations to fight off bullies and learn self acceptance.

DEALING WITH BULLYING IN SPECIAL NEEDS CHILDREN

Educate caregivers to look for signs of bullying.  A lot of special needs children will have communication difficulties.  Whether it is a physical or mental difficulty, being able to clearly tell you they are being bullied may be tough.  Make sure that you, your family, close friends and any caregivers involved in your kids daily life understand what signs to watch for.  If you feel your child may have been bullied, you can then approach the topic and deal with it in the best way for their communication needs.

Invest in regular counseling sessions.  Special needs children will have a multitude of obstacles to overcome.  Regular sessions with a qualified counselor are highly recommended.  Not only can a counselor help get to the bottom of any bullying issues, they can provide a place your child feels safe discussing these things should bullying occur.  Giving them a safe outlet, as well as a professional opinion to help you stay abreast of any areas of concern.  Counselors will give not only your child a safety net, but you one as well.

Look for special needs focused schools, clubs and camps.  Sometimes it is simply best to move your child out of their current situation and into a more focused and specialized safe zone.  If a traditional school situation is creating problems with bullying to a degree of strain you are uncomfortable with, then seek different options.  Private schools, special schools for special needs children, homeschooling and tutoring are all options.  An added bonus would be to look into outside groups to build peer support and self esteem with clubs and camps for your special needs child to attend.

Being a parent of a special needs child is a difficult task already without having to deal with bullying in special needs children on top of everything else.  While you cannot change how everyone treats your child, you can educate yourself on ways to protect them and build them back up if an incident occurs.  These tips are a great beginning for you to protect and help your child become the best they can be.

Do you have any tips for dealing with bullying in special needs children? Please share your advice in the comments for other parents.
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15 thoughts on “Dealing With Bullying In Special Needs Children”

  1. It is really sad that this happens. I think better education for our kids is important and exposure. I worked with special needs children and I loved that their parents made sure they attended activities just like normal kids did, even if they couldn’t participate in the same way. Their classmates were always nice and loving because they understood the disability better.

  2. This saddens me. We recently had an incident reported on our news about bullying a special needs child. Again this saddens me. The education to stop bullying starts with the parents. Parents need to get involved and talk to their kids not only about bullying but respecting EVERYONE.

  3. It breaks my heart to see bullying in any form. But to pick on special needs is just beyond terrible. I remember in school there was a boy who would be picked on, I had to stick up for him, because he had no idea they were making fun of him, it was so mean!

  4. Bullying is such a terrible thing our kids have to face. I think every school needs a safe zone. Bullying is so much worse for our kids then we had it. Social media makes it so much easier to bully.

  5. I hate having to think about this, but I have a disabled child. While these are great tips, I don’t think homeschooling is an option for us. My daughter needs to learn to navigate the world, and taking her out of it just to dump her back in later gives her (only in my mind) a disadvantage- she won’t know how to handle situations. I just think bullies need to be taken out- they need to be removed, not other children.

    1. In some situations it is a wonderful thing, and others it isn’t. I agree we have to teach them to handle situations on their own, however when the school district doesn’t step in – homeschooling is the best choice for some. The key to that is not isolating your child completely, but to include them in homeschool groups, other groups for disabled or special needs children or camps. It depends upon the abuse (bullying is abuse) and the individual for sure. Above all – I think we as parents know what is best for our children, and you know your daughter and what is best for her :)

  6. Robin {Masshole Mommy}

    It’s horrible that people still pick on and bully others. However, nothing compares to how cruel it is to bully those that can not defend themselves.

  7. I don’t have a special needs child, and I’ve never heard of any bullying of that sort at my kids’ school, but I think it’s just terrible. I really believe that bullying is something that can only be addressed at home. A confident child is a child who doesn’t bully.

  8. I’ve never had to deal with this, so I don’t have any tips. I think it’s exceedingly sad that we live in a world where this post is needed. Thank you for sharing, but I wish you didn’t have to. =(

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