INTRODUCTION FOR TEACHERS ABOUT HOW COASTKID WORKS
You start on the homepage of Coastkid. Generally speaking there are two approaches to exploring the website:
Either
you enter through one of the characters by clicking on one of them. If you do so, you get to the character's home, where he or she
tells you something about him/herself, their family, individual problems, and their comments on their class (the other Coastkids).
You can then go that character's storyline by clicking on What's happening at school? This takes you to a map of
the school, where the place shaded in red is where the character's story begins. You follow this story by clicking What happens
next? or Let's go!
Or
you enter through the general 'door' by clicking on What's happening at school?
You are then taken directly to the school map where lots of places are shaded in red. Each one
is the starting point of somebody's story. From then on things are the same as described above.
Other navigational tips
You can usually leave a character's story and get back to the school map by clicking on
What's happening at school?
At the end of a character's story line the What's happening in school? button will take you back to the school map,
but this time all the other places where that character can be found are shaded in red.
You always get back to the homepage by clicking on the Coastkid Logo. Clicking the Did you know? button will take you to pages
of background information on different topics directly linked with bullying.
Make up small groups of about three students and make them choose one of the characters. Their task is to prepare a brief presentation for the
class about the character 'at home'. They could prepare a poster with the most striking features of their character (let's
say five), explaining why they chose these characteristics.
- summary of his home page
Chris is gay and 'out'. His family has begun to accept it. He doesn't like school because of his classmates' and
others' comments. The only place and the only company where he feels relaxed are when he meets with other people from the gay and
lesbian community.
- summary of his story ('Straight and narrow')
with questions/prompts which appear on the website and further suggestions
Scene 1
Some of the 'cast' are in the field playing football. The story is about the use of 'gay' and 'girl' as insults.
Q: How can a throw, a game of football, or a maths test be gay?
Q: Are Jamie, Terry and Mel insulting each other or just having a laugh?
Q: Is it okay to use the word 'gay' as an insult?
A: What do you think?
Suggestion: have the class (or the group following this story) discuss the questions in small groups. Can you think of other words referring to
gender or sexual preferences which are used as insults? Which words could be used that are not insulting?
Scene 2
Some of the boys really insult Chris for being gay; they tease and threaten him until he runs away.
Q: If Terry and Jamie are the obvious bullies here, what about Hussain? Is he a bully? YES/NO
- Site provides responses.
Suggestion: this is a question about collusion, so pupils might need to question
the difference between being an active or a passive bully and what they would have to do if they don't want to be a bully.
Scene 3
Terry and Jamie confront Chris, they provoke him and start being aggressive. Mel intervenes and stands up for Chris.
Q: What should Chris and Mel do now?
Nothing, just go home Site provides response
Get some other boys to threaten Jamie and Terry Site provides response
Go back into the school to find a teacher? Site provides response
Suggestion: consider further questions such as 'Does it change anything if you intervene when witnessing bullying?' Is it disloyal to
other pupils to tell a teacher about bullying?
- summary of her home page
Joanne is quite aggressive and violent, that's why she has only one friend - Kirstie. Joanne's father's violence towards her
mother recently got him a jail sentence. The tensions at home make Joanne feel very uncomfortable there, so she stays away as much as
possible. She does not want to see her father because of his violence.
- summary of her story ('I need help too')
with questions/prompts which appear on the website and further suggestions
Scene 1
Joanne justifies her aggressive behaviour by thinking of it as self-defence. She believes in being aggressive before others get in first.
Q: What do you think Joanne meant about her Mum? If you aren't sure have a look at her 'hassles'
on her home page, and what her mum says.
Suggestion: have the class discuss Joanne's point of view in small groups. What is the link between Joanne's behaviour and her mum? Could
Joanne react differently towards her mum's story? What would you suggest when talking to Joanne personally?
Q: Do you think Joanne is right that people only get bullied because they don't stick up for themselves? YES/NO.
Site provides responses.
Scene 2
Joanne reflects on her own situation by writing about in her diary. Her indifference towards other people's view of her is obviously only pretended.
Q: Does Joanne need help? YES/NO Site provides responses.
Suggestion: have the pupils think for three minutes on their own about why some people bully. In groups, consider whether if it's sometimes
related to feelings of helplessness, fear and other bad feelings, does that mean it always is?
Scene 3
Sitting in the ICT centre for a lesson, Joanne can't bear her situation any longer and tries to talk to her teacher about her feelings.
Q: What happens next?
A: We don't know! Maybe you could tell us what you think?
Suggestion: pupils could write out the conversation between Joanne and her teacher, either on their own or in pairs, maybe acting it out.
- summary of his home page
Hussain's family has come from Zaire as refugees. Some other kids are prejudiced against him as he is black, a practising Muslim and a
refugee. His older brother is still in Zaire, the family doesn't know if he is still alive.
- summary of his story ('Who's insulting?')
with questions/prompts which appear on the website and further suggestions
Scene 1
Discussion amongst the kids about name calling and how they feel about it (covers being black, being from a family of travellers, and about being over-weight)
Q: Is an insult only an insult if it's not true?
Q: Is name calling about race different from name calling about weight?
Q: Have a look at how Sarah answers Kelly's question about insiders and outsiders using words that might be insults. Do you agree with Sarah or with Kelly?
ANSWERS: There aren't any simple answers for questions like these. You need to discuss them, listen to what others think, and make up your own mind.
Even then, you might change your mind after a while if you hear new points of view, but that's okay.
Suggestion: discuss these questions in class making two big groups, one going with Sarah's opinion, one going with Kelly's.
Scene 2
They discuss their reactions towards name-calling and how they defend themselves.
Q: What do you think? How could Hussain limit the racist bullying and name-calling he gets? Try to think of some ways.
THIS IS WHAT HUSSAIN SAYS:
I talk to my parents about it.
I talk to other black people about it, and other people who get called names for their skin colour.
I aim to be proud of who I am.
I try to remember that it's the racists who really have a problem, not me.
I try to explain to friends about racism so they stick up for me.
I try not to retaliate with more insults.
I pray.
I try not to let the racists see that it hurts.
I don't suffer in silence. Some teachers say I should report it when it happens and usually I do, and most of them are pretty good about it
and get it stopped. You shouldn't have to put up with name-calling in school.
Suggestion: they could compare Hussain's different strategies, discussing the effectiveness of each, choosing their favourite one(s) and defending their choice.
Scene 3
Five of the coastkids present the results of their discussion in class (about racist bullying, the offensive effect of some words and the
differences according to who uses them)
Suggestion: the presentations of the Coastkids could be broken down into smaller pieces and reworded and made into 'speech bubbles' for
the classroom wall, maybe with an agree/disagree division so they could be moved around.
- summary of his home page
Jamie comes from a Traveller family which has probably been travelling for hundreds of years. His parents decided to settle in a house so that
Jamie and his brothers and sisters could continue going to the same school. The prejudice of other people about travellers hurt Jamie, he
complains that people insult him without having any idea of what individual travellers are like – generalisation everywhere!
- summary of his story ('Consequences')
with questions/prompts which appear on the website and further suggestions
Scene 1
Discussion in the canteen about the bullying incidents which had taken place (Joanne's letter, Sarah's stolen dinner etc.). This scene
maybe makes more sense when you are already familiar with some other stories.
Q: Do you think the school would be better if Joanne was expelled for good? Yes/No: Site provides responses
YES: Joanne was a bully and she was suspended because she wouldn't change, maybe by being suspended and through getting some
counselling she will change this time. If not, then maybe the school will have to expel her, but that is usually the last resort.
NO: Expelling Joanne for good only gets rid of one bully it does not deal with the bullying problem in the school. With help from teachers and
other students Joanne has a chance to change. If she doesn't, then being expelled may be the last option for the school
Suggestion: Direct the class to Did you know? 'School anti-bullying campaigns'. They could discuss the suggestions
made here and try to find out what is already in place at your school, debate which measures they prefer, suggest a timetable for their introduction.
Scene 2
Joanne has been expelled from school. The others ask Kirstie (her only real friend) what has happened. They also discuss the school counsellor
and the newly introduced system of mentoring (older students being responsible for one younger student who can come whenever he/she has
a problem and ask for advice)
It would be a good idea for a counsellor or someone like that to fix up a meeting between Joanne and Sarah
TRUE: Joanne and Sarah could talk about the solution to their problem together safely if they are guided by a counsellor.
FALSE: It may be hard for Joanne and Sarah to meet, but if they meet together with a counsellor it should be a safe meeting for both of
them. They don't have to finish the meeting being best friends, but they may leave feeling a bit better.
Suggestion: think of pros and cons for such a meeting and write each one on a post it. Divide a sheet of paper accordingly in two and stick on the
post-its. Dissent and disagreement is okay: there's no guaranteed right answer.
Scene 3
Ideas and alternatives are suggested which could help to reduce bullying activities at school or which could even prevent them.
Q: What would you like in your school to help it become bully free?
A: site gives list of alternatives with text on each
Anti-bullying policy
Circles
Lessons and assemblies
Feelings and behaviours
Challenge bullying
Are the staff at your school looking out for you?
Get your teachers clued up!
Helping each other out
Talking about stuff
Suggestion: small groups discuss which of the strategies are more and less useful at your school. What can individuals do to contribute to any of these?
- summary of her home page
Kelly is clever, interested in learning and in doing her schoolwork properly, so she is often mocked and teased about this. She is also
not sure if she prefers girls to boys but very uncertain about how to talk about it, and with whom.
- summary of her story ('Don't be too clever')
with questions/prompts which appear on the website and further suggestions
Scene 1
One or two others hide Kelly's work to avoid being compared with her and they tease her. Joanne starts making insulting remarks referring to Kelly's sexuality.
Q: Why is Kirstie keeping quiet?
Q: Why does Chris tell Joanne to shut up?
Q: What is Joanne's problem with Kelly?
Q: Who started this?
Q: If you were Chris, what would you say next?
Q: If you were Kelly, what would you do next?
Suggestion: ideally, get the class/group to answer these questions individually or in pairs before they go on to the next scene.
Scene 2
There is a big argument and almost a fight about the hidden work, with insults being exchanged about being gay, coming from a violent family
etc. In the end Kelly and Chris are thrown out of the library.
Q: Why does Kelly insult Chris's sexuality? (You'll have more to say about this if you look at her home page). Was it okay to say that?
Q: Why does Kirstie say almost nothing?
Q: If you were Kelly what would you say to Chris outside?
Q: What did Kelly mean about Joanne's home? (You'll have more to say about this if you look at her home page). Was it okay to say that?
Q: What do you think Joanne will do next?
Suggestion: ideally, get the class/group to answer these questions individually or in pairs before they go on to the next scene.
Scene 3
Kelly, Joanne and Chris are all angry and upset. Everybody explains what she/he feels in thought bubbles.
Suggestions: write out one thing you might say to each of Kelly, Joanne and Chris.
Have a look at Did you know? 'Some statistics about sexuality'. Make pie or column graphs with some of the figures.
Copy the Did you know? page 'Homophobia and Homophobic Bullying' into Word and remove some words leaving blanks. Give
this to the class as a close exercise so they decide the missing words.
Q: Should Kelly apologise to either Chris or Joanne? (YES/NO) Site provides responses
YES: She did say some mean things to them both and she does feel bad about it, so it may help her feel better if she says sorry.
NO: Kelly didn't start the whole thing and they did say some nasty things to her. It might be easier for Kelly to say sorry if they showed any
signs of being sorry themselves.
Q: Should Joanne get Kelly back for what she said? Site provides responses.
YES: Kelly did say some nasty things but she was trying to defend herself from Joanne.
NO: It would be better for both of them if Joanne stopped bullying Kelly.
Q: Chris has only got himself to blame that Kelly and Joanne insulted him (True/False) Site provides responses
TRUE: Chris did take part in the bullying and he was the one to hide Kelly's bag in the first place.
FALSE: Well who else should he blame then?!
Suggestion: in pairs or small groups, try rewriting the whole story with one person behaving differently.
- summary of her home page
Kirstie lives with her mum in Hove. Her mother suffers from depression which worries Kirstie a lot. She feels responsible for her mum and as often
as possible spends time with her. Sometimes this burden seems too heavy for her to carry.
- summary of her story ('best friends')
with questions/prompts which appear on the website and further suggestions
Scene 1
Joanne attacks Kirstie verbally because she suspects her of having told Mel or the police that she (Joanne) was responsible for sending some
aggressive text messages.
Q: Kirstie did tell Mel she recognised the number that sent her bad text messages. Was she right? Site provides responses
YES: You're right! Joanne's trying to say she was being disloyal as a friend, but it's not always okay to go along with what
friends do.
NO: Text messages that say bad things about you or threaten you can really get you down, and they're against the law. If Kirstie said nothing she'd really
just be joining in on the bullying.
Suggestion: Have the class consider circumstances or situations where loyalty towards a friend is good but also where the limits should be set.
Scene 2
Joanne provokes Kirstie in the corridor for having told about the text messages. Joanne is very disappointed about the behaviour of her only
friend, she feels betrayed.
This is just a row between two friends it's not bullying. Site provides responses.
FALSE: Yes it is bullying. It started as a row, but they're not friends any more are they?
TRUE: It started that way, with Joanne saying Kirstie should take her side over the text messages no matter what, but now it's
bullying because Joanne's keeping it going day after day, and friends don't threaten each other for their dinner money do they?
Suggestion: Have a look on Did you know? 'Myths about bullying', 'What is bullying?' and
'Who gets bullied?' There is a lot of textual information on these pages which could be broken into smaller sections
for groups to consider. Before looking at them the class could make their own lists: what are common myths/mistaken ideas about bullying?
What kinds of things are/are not bullying? What kinds of people get bullied/who doesn't?
Scene 3
Joanne goes on bullying Kirstie in class. The teacher intervenes, asks what is happening, but is rejected by the girls. After the lesson the
teacher manages to make them talk.
Q: Is Joanne ready to let this drop? Site provides responses.
YES: Well, maybe. She's still pretty angry about the police being involved, (if you read Mel's story at the Pavilion you'll find out
more) and she's scared of what her dad might do to her, and she's jealous of Mel. Perhaps she still wants to take it all out on Kirstie. The thing is, this
is about the consequences of her bullying Mel and then Kirstie, and the teacher is going to try to get her to see that.
NO: Whether she is or not, the teacher is making it clear that she can see Kirstie is scared she's not going to let it carry on. Joanne
doesn't have a choice.
Suggestion: Discuss in how far the involvement of the teacher should change Joanne's bullying behaviour.
What should the teacher say to Joanne to make clear that her bullying others is directly linked to being bullied herself.
- summary of her home page
Mel lives with her family in Brighton. Since her little sister was born she has spent lots of time with her grandfather. Apart from her
disliking Joanne for her bullying she has no problems in particular.
- summary of her story ('best friends')
with questions/prompts which appear on the website and further suggestions
Scene 1
Some of the girls are at the pier. Mel has been receiving insulting text messages for a couple of weeks though she has not told anybody.
Now the girls find out.
Q: Why do you think Mel hasn't told anyone about the messages? Site provides responses.
She feels scared.
She hopes the messages will just stop.
She hopes if they stop soon she can forget about them.
It feels scary going to the police.
Maybe she thinks teachers won't be able to do anything so there's no point.
She doesn't know who it is. If she did it might make it easier.
Suggestion: Write a response to each of Mel's reasons for keeping quiet.
Q: Is Sarah right to be annoyed at her? Site provides responses.
YES: It's not surprising she's annoyed really. Mel is a good friend to Sarah and always tells her not
to keep quiet about bullying, but she's not practising what she preaches.
NO: It's not always that easy though, is it? It can be hard to follow your own advice, especially when you're scared.
Suggestion: Discuss in how far Mel's and Sarah's situation are comparable.
Scene 2
The conversation continues. They try to find out who sends the messages. Sarah suspects Joanne to be the guilty party.
Q: Have loads of people got your number? Site provides responses.
YES: Maybe they shouldn't - are there any risks with that? Is everyone who's got your number your friend?
NO: It's good to know who's got your number. Can you think of reasons why you wouldn't give out your number?
Suggestion: have a look at in groups of two or three make up some very short sketches where somebody asks for your mobile number and you don't
give it; OR brainstorm for a few minutes on reasons to give/not give your number.
Scene 3
Kirstie tells the others that Joanne must have sent the messages because she recognises the number as Joanne's mother's). They
encourage Mel to go to the police.
Q: Should Mel have sent messages back? Site provides responses.
YES: Would that really have helped? Do you think it would make the bully stop sending messages?
NO: The best thing Mel could do is save all the messages, write down the times they were sent and the number they were sent from. Then she
could take his information to the police or an adult she trusts.
Q: Are the girls right? Should Mel tell the police? Site provides responses.
YES: If the messages are very threatening, you should go to the police, though you ought to involve adults in your family. Sending
threatening or abusive text messages is a criminal offence.
NO: There might be other ways of dealing with it, especially if you know who is sending the messages. If you don't tell the police, tell a
teacher or other adult. Don't suffer in silence.
Q: What do you think the police should do about it? Site provides responses.
They can often trace who's sending the messages.
They can give them a warning.
They can see the parents and make sure they know their son or daughter is breaking the law.
They can work with the school to make sure it's not something people think they can get away with.
They could look after your phone for a while so all the nasty stuff is going straight to them.
Suggestion: Have a look at Did you know? 'New methods of bullying'. Sort the list of strategies into 'immediate', 'next stage' and 'if things get really serious', maybe rewriting them into information posters.
Discuss which reactions are the most difficult and which might work best.
- summary of her home page
Sarah lives with her mum and her dad, and although she doesn't see a lot of him because of his working hours she's especially close
to her dad. She has problems with her weight, the others always tease her about it. This makes her feel very uncomfortable and unsure, she
doesn't know what to wear and avoids places where she could meet people in her class. This is all related to what she identifies
as her other problem: having few friends.
- summary of her story ('Marilyn Monroe was a size 14')
with questions/prompts which appear on the website and further suggestions
Scene 1
Joanne and Kirstie laugh about Sarah's weight, suggesting very sarcastically what Sarah should do to change. Sarah says almost nothing.
Scene 2
Terry and Jamie join the group doing the bullying. They take Sarah's lunch box away and want to make her chase after it. They comment
rudely on Sarah's eating habits.
Scene 3
Sarah cries, locked in a toilet cubicle. Mel and Kelly try to console her and support her, trying to suggest some solutions. They insist on
sending Sarah to speak with Miss Lamley, a teacher.
Scene 1, 2 and 3
Suggestion: try to get the class to suggest a list of things that ought to happen next, sorted into sections called 'support'; 'making amends';
'punishment' and 'prevention' - these could be worked on by different groups. It's difficult to prevent them clicking on to What happens next?
but it doesn't really matter since they can sort the given suggestions into the same categories.
So they go and see a teacher and.....
Joanne has been suspended for three days for bullying Sarah, Kirstie, Mel and Kelly.
Her mother and father have been asked to come to the school to discuss her behaviour.
Because the school thinks she has problems or worries she hasn't told anyone about (like she's scared about her dad hitting her mum) Joanne has to see a counsellor.
Joanne has to write an apology to Sarah (previously she had to write them to Kelly and Mel).
Because the school is trying to stop Joanne bullying the police have let her off with a warning about sending Mel threatening text messages.
Sarah sees Miss Lamley every week, and more often if she wants to, to check she's okay.
Sarah has been given a 'buddy', an older girl she can sit with at lunch time and talk over things if she wants to.
In a month's time Sarah is going to become a buddy herself to a younger girl. Terry and Jamie had to write to Sarah apologising for stealing her lunch, and paying her back the money.
The whole year group had two assemblies about name-calling, especially about weight, and also about standing by and doing nothing when people are getting bullied. The second assembly was organised by the school council.
Suggestion: Do you have a buddy system at your school? Think about by what means it can help, to be buddied or to buddy yourself. Wouldn't you
like to become a buddy yourself? If the system doesn't exist yet, wouldn't you like to start one?
Suggestion: as above, sort these responses into a divided page, with sections called 'support'; 'making amends'; 'punishment' and 'prevention'
(they might also look at the Did you know? page 'School anti-bullying campaigns'.
Suggestion: Have a look at Did you know? 'Bullying and weight'. It might be too personal to discuss people's
individual weights much. Copy the Did you know? page into Word and remove some words leaving blanks.
Give this to the class as a cloze exercise so they decide the missing words.
- summary of his home page
Terry is looked after by foster parents as his father can't have him and his mother is in prison. He changes schools quite often, and also
changes his foster families. What he can't bear is other people pitying him.
- summary of his story ('the bully gets bullied')
with questions/prompts which appear on the website and further suggestions
Scene 1
Some boys in the changing room (Chris and Hussain amongst them) hide Terry's bag with his sports clothes. He gets very angry about it,
especially when the teacher reproaches him for 'losing' his stuff. Hussain laughs about Terry's situation.
Q: If you were Terry, what would you have liked the PE teacher to have done?
Q: If you were there, would you be laughing like Hussain is?
Suggestion: Discuss with the class how the teacher could/should have reacted. List them on a white board.
Discuss with class how they might react in this situation. Use Hussain as an example of collusion (on Did you know?
'What is bullying?' there is a section headed What about people who know about bullying but don't
do anything about it? which might be useful.
Scene 2
The boys continue their bullying behaviour towards Terry. Terry becomes aggressive and starts kicking the bench in the changing room. After
the others have left, he finds his bag, sweets and an apple sticking to it, and a very insulting and hurtful message in it.
10 other boys from year group
Q: Why are they all picking on Terry?
Maybe it's because he's a pain in the neck: Okay, yes he is, he doesn't have many friends and he bullies others when he gets the chance. He's
unhappy and usually copes with it by being angry at other people. Have a look at the rest of the website and find out more about him,
then ask yourself whether picking on him like this is going to make him easier to get along with.
Maybe you don't know why: So have a look on his home page, and what the other Coastkids think of him.
Suggestion: in pairs/small groups/individually, explore the rest of the website to find out more about Terry, then see if you can think of what
might reduce his role in bullying. These ideas could be grouped as 'support'; 'making amends'; 'punishment' and 'prevention'.
Scene 3
Jamie waits for Terry outside the changing room. When Terry tells him about the incident Jamie insists on going to see Miss Lamley to ask for help.
Q: If you were the teacher would you say Terry had it coming? Site provides responses.
YES: It wouldn't help the situation would it? The teacher's job is to stop this kind of thing and to stop
anyone getting bullied, even people who bully themselves.
NO: I should hope not. There's no way teachers can prevent bullying if everyone's always trying to get revenge for something that's been done to
them. If you've been bullied, tell someone, don't go for revenge.
Suggestion: Discuss the mechanism between provocation, aggressive behaviour and revenge. Try to develop a strategy in class how you can react towards
provocation (bullying), how you can set an immediate barrier to demonstrate that you won't take part in this 'game'. You could introduce a system of red
cards. Whenever you see a situation of the slightest bullying potential taking place, you literally show your red card to this person in order to cut what is
going on. Invent situations like that, perform them by playing fictive characters. Become trained to recognise crucial moments and become trained to react,
to interfere. Show your red card!
Q: If Terry goes to see a teacher about what's happened and about the note, what do you think she should do?
Suggestion: Make small groups and let them find different solutions to what the teacher might/should do, with each group
presenting and defending it's suggestions.
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