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Bullying
Boys bullying girls
Boys bully in some of the same ways as girls, such as name-calling and spreading rumors. But boys bully girls in other ways too. An example is a group of boys rating girls on their looks as they walk through the hall at school. All of these different types of bullying hurt a girl's self-esteem.
New research shows that a lot of boys bully girls around fourth through sixth grades. Many times, the girls do not report this bullying. If someone is bullying you, speak up! No one deserves to be bullied.
Boys also bully when they forward nude photos of girls to their friends. This is called ‘sexting.’ Often this starts when a girl takes a sexy photo of herself and sends it by email or cell phone to her boyfriend, or to a boy she likes. While it may seem funny or flirty at the time, these photos can be forwarded in a matter of seconds. Sometimes, before she knows it, the entire school has a copy. Sexting is never a good idea.
Learn more about sexting in the cyberbullying section.
Read more tips on what to do if someone bullies you.
One girl’s bullying story
"At the end of the eighth grade my parents decided I would benefit from a high-profile Catholic school in a wealthy area of town," a teenager recounts.
"I was sent to this school not knowing a single person. My first day in English class started it all. Kevin was a boy in my class who sensed my insecurity and nervousness right from the start. He made up this rumor that I was a lesbian. From that day on, he and his friend taunted me, shoved me into lockers, tripped me in the halls, embarrassed me and kept me miserable. Teachers picked up on it and always punished them, which made it worse because they would make up some new rumor about me. One day I went to school and found out they had been suspended. It turned out that I hadn't been the only girl who had been bullied by these boys. A brave girl had reported them to the principal and the boys were suspended for sexual harassment."
Source: Facing the Schoolyard Bully by Kim Zarzour
Content last updated September 22, 2009
