Movie Teaches Malverne Students Anti-Bullying Lessons

All sixth and seventh-grade students at Howard T. Herber Middle School in Malverne took a trip to the Malverne Cinema to see a special screening of the movie Bully. This nationally-acclaimed documentary follows the stories of five children and families who are affected by bullying over the course of a school year. The film offers poignant insights by following teachers, administrators, students and parents as they deal with the consequences of these troubling acts of bullying.

Prior to attending the screening the students were given a worksheet that they discussed with their English teachers. The worksheet included a brief description of the film and what the students should take away from this experience. After viewing the documentary, students returned to the auditorium for a debriefing session with school social worker Matt Rosen, guidance counselor Laura Pulitano and school psychologist Mindy DaSilva. After the group assembly, students returned to class and continued the discussion with their classroom teachers.

Students spoke of many lessons they had learned from the experience. One student said he learned that it is not cool to laugh at people who are being bullied or teased. Another added that the issue is really more serious than she thought. Some ideas they had for things they might do in the face of bullying were to tell an adult, be a friend, stand up for yourself and get the person being bullied away from the bully.

This is just one of many programs that school administrators have planned to help promote a more tolerant and accepting school community.