In what could turn out to be a landmark decision, a court ordered a school district to pay $800,000 in damages as a result of student who was bullied. The decision is unique as it was alleged that a student was bullied and harassed in both junior high school and the name calling continued until it escalated into pushing him into lockers at his high school.

This ruling puts schools and districts on alert that "it isn’t enough to simply stop…
Great anti- bullying video.

Other blogs and articles on the topic of bullying.

Why Bullying Programs Succeed or Fail.

Bullying Prevention: Life's Lessons in Good and Evil.


Kids Learn How to Play Nice.
Stop Bullying Now has a new website with additional resources.

You may be interested in their chart which gives you current laws and legislation in regards to bullying.

You may also be interested in their new page on major research and studies on bullying.

Other articles on bullying:

Bullying Prevention: Life's lessons in good and evil.

Why Bullying Programs Succeed or Fail.
Trailer for children's book, The Recess Queen by Alexis O'Neill, illustrated by Laura Huliska-Beith, published by Scholastic Press. Mean Jean was recess queen, and nobody said any different.

Have you checked out the Peaceful Playgrounds"Featured Articles" section of our website? Peaceful Playgrounds publishes a featured article on our website each month and highlights it in the Play Nice Newsletter. Below is a short description of the some examples of our featured articles.

Recess is on the Upswing

The growing support for daily recess is gaining momentum. Parents, educators, and public health organizations have all engaged …
Los Angeles Examiner.com
by Gayla ONeal


The following are 5 steps can successfully help the child victim of bullying:

1. Listen! The damage that occurs during a bully episode is the fear that a child feels when their cry for the pain to end is not being heard. This act of not being heard can destroy their self-esteem and the effects last a lifetime. Try to avoid adding to the child's trauma by refusing to take the time necessary to hear their…
Many adults know that secondary school is a time of change but they may not understand the full extent of the many challenges kids face.

During this transition from childhood to adolescence, secondary schoolers begin to place more importance on making friends and being part of a group. They also start to check out how other kids act, look, sound, and dress. Some kids may seem to be searching for a reason to tease or torment another student.

Alone …
Being chosen doesn't make you a hero. Who you choose does. "Batman"

This quote comes from Matt Langdon creator of the Hero Workshop. To find out more about the Hero Workshop and Hero Blog click here.
Did you receive the Peaceful Playgrounds Play Nice Newsletter for February? Topics include:

Research on Recess and Classroom Behavior

A research article Bystander Focus on Bullying Yields Results.

ASCD's Whole Child Petition.


The February Newsletter includes a discount coupon for the online Playground Supervisor Training Program and information on our February Webinars.
Peaceful Playgrounds

Marana Elementary School implemented Peaceful Playgrounds last week. "Teachers and monitors immediately saw the whole tenor of the playground change from one of chaos to calm, with almost a total student involvement in the games," according to the story on the front page of the Marana News.

"The purpose is to get the kids out to play and have fun while learning rules like playing fair, and you can't say y…
Have you missed any of our recently posted Peaceful Playgrounds featured articles. Topics include bullying, physical activity, nutrition, discipline, recess before lunch to name a few. Click on the links below for the complete articles.

Bullying Prevention: Life Lessons on Good and Evil


School Recess before Lunch

Countdown to Good Health: 5-4-3-2-1 Go

Playground Liability: Accident or Injury

Schoolwide Discipline: What Works?

Recess is on the Upswing

Learning to play "differently" was the goal of the new playground in Tucson last week. Manana Elementary School installed a new Peaceful Playground complete with 13 new game markings designed to reduce injuries, get students physically active and reduce bullying.

Colorful lines, letters, numbers and shapes blanket the courts — all used in a variety of games, including bowling, dodge ball and a multi-use circle.

Research shows that the …
Playgrounds are the perfect laboratory for life lessons. As educators, we are called to insert “life lessons” into schooling. It struck me that we have an opportunity each day to teach the lesson of good action vs. evil action in school bullying situations. Bullying in schools is one of the most prevalent problems facing schools today. Yet bullying intervention programs have largely failed and it is fair to say, miserably.

Yet the opportunity to…
This past week I had the pleasure of meeting with approximately 20 like minded individuals in Houston, Texas as part of Hero Camp. The theme of the camp was "Changing the World... One Hero At A Time." We met to develop a curriculum for schools that would nurture the "Everyday Hero" in each of us.

HeroCamp was inspired by the Zimbardo talk given at TED 2008 by Dr. Phillip Zimbardo, the academic behind the Stanford Prison E…
Your first webinar free through Dec. 31, 2008.


A Peaceful Playground? Sound Impossible???? It's not. With a few proven strategies we'll show you how to reduce bullying, and reduce playground conflicts, resulting in happy students and a thankful staff.

Our research indicates that 5 situations contribute to 95% of all problems on typical elementary school playgrounds. In this fast paced webinar we'll share those problem situations a…
Introducing Peaceful Playgrounds "Featured Articles". Bi-monthly Peaceful Playgrounds will publish a featured article on our website. Below is a short description of the first five posted articles.

Recess is on the Upswing

The growing support for daily recess is gaining momentum. Parents, educators, and public health organizations have all engaged in the effort to bring back daily recess for elementary school students.Low-Cost High-…
Marian Wright Edelman wrote a great article for the Huffington Post on Bullying called "Let's Take it Seriously." She makes some compelling points in the post. Here's a few: "Bullying is the aggressive, intentional, physical, verbal or psychological abuse of a chosen victim carried out through a pattern of behavior that is repeated over time. It can take the form of violence, threats, name-calling or cyber attacks. Childr…
Peaceful Playgrounds attended the National Elementary School Principals' Conference last month in Nashville, TN. During the conference a new exhibitor and NAESP partner School Tube interviewed Andrea Bossenmeyer from Peaceful Playgrounds.

School Tube Video of Peaceful Playgrounds.

Click to Request An Information Packet
Listen to Podcast on Bullying Programs. Why bullying programs fail or succeed.
Thirty-Six states have passed anti-bullying legislation which is indicative of the growing concern over bullying in schools. The tipping point for bullying has been the school shootings where 3/4 of all shooters reported being bullied or harassed. Clearly, bullying has captured the nation’s attention.

This podcast reviews the components and philosophy behind bullying…
Florida legislature passes what is being described as the nations toughest bullying law called the "Jeffrey Johnston Stand Up for All Kids Act". The new bullying legislation passed the Senate and Governor Crist has indicated that he'll sign it into law according to Nick.com.

Jeffrey Johnson was a student that took his own life after three years of experiencing bullying at school and on the internet. His mother, Debbie Johnson lead…