Bullying in kindergarten - Christina Cherry

Bullying in kindergarten – can we speak of bullying in small children from the age of 3? You can get a short answer here how always with the appropriate picture books on the subject.

Bullying among children has always existed and has caused great despair among those affected in the generation of our grandparents. Due to repeated, media-effective incidents, this important topic is increasingly coming to the public’s attention and the question arises as of what age one can already speak of bullying among children. Is there already bullying in kindergarten? Even experts have different opinions on this.

What is bullying?

In order to be able to answer the question of whether children are already bullying themselves in kindergarten, it has to be clarified briefly what bullying is.

Bullying is a special form of violence and sometimes difficult to recognize from the outside because the violence can be subtle and secret. However, not every hidden insult is the same as bullying, because the following characteristics must be fulfilled:

Strength imbalance: The victim of bullying alone is not able to free himself from the situation and usually stands alone against a group of perpetrators and followers.
Duration and frequency: The attacks take place over a longer period of several weeks / months and take place regularly (at least weekly, usually daily).

Many incidents that take place in kindergarten are clearly not bullying because the conflicts among young children are usually much shorter-lived and the dispute is usually quickly forgotten.

It is also questionable whether criminals of kindergarten age are already able to do so targeted and intentionally harming others over a long period of time. It is at this point that opinions differ, i.e. specialist opinions.

On the other hand, there is no disputing the assumption that later bullying processes can start in kindergarten. In a nutshell, bullying is based on the wrong conflict resolution strategies of those involved and this is exactly where bullying prevention comes into play.

Conflict resolution in kindergarten as bullying prevention

Kindergarten is the place where many children have to get along in children’s groups for the first time without their parents. This is where social learning takes place and conflicts of interest arise that need to be resolved. Every child brings with them different tools when entering kindergarten, all children have different experiences in their parents’ house and are therefore more or less good at resolving conflicts or not even letting them arise.

Below you will find a selection of picture books that show different solutions. Some of the books were published under the term bullying in kindergarten, which in my view (based on the definition of bullying) goes a little too far. Nevertheless, they show exactly the situations that later lead to bullying and it is necessary to give children the necessary empathy but also concrete options for action.

What is wrong with Gisbert?

This picture book is already suitable for the youngest children from 2/3 years and shows clearly what it triggers in another child if it is teased by others. You can find a detailed book presentation here: What is wrong with Gisbert

You belong (not) to it – a picture book about bullying in kindergarten

Tommi has always enjoyed going to kindergarten. He has a nice educator and a lot of friends. But since Johannes is new to his group, everything has changed. Johannes annoys him whenever he can. And the bad thing about it: Tommi’s friends laugh along and don’t help him at all! Except for Lukas, who in Tommi’s greatest despair can no longer be stopped and tells the teacher everything. That was good and right, because the educator has a great idea how to address the topic of bullying among the children in an understandable way, so that everything will be fine in the end, what a relief!

"You are (not) part of it – a picture book about bullying in kindergarten" describes a situation that is not actually bullying because the conflicts among the children do not last long enough for this. One only speaks of bullying if a child is annoyed by others over a longer period of time and regularly, i.e. in the daycare center every day. There is a risk that the term “bullying in kindergarten” will be used in an inflationary manner and transferred to “normal” conflict-laden situations. Since parents are perfectly correct and react very sensitively to this topic, a designation as "bullying" should therefore be considered carefully.

The picture book has a clear educational-psychological intention. Some very typical situations in which a child excludes, annoys and hurts both mentally and physically are presented in the book. Group situations in kindergarten are described in which other children support the perpetrator, do not show solidarity with the victim out of fear and thus support the bullying. This can be followed up very well with conversations in kindergarten, the picture book is a good basis for discussion.

Antje Szillat (author) & Marion Goedelt (illustrator): You belong (not) to it! * Coppenrath 2019 * Recommended age: 4-6 years

My way with Vanessa

Vanessa, a dark-skinned girl, is new to the class. A little shy, she stays on the sidelines and first watches the other children. The expression on her face shows that she feels uncomfortable with it. A conflict arises on the way home. A blond boy builds up in front of her and scolds her. She runs home crying. Another girl, who is obviously well-known among the other children, notices this and watches with concern. Both girls ponder the events for a long time at night and the next morning one of them knows what to do. She hurries over to breakfast and storms out of the house, rings the bell at Vanessa, with whom she goes hand in hand to school. Her friends join the two, more and more children are coming, they are coming from everywhere. In the end, the entire school shows solidarity with Vanessa.

This picture book is extremely strong and in contrast to "You belong (not) to it – A picture book about bullying in kindergarten" is not only intended pedagogically, but also literarily and aesthetically demanding. It is a picture book that works without words, in which only pictures carry the plot, with all its subtleties and facets. For this, comic-like sequences alternate with the usual double-page structure, actions take place in parallel, then again in chronological order. With all aspirations, this picture book remains geared towards the target group and describes in a way that children can understand what exclusion and solidarity can look like. The fine art of storytelling!

Although the children are already at school go, this picture book is a good choice if you want to focus on bullying in kindergarten. The place where exclusion takes place is less important. The underlying principles are the same and are also clear in this picture book. The focus here is more on others who do not become active in the bullying process, but may support it by tacitly watching. "My way with Vanessa" conveys a very important message: Do not look away, intervene and show solidarity when someone is wronged!

Kerascoët (author & Illustrator): My way with Vanessa * Aladin Verlag 2018 * Recommended age: 4-8 years

Incidentally, this post is part of a blogger campaign against bullying. Numerous other book bloggers have book presentations and reviews, interviews and much more. You can find an overview here: Stay – against bullying