Summary: Students will complete an in depth analysis of a story about bullying from the news and examine multiple points of view helping them build empathy for people who are different/unfamiliar.
Target grades: 7th and above
Minimum time needed: two or three class periods for research and discussion
Materials: news articles (newspapers, internet access, magazines, library archives), writing materials
Connection to Bullying: Exploring multiple points of view, building empathy, understanding difference
Instructions:
- Gather articles from different sources and read them as a class.
- Write a response to what happened. Why do you think it happened? How does this story make you feel? Can you relate to anyone in this story?
- As a class, brainstorm different people involved in the story, from those immediately affected to bystanders, law enforcement, and others who aren’t mentioned directly (parents of other kids at the school, etc).
- Choose three (3) people and write the story from their point of view. These three points of view should be as different as possible (i.e., not all from the same family).
