.A recent survey shows that half of 12 to 20 year olds have been bullied in the past year, but what about primary school children?

Despite the relatively few statistics, bullying among young children is common, although it often takes a different form than bullying in older children.

Let’s first look at what actions could be characterised as bullying.

It’s typical that bullying in primary schools is of a physical nature, for example, pushing, kicking, hitting or throwing objects. But it could also take a verbal form, such as name calling, mocking or using threatening language.

It’s important to remember that certain actions cannot always be labelled as bullying, so sometimes it’s more useful to consider the emotional impact on the victim. Is a child feeling hurt, fearful, isolated or humiliated? Look to the source, and you might find an example of bullying.

The reasons why young children resort to bullying others are varied, but often occur because they have been a victim of bullying themselves, sometimes by an older sibling or family member. They might also be experiencing violence or neglect at home.

Young bullies usually have a strong emotion tied to their actions, such as anger or jealousy, but they could, of course, be simply acting out of ignorance. It is common for children to comment or make fun of what they don’t understand, as a way of displacing their feelings of confusion or discomfort.

This leads to teasing others that are different in appearance or ability. It’s not unusual for primary school children to isolate classmates that are overweight, disabled, highly intelligent or have a learning difficulty. In these cases, bullying can be prevented simply by better education.

Fortunately, bullying at primary school doesn’t usually have the emotional complexities as teenage bullying, so primary school children are more likely to tell an adult about their experiences, and therefore they can be dealt with quickly and effectively.

However, some children don’t tell their parents or teachers, because they feel scared or intimidated, which means it’s important to be able to recognise the signs. These could include physical injuries, sudden complaint of illness, moodiness, lack of interest, aggressive behaviour or loss of appetite.

A strong indicator that something is wrong is a general change in behaviour. Has a normally outgoing child become more withdrawn? Has a studious child started to underperform? It’s worth having a discussion with that child to try to uncover the cause.

Most primary schools have an anti-bullying policy, which should outline actions and behaviours that are not tolerated at school, and what to do if they occur. The best policies also include details of how the school acts to prevent bullying.

It’s important that both the teachers and the children, as well as their parents, know the school policy, and the best way to do this is to make a feature of it. Teachers should encourage discussions about the topic in class and complete activities that highlight the issue on a regular basis.

By educating children about the negative impact of bullying, promoting positive attitudes and behaviours, and celebrating individual uniqueness, you’ll be much better placed at eradicating bullying from your school.

For more advice about how to tackle bullying in younger children, read our guide on How Primary Schools Can Put An End To Bullying.