I really didn’t realize I had been bullied until I became an adult.  I was to busy surviving to label the experience.  My entire 7th and 8th grade years were spent avoiding a group of girls who verbally harassed, shoved, cornered and belittled me every chance they got.  I was embarrased.  My friends were afraid of these girls as well.  I complained to my parents amd their response was that 1. ladies do not fight and they’d better never hear of me in a skirmish (what skirmish?  I was sure they could kill me on any given day) and 2. Don’t ever back down because if you do they will know they’ve got you.  Delicate balance to say the least.  I could never safely enter a restroom and lived in fear of being the last one out of the locker room for PE.  My defense was to snub them.  For every bullying remark they made I would look down my nose at them and try to get around them.  It made them crazy but they weren’t quite sure I was someone they could take.  In 9th grade I purposely became very ill and missed almost two months of school.  I’d had enough.  I only know of two teachers who I knew were aware of it and they did not want to have trouble with this group of girls  THis was in a middle class neighborhood.,  At any rate, adults should intervene.  School should be for education and not a free for all for tribal behaviour.  I wish tenacity and great futures for any kid who finds they have to go through this kind of experience.

It’s impossible on a playground to monitor everyone—your daughter needs to go to the principal ASAP and report this. Better yet have her call the principal today. The sooner the better.  Any good school has a no tolerance policy on stuff like this. 

Oh my goodness Helen, I sure hope you follow up and make sure your daughter receives a response from the school regarding this bully’s actions with your granddaughter. Gone are the days of pulling a ponytail or putting gum on a chair. Now it is slapping, fondling and worse!  This shouldn’t be accepted and dismissed (as the school is trying to do) your daughter should make a stink of it with the principal AND send a strongly worded letter to the school board with her expectations from them in terms of hiring only qualified staff to run their respective schools.

Your daughter may be nicer than I am because I would throw in there "either take your hiring practices seriously or be prepared for a slew of lawsuits should this type of thing happen again!" But then again, I can be a brat. :-)

By way of this thread, keep us updated.

Thanks Lorraine—that "counselor" and I use the term loosely should have been reprimanded—there is no excuse for behavior like you daughter experienced.

Hi Beth, thank you for the response. My daughter has a call and an e-mail into the teacher, she is waiting for a response today. This little boy has  pulled this slapping game on other students, and no one has reported him until now. Believe me, my daughter will follow up with this episode.