Approaches to Reduce Bullying

Encouraging Talk - Breaking Barriers

Getting children to talk to each other also builds understanding and tolerance. 'R time' helps children to get to know others in the class. They engage in discussions, creative tasks and problem solving, which develops friendships and social and co-operative skills.

What I like about R Time is that I've never before been with people I don't like. (Year 6 pupil)

R Time For Creating Effective Relationships

This programme has been recently developed by Greg Sampson, a Primary Headteacher, with 32 year's experience of working in schools in disadvantaged areas of Coventry.

Since taking early retirement, he has spent time working with Coventry EAZ, Coventry Children's Fund, Leicestershire LEA and On Track Bradford, piloting the R time Programme. The 'R' stands for relationships and the mian aim of the programme is to help children to build and refine their relationships with other children.

It helps me to have more friends. (Year 5 pupil)

What is R Time and How Does it Work?

There are 30 sessions of 10 to 15 minutes in length, for each year group from Nursery to Key Stage 3 (see T time also!).

Questionnaires are carried out with all of the children at the start and end of the programme to set class and individual targets, and evaluate progress.

I have made friends with people I have never spoken to before or played with. (Year 3 pupil)

The session

Each session has five key component parts:

Random pairing

Whereby the children work each time with a different partner until they have worked with all of the children in their group.

I now like being with anyone in my class. (Year 2 pupil)

Introductions

Once the children are in their pairs they greet one another with a positive statement e.g.'Hello my name is Simon. I'm glad that you're my partner today Sarah.'

R Time is when people are really nice to me. (Year 1 pupil)

the activity

There are 30 easily achievable, short activities for each year group for the children to do with their partner.

You do things together. That's good. (Year 6 pupil)

plenary

The children feed back their experience to the whole group and the teacher helps them to reflect on their learning.

The thing I like best is that R Time calms everyone down and makes them relaxed with each other. (Year 6 pupil)

conclusion

At the end of the session the children thank their partner and say something positive to finish.

There's nothing I don't like about R Time. I didn't like working with people I didn't usually hang round with. Now I love it. (Year 6 pupil)

What Do Children Think of R Time?

On a recent programme, which ran in four Coventry Schools, as part of their evaluation, children wrote:

"R time is one of my best subjects ever because I have made such new friends in R time. I have become a much kinder person." (Simon, 8 years)

"Thank you for doing R time with us. I really enjoyed R time. Thank you for helping the bullies in our class to not bully again." (Priyha, 9 years)

"Not just girls + girls!!!
Not just boys + boys!!!
But Yes Girls + Boys!!!" (Sarai, 9 years)

R Time to Stop Bullying

R Time to Stop Bullying uses the same format as the original R Time for creating effective relationships, however, this book aims to support schools in developing a whole school approach to anti-bullying. It has clearly defined lesson plans using the R Time approach for every year group from Foundation to Year 6. It also includes guidance for an anti-bullying policy.

R Time Activities to support S.E.A.L

Over 200 pages of lesson plans and activities to support the S.E.A.L. initiative in the primary school, designed specifically around the S.E.A.L themes of:
New beginnings
Getting on and falling out
Saying no to bullying
Going for Goals
Good to be me
Relationships
Changes

Each of the activities has been carefully written to ensure the five Social and Emotional Aspects of Learning are sensitively yet openly explored:
Self Awareness
Managing Feelings
Motivation
Empathy
Social Skills

R Time to Negotiate

R time to Negotiate is an adaption of the original R time programme. It is for at years 7 upward and is aimed at fostering and developing relationships between young people as well as creating an environment where courtesy and good manners between students become a normal and accepted way to relate both to each other and to staff.

R Time to Negotiate is currently being piloted in Leicestershire schools. If you would like to take part in this pilot, please contact Phil Harbour/Rob Osborn at the Anti-Bullying Team on 0116 284 5100.

How Does R Time Contribute to National Priorities?

It contributes to Anti-Bullying Strategies by looking at issues, which if not dealt with, foster a climate of bullying. These issues include acceptance, respect, valuing differences in each other, creating ways to support one another, enabling children to succeed in on-to-one friendships and giving children tools to handle conflict situations.

It contributes to the Social Inclusion Agenda by its emphasis on every child in the group taking part. There is an expectation right from the beginning that everyone will be included. The fun 'random pairing' activity that starts each session engages every child from the very start of the session. The Social Inclusion aspect has been particularly worthy of note in the Inclusion work that has been going on in Coventry Primary Schools, where children from the special schools have been sharing lessons with children from neighbouring schools. Teachers have remarked about the sensitive, caring and respectful way that the children have been relating with each other. It has also proved particularly beneficial with children who are lonely and, in one extremely pleasing case, with the 'opening up' of an elective mute.

It contributes to the Community Cohesion Agenda by the way that the children are working together on a shared task with children that they do not know and may not usually choose to work with. By placing the children in random pairs to complete a simple task over a period of time the children will work with all of the children in their group - crossing gender barriers, faith differences and ethnic groupings. The Community Cohesion aspect has been particularly worthy of note in the schools where there are larger numbers of newly arrived children from refugee and asylum seeker families.

It contributes to the Citizenship Agenda by the way that all of the tasks are devised to ensure co-operation and to encourage the children to help one another to achieve combined success. There is also a strong emphasis on listening to other people's points of view in a respectful and accepting way. The children really start to get to know all of the children in their group. Whilst this is not specifically an anti-bullying programme the children, in their evaluations have commented on the way that R time has stopped bullying by the children in their group.

It contributes to Emotional Literacy and Mental Well-being by creating friendships, by providing an in-built success/ fell good factor each time, by children recognising that they are accepted and liked by their classmates, and by all of the children having an opportunity to make their own significant contribution within each of the sessions.

It contributes to successful Transition from Primary to Secondary school by enabling the children in their new tutor groups to get to know one another and get together as a unit. It also gives them the opportunity to explore issues that are essential to their well-being in any school, particularly ones where the environment and social climate aren't so familiar to new students. many of the pupils' concerns are based upon stepping into the unknown, and R time creates, for the children and their tutors, time and space to embrace these issues in a structured, positive and constructive way.

See T Time

R Time in Leicestershire

In the Autumn Term of 2002 a questionnaire was sent to all schools in the county to prioritise areas for development to reduce bullying. The majority of Primary schools highlighted the need to improve relationships (especially in the classroom). R time was seen as a possible solution. It was agreed to conduct a pilot at Grove Primary School, Melton Mowbray. This was to develop the school into a "Centre of Excellence" so that when courses were organised in the future teachers could visit the school to see examples of good practice.

Four further schools expressed a desire to be involved in extension of the pilot. R time in these schools began in January 2003. These schools were supported by Pete Harvey, (Leicestershire R time Consultant and Trainer and a former Leicestershire Head Teacher). He introduced R time via a staff meeting then worked with 2 classes in each school so that each school could devise a model to cascade the approach to the rest of the school.

A further 17 schools across Leicestershire have now received training since September 2003.

Initial evaluations of the project are excellent. Many Head Teachers have commented on the change in classroom atmosphere and the improvement in positive relationships has been apparent to all staff.

They identified the following features:

A breakdown of stereo-typical attitudes and development of empathetic qualities.
Calmer environment inside and outside of the classroom
Improvement of co-operation, social, communication skills and behaviour generally.
Improvement of 'old-fashioned' values, such as politeness and good manners.
Raising of self-esteem and confidence.

R time Resources

The R time programme is written up in full in a R time manual and 3 age-specific books.

COST:
Manual: £50 (includes CD for questionnaires)

There are also a number of other products available to accompany the manual:

Foundation and KS1 Activity Book: £20
KS2 Activity Book: £20
Transition Book: £20

R Time to stop Bullying: £25
R Time to support S.E.A.L: £45

R Time training DVD, with accompanying notes: £60

how might you use r time in your school?

Below are several ideas that you could use if you wanted to try the programme:

Buy a book(s) and off you go!
Buy a book(s) with video/ DVD support and give it a go!
Attend an R Time day course and find out more about the programme.
Visit a school in your area and see R Time in action.
Invest in a consultant who would visit your school to discuss a plan of action.

consultant involvement

(Prices correct - December 2004)

Consultant visits the school for initial 'chat' with designated member of staff.

NO CHARGE. EXPENSES OF 40p PER MILE IF TRAVELLING DISTANCE IS OVER 50 MILES.

Teacher day/ half day. Share the cost with other schools in your area.

FULL DAY - £350 + TRAVEL EXPENSES. HALF DAY - £250 + TRAVEL EXPENSES.

Twilight staff meeting (one hour).

£50 + TRAVEL EXPENSES.

Consultant demonstartes the programme in your school + staff meeting.

£40 PER CLASS. HALF HOUR PER DEMONSTRATION LESSON. STAFF MEETING £50. PLEASE NOTE: MINIMUM OF £210 PER DAY OR £130 PER HALF DAY.

Questionnaire support and analysis, if embarking on that aspect of R Time.

COST TO BE NEGOTIATED WITH THE SCHOOL.

Lesson observations by the consultant once the programme has been operating for a period of time (usually one month).

OBSERVATIONS INVOLVE WRITTEN/ VERBAL FEEDBACK. £40 PER OBSERVATION + TRAVEL EXPENSES.

Other models to be discussed with Pete Harvey or Greg Sampson. e.g. small village schools or very large primary schools.
T Time training by negotiation with Pete Harvey or Greg Sampson

Contact Us

If you are interested in any of the above, you can contact Greg by:
E-mail:
gregsrtime@hotmail.com

Telephone:
024 76456356 or 07946 333321

Post:
55 Garth Crescent
Binley
Coventry
CV3 2PP

Visit the new R time web site!!!

T Time

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