Welcome to today's lesson.

My name is Ms. Wittams-Howarth, and today we are going to be learning about the impact of online bullying.

Some parts of the lesson might be upsetting or uncomfortable.

You are required to be accompanied by an adult.

If at any stage you feel uncomfortable or upset, you should close the screen and speak to that trusted adult.

So the outcome of today's lesson is, I can explain the impact of bullying online.

Before we start the lesson properly, let's go through some ground rules that are there to keep us and everyone else safe.

So first of all, we've got Laura and she says, let's listen to others.

It's okay to disagree with each other, but we should listen properly before making assumptions or deciding how to respond.

When disagreeing, it's important to challenge the statement, not the person who's making it.

Next we have Jacob and he says, there is no judgement.

We can explore beliefs and misunderstandings about a topic without fear of being judged.

And that includes if we have a question that we are not sure whether we want to ask or not.

There's no stupid questions.

So if you've got a question that you want answered, I can pretty much guarantee there'll be somebody else in the room who's got exactly the same question as you.

So feel free to ask it.

Then we have Izzy and she says, you can choose your level of participation, and that means everyone has the right to choose not to answer a question and not to join in discussion.

We never put anyone on the spot, and that includes the trusted adults that are with you.

And lastly, we've got Andeep and he says, respect privacy.

We can discuss examples, but do not use names or descriptions that identify anyone including ourselves.

A good top tip is to say, my friend, my friend who, and we don't know then if it's something that you've seen on YouTube, whether it's someone that you know, whether it's a family member, whether it's yourself.

We just have absolutely no idea, and it keeps everybody nice and safe.

And in today's lesson, we have some keywords.

You'll notice that they're in bold and they'll be in bold throughout the lesson so you can spot them more easily.

The first one is mental health, and that means the health of our minds and emotions.

The next one is physical health, and that means the health of our bodies.

And then we have anxiety.

That means a state of unease or worry or nervousness about uncertain outcomes.

Often anxiety is accompanied by physical sensations.

And then we have depression.

Depression is a persistent feeling of sadness and loss of interest that affects how someone thinks and feels.

It can make daily activities hard and also has many physical symptoms that are common with it too.

All right, let's have a look at the structure of the lesson.

So our lesson today has two parts.

The first part is, why is online bullying so harmful? And the second part is, how can bullying impact someone's health? So the first part of the lesson, then, why is online bullying so harmful? Cyberbullying, which is another name for online bullying, is just as serious as bullying that takes place in person.

However, online bullying is unique to in-person bullying as it can happen in places and spaces that people tend to think of as safe from bullies, for example, at home.

Online bullying can feel like it is harder to escape and can therefore have a serious impact on a person's mental health and physical health.

Cyberbullying can follow victims home and into their places where they feel safe through social media and through messaging apps.

Andeep says, this can make the victim feel like there is no escape, and like there is no safety from the bullying.

Cyberbullying can also be visible to thousands of people as things can be posted publicly online.

Chloe says, when someone posts publicly online, it is visible to everybody using that site.

This can make the effects of bullying feel even more intense.

Furthermore, once something is posted, it can be very difficult to remove it entirely, meaning the harm from cyberbullying can feel long-lasting.

Bullying online can often turn into a public spectacle.

Chloe says, sometimes you see an unkind comment online and then all of a sudden lots of other people join in.

Even online strangers who don't even know the victim, they can start talking about them unkindly too.

Online bullying can quickly spiral out of control if the comments are made in a public online space.

Online bullies can also be anonymous.

Jun says, online bullies sometimes hide behind fake accounts or pretend to be someone else.

Cyberbullying from anonymous accounts can make the bullying feel more unpredictable and harder to escape from.

It means that it's difficult to know who to trust.

Is someone who pretends to be your friend, maybe someone who is writing online comments about you? It's really difficult and has a really serious impact on people.

Online bullying can make people feel there is no one to turn to.

Lucas says, if someone bullies in a physical space like school, the victim can tell a trusted adult.

When it happens online, especially if the comments come from an anonymous account, it can be hard to know what to do.

Let's do a check.

What two things are missing from the list of reasons why cyberbullying is so harmful? So here's the list we've got so far.

The victim may feel like there is no escape or safety.

It can quickly spiral out of control, and it can be hard to know who to turn to.

What do you think is missing? You might want to pause the screen, have a think.

We'll take some feedback in a few moments.

So let's look at what you should have added.

Anonymous accounts can make the bullying feel more unpredictable, and the harm can feel long-lasting as it is difficult to remove things from online spaces.

So well done if you've got one or both of those, great listening.

Some people respond to the issue of cyberbullying with the comment, just log off.

However, social media and the internet are a big part of people's day-to-day lives.

Everyone deserves to feel respected and safe online and not live in fear of bullying.

Additionally, just because you turn off your digital device doesn't mean the feelings associated with cyberbullying go away.

Let's do a check.

How well have you been listening so far? True or false? Online bullying is not serious.

You can just stop using the internet and log out from your digital devices.

True or false? Have little think and we'll take feedback in a few moments time.

So if you ticked false, you'd be absolutely right.

Well done.

Now, see if you can come up with a reason.

Why is that answer false? Have a think again and we'll take feedback in a moment.

So if you said something like, online bullying is just as harmful as in-person bullying, online bullying can invade people's safe spaces and intensify the effects.

So well done if you've got something like that, great work.

So if you ever experience or witness online bullying, it is important to do the following things.

Firstly, block the account and report the account where the bullying came from.

Speak to a trusted adult and alter your settings online so that your profile is private and you can only receive communications from people you know and trust.

If you are not sure how to block or report an account online, a trusted adult can help you with this.

Let's do another check.

What should a person do if they experience online bullying? Should they ignore it and hope it goes away? Should they speak to a trusted adult, or should they block and report the account? Have a little think.

Let's take feedback in a moment.

So what have you got then? If you got B and C, they should speak to a trusted adult and block and report the account if someone experiences online bullying, you are absolutely right.

Really well done.

Now I've got a task for you.

Give Alex three or four reasons why online bullying is so harmful.

Alex says, online bullying is not as bad as in-person bullying.

Just log out from your device, don't use social media.

It's easy.

So what could you say to him? How could you show him why online bullying is so harmful? So what I suggest you do is pause the screen, have a think about it.

You might want to talk to the person next to you as well and share your ideas.

We'll take feedback in a few moments time.

Off you go.

So I wonder what you got.

What reasons did you give Alex to show him why online bullying is so harmful? So here are some things that you might have said.

Online bullying is unique in that it can follow people home and into the spaces they consider to be safe.

You might have said cyberbullying can be seen by thousands of people if posted publicly, which can intensify the effects.

You might also have said it can be hard to completely remove comments or images online, making the effects feel more long-lasting.

You might have said online bullies can be anonymous, making the victim feel that the bullying is harder to escape from and harder to know who to trust.

And you might have said as it is not happening in a physical space, it can be hard to know who to turn to or what to do about it.

So well done if you got some or all of those.

Really great work and really well done with your listening.

Let's move on to the second part of the lesson now.

How can bullying impact someone's health? Bullying can seriously impact a person's mental health.

When bullying occurs online, it can be difficult to predict when or where it will come from.

This can lead to feelings of stress or anxiety.

It might make someone not want to turn on their phone or to go on online spaces because they don't know when someone will be there who will post something unpleasant about them.

Dr.

Elsie says, a constant feeling of stress or anxiety can lead to panic attacks.

If you feel stress or anxiety, it is important to speak to a medical professional.

They will take you seriously and they'll want to help you.

Cyberbullying can also lead to depression.

This is because bullying can make a person feel isolated, embarrassed, lonely, and vulnerable.

These feelings can spiral into more harmful feelings of hopelessness and sadness, which can lead to depression.

If anyone ever experiences these feelings, it's important to speak to a trusted adult or medical professional who can help.

Online bullying can also impact a person's self-esteem.

Jacob says, self-esteem is how a person values and sees themselves.

Our self-esteem comes from what we believe about ourselves, our abilities, and the way that we look.

Online bullying can also impact people socially, and that can lead to difficulty making friends, a lack of trust, feelings of isolation, fear of social situations, fear of group settings like workplaces or school, fear of using social media or other online spaces.

Cyberbullying can lead to issues in school, such as poor attendance.

People don't wanna go.

Difficulty concentrating.

Maybe they've got things going on in their minds, they're just thinking about what people have said about them.

Maybe it will lead to poor performance, meaning that people don't do so well in school.

They don't do so well in their tests.

Maybe they can't concentrate on their revision.

Let's do a check.

True or false? Online bullying only affects a person's experience online.

It doesn't impact them in real life.

True or false? Have a little think, I'll take your answer in a moment.

So if you said false, you'd be absolutely right.

Now I'd like you to have a think about why.

Why does online bullying affect someone's experience in real life and online? Again, have a think and I'll take feedback in a few moments time.

Okay, I wonder what you said.

This is what I've got.

Cyberbullying can cause serious mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression and/or it can lead to issues in school like poor attendance and difficulties concentrating.

So well done if you got some or all of that.

If a person feels continued stress from cyberbullying, they may develop physical health conditions such as headaches, nausea, which means feeling sick all the time, digestive issues, difficulty sleeping, muscle tension, and a weakened immune system, which means that you're more likely to get sick.

You'll get colds and coughs and stuff all the time.

Dr.

Elsie says that these conditions are caused by the stress hormones cortisol and adrenaline, which are increased when someone is feeling stressed and anxious and worried all of the time.

Online bullying can impact a person's mental health and physical health in the same way that in-person bullying can.

If you ever experience or witness online bullying, it is important to report and block the account in question and ask for help and support from a trusted adult.

Speaking out against online bullying can protect people and prevent the harmful and lasting effects of cyberbullying.

Let's do a check.

How well have you been listening? Online bullying can cause serious mental health conditions, including blank and blank.

So see if you can fill in those.

I'll give you a little bit of time to have a think about what those missing words are, and then we'll take feedback in a moment.

So if you said depression and anxiety, you'd be right.

Brilliant.

Very, very well done.

You might have picked some others, but these are the ones I've got here.

I have another task for you now.

What I'd like you to do is label the images with three impacts of cyberbullying on mental health and physical health.

So you've got an outline of a person for physical health and the outline of a brain for mental health.

Have a think.

You might want to talk about it with the person next to you.

What I'd like you to do though is pause the screen and give this a go and we'll take feedback shortly.

Okay, how did you get on? Let's have a look at what you might have said.

So your answers for physical health might have included, it may cause headaches, nausea, and muscle tension, and it may cause long-term conditions, for example, insomnia.

You might have migraines and poor eating as well.

So great work, well done.

Let's have a look for what you might have put down for mental health.

So you might have said it can cause a lack of trust.

You might have said it can cause a fear of social settings such as school or work.

You might have said it can cause poor self-esteem and a lack of confidence.

It can cause depression and anxiety, and it can cause feelings of isolation.

So well done if you got those, really great work.

So let's have a look at the summary of today's lessons, and these are the things that we've covered.

Some people may say that online bullying is not as serious as in-person bullying as the victim can just log out of their digital device.

But cyberbullying is just as harmful and can make the victim feel like they have no safe space.

Online bullying can affect people's mental health and physical health in serious ways.

For example, victims may experience anxiety, depression, insomnia, or headaches among other things.

Cyberbullying can cause lasting impacts and lead people to engage in harmful behaviour to themselves.

It's really important to speak to a trusted adult or medical professional if you are worried about the effects of online bullying, either on yourself or someone that you know.

And last of all, we've got some sources of support for you.

So there's Childline, which is a website and phone line, which can offer confidential advice and support.

There's CEOP, which helps protect children from online abuse and exploitation.

And then lastly, Internet Matters, which has information about how to stay safe and happy online while using the internet.

So there are your sources of advice.

Thank you ever so much for learning with me today.

I look forward to seeing you again soon for another lesson.

Really well done for all your hard work.

Take care of yourselves.