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Ladysmith students take stand against bullying

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The improv team from Ladysmith Secondary School entertain the children of Ladysmith Primary School while teaching them about caring


Local students are singing, dancing, acting and teaching about bullying. A group of pink-shirt clad Ladysmith Secondary School students toured local schools to raise awareness of bullying. “We talked about how bullying hurts and has to be stopped,” said one of the organizers, Grade 12 student Maris Jahelka. “Together they can work towards that.” Jahelka was overseeing the three days of presentations with lots of help from teachers, the dance team and the improv team. The students were at Ladysmith Primary School Tuesday, Feb. 15 for a half-hour show. The presentations are geared towards age, Jahelka said. “At this age, the kids don’t know what bullying is and we didn’t want to introduce it to them,” she said. The kids watched an interpretative dance, clapped their hands to a White Stripes song and listened to the improv team’s message. “We want them to have respect and be kind to one another,” Jahelka said. She said the dancing is a way for the kids to learn through visual cues. “It’s also entertaining and holds their attention.” The improv team did skits to show the importance of sharing, friendship and kindness. The pink shirts, which say “respect my right to be different” on them will be given to all students in Ladysmith and Chemainus as part of bullying awareness. Pink Shirt Day is Feb. 23. The shirts are “a visual to get the kids to understand,” Jahelka said. Pink Shirt Day, a Boys and Girls Club initiative, is an opportunity for the community to take a stand against bullying and shows that the wearers will not tolerate bullying anywhere. The Boys and Girls Club Ladysmith chapter will be marking the day with skits, presentations and an anti-bullying pledge. For more information check out: www.pinkshirtday.ca.





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