"At 8 years old, Catherine is old enough to start understanding how her behavior affects other people, and her singing this song seems to be intentional and not an accident. She might not know just how harmful bullying about weight can be, but she knows she's saying and doing something that isn't nice, and she can probably tell by Selena's response that it doesn't make her sister happy."
"I want to commend you and your family for addressing this issue early. Some parents might shrug this off as just classic sibling squabbles, but it seems like you and your family have really decided to work together to stop it."
"I would ask her: 'If you see how sad your sister gets when you make fun of her,' exploring whether Catherine feels her sister receives more attention, whether parents care more about the sister's feelings, or whether Catherine is experiencing bullying at school herself."
A parent seeks advice on stopping their 8-year-old daughter Catherine from teasing her 6-year-old sister Selena about her weight. Despite reading the book Blubber to teach empathy, Catherine continues singing a mocking song, damaging Selena's self-esteem. The advice columnist commends the parents for addressing the bullying early and notes that Catherine is old enough to understand consequences of her behavior. The response suggests investigating underlying causes for Catherine's teasing, such as feeling less attention or experiencing bullying elsewhere, rather than assuming it's innocent sibling conflict. Direct conversation about how the teasing makes Selena feel is recommended as an effective approach.
Read at Slate Magazine
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