When your child is picked on or excluded: this story builds the courage to get help — a sign of strength, not tattling.
A personalized picture book in which your child is the hero — and masters this challenge themselves. The first story is free.
Create This StoryThe jacket comes home torn, the snack box comes home untouched, and the question “how was school?” gets nothing but a shrug. At some point your child may say a sentence that squeezes your heart: “The others don't want me to play with them.” Learning that your own child is being picked on or excluded is one of the most painful moments of parenting — and it often surfaces late, because children stay silent about it for a long time.
Why do affected children stay silent? Mostly out of shame, and out of fear that everything gets worse if they “tell on” someone. Many even believe it is somehow their own fault. One distinction matters here: a quarrel between roughly equal children that blows over again is part of growing up. Bullying is different — it is repeated, deliberate, and always aimed at the same child, who cannot defend themselves alone. That is exactly why bullying cannot be solved alone either: it needs adults who look closely and act.
A story can help your child break the silence. Through a book character, things can be said that would be too hard to say directly: “he feels like me.” The experience gains distance and becomes speakable. Your child also watches a hero walk the same path — from feeling alone, to finding the courage to tell an adult, to experiencing that asking for help actually works. Your child can rehearse this path on the inside before daring the real step in the real schoolyard.
In the personalized story, your child is that hero — with their own face on every page. In the book they feel what exclusion is like, discover that they do not have to carry it alone, and take home the central message: getting help is not tattling, it is brave. Allies appear — a teacher, a friend, the family — and together the situation changes step by step. The first personalized story is free to try, so you can check whether it fits your child's situation.
Alongside the book, your child needs you: ask open questions (“who did you play with today?”) rather than interrogating. Believe your child and stay calm — do not announce solo missions like confronting the other child's parents; that usually raises the pressure on your child. Note incidents with dates and talk to the teacher or the school social worker early; schools have established ways of addressing bullying without exposing your child. And if your child refuses school for weeks, sleeps badly, complains of tummy or head aches, or withdraws strongly, bring in the school psychology service or a child therapist as well.
Asking for help, standing up for yourself, expressing feelings, building friendships, setting boundaries.
5-11 years
Warning signs include reluctance to go to school up to outright refusal, missing or damaged belongings, sleep problems, tummy or head aches without medical findings, and withdrawing from friends. No single sign is proof — seek a calm conversation and ask open questions instead of interrogating.
A quarrel happens between roughly equal children, is situational and passes — it is part of growing up. Bullying is repeated, targeted and directed at the same child over a longer period, a child who cannot defend themselves alone. That is why bullying always needs adults who step in.
Usually this is not advisable — such conversations often escalate and raise the pressure on your child. The more effective route goes through the school: teacher, school social worker or school administration. They can intervene in a structured way without exposing your child.
A simple distinction helps: tattling wants to get someone into trouble — getting help wants to get someone out of trouble. Whoever protects themselves or others is showing strength. This reframing needs repetition, because the schoolyard code often says the opposite.
Stay persistent and document: keep a written record of incidents and conversations, and ask for concrete next steps. If the teacher does not respond, go to the school administration, then to the school social worker or the school psychology service. Your child must experience that adults do not let go.
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