OPPies teach kids about bullying

Ken Johnston
Editor

Monday morning Riverview Elementary grade 1 & 2 students learned about bullying from the OPPies.
The OPPies are a travelling puppet show run by the Ontario Provincial Police to teach kids about issues such as bullying. Constable Rob Clouston of Thunder Bay, is one of five Youth Intervention Officers throughout Ontario. The OPPies program has been up and running in Northwestern Ontario for about a year now. Clouston has broken the area down into 8 regions. In each of those regions he solicits volunteers from local high schools. The students take a two day training course from Clouston and then take the show on the road.
At last count there were 68 elementary schools in the region. Clouston estimates that they have seen about 7/8 of them. On Monday they visited Riverview, Sturgeon Creek, Our Lady of the Way and Sturgeon Creek Alternative Program. Last week they visited Fort Frances schools.
The puppets go through a show that has one character, Eddy, bullying Ollie the OPPie. In the end Ollie and Eddy end up discussing the bullying with the teacher and learn that bullying makes kids feel bad.
“Remember how bad it makes you feel when you are bullied before you bully someone,” said Clouston.
After the show the kids anwsered questions about it and learned that it is not tattling when one reports a bully. It in fact may prevent someone from getting hurt. Clouston urged kids that are bullied or know of someone bullying to tell an adult they trust.