Helpful resources and products to help talk to your kids about bullying

As someone who dealt with bullying as a young girl, like so many of us, you can bet it's something I'm preparing to talk to my own kids about. Especially now that almost all of them are in school. So we're happy to be working together with Secret and their Mean Stinks campaign by sharing a plethora of helpful products and resources that I've tracked down to help me--and hopefully you--open up the conversation about bullying with your kids.

1. Bully in a Box

This is an excellent interactive series of three iBooks which covers all aspects of bullying. You can explore a bullying scenario from the outside looking in, and then actually get to pick the ending, which is incredibly empowering for kids. Between the cool graphics and the realistic but not scary story lines, the Bully in a Box books are a smart learning tool that your kids will really appreciate.

2. PBS Kids Website

For those of you with older kids, we really like It's My Life on PBSKids.org, a simple, interactive site for tweens and teens that engages kids about all sorts of issues, including bullying. Your older kids can read through related topics and even play a "Beat the Bully" game, which is actually a race (not a fistfight) in case you were wondering. Such a smart way to introduce your kids to the topic so you can discuss it further without worrying them.

3. StopBullying.Gov + GirlsHealth.Gov

Both of these helpful website provide information on bullying and cyberbullying for parents. Along with a series of cool bullying webisodes on StopBullying.Gov, they  address myriad bullying issues in a way that even young kids can understand. Also, be sure to bookmark the Bullying page at GirlsHealth.gov, which is a fabulous resource full of online articles, publications, and helpful websites.

4. Anti-Bullyz Bandages

We've been longtime fans of Ouchies bandages, which has now partnered with D.A.R.E., the substance abuse prevention education program, to create a bright, colorful line of bandages with hopeful phrases on them. Along with being a cool conversation starter, we love that 100% of the profits from the Anti-Bullyz bandages will go directly to D.A.R.E to continue their anti-bullying outreach program.

5. Pacer.org National Bullying Prevention Center

If you want to take a more active role in bullying awareness, you'll want to visit Pacer.org's National Bullying Prevention Center website. In particular, I really like their Kids Against Bullying Puppet Show, which allows schools to purchase puppets and scripts that help educate kids about bullying prevention in an accessible way. And if you happen to live in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area, you can even ask the organization to make a visit to your kids' school.

This post was created by Cool Mom Picks, and sponsored by Secret Mean Stinks.