How to best teach 5 yr old to stand up for herself?

[lyssie29]

My daughter is 5 and when she's playing out with friends theres a couple of them who are mean to her and she will run away crying. How do I teach her to ignore/defend herself? I know she's young and all but I'm afraid that if she does that at school too she'll become a target for bullies.

Role play with her and get her to practice what to say.

She won’t be a target at school with bullies because she cries and runs away when others are unkind. It’s a very common and expected response at 5 years old. Just try encouraging her to say, “that’s not a very kind thing to say/do,” even if she then runs away after. As long as she knows what’s right and wrong, then she’ll naturally become less sensitive towards things others do or say. Give her confidence that it doesn’t matter what others do or say, and that when they’re unkind it’s the wrong thing and they won’t make any friends doing that, but that what’s important is that she knows what’s right and is always kind to others. Are these children older?