HAMPSTEAD — Students at Hampstead Middle School say bullying can occur if teachers are not around to stop it. So they have banded together to stop it themselves.

Richard Charity, 12, said bullying happens "anywhere a teacher isn't," but it doesn't necessarily involve physical intimidation.

In fact, Hampstead students say they typically don't have to worry about a big fight breaking out at school.

"It's usually a one-punch deal," Amy Soraghan, 13, said.

But Amy and other seventh-graders say some hurtful things do happen, making school miserable for the children targeted.

She and several other students on the new Anti-Bullying Committee are working to stamp out bullying because they say the tactics are harmful not only to the children targeted but to everyone in school.

"It's like a chain of events," she said. "One person gets bullied, and they take it out on somebody else."

The committee was started earlier this year by the seventh-grade student council, Principal Patti Grassbaugh said.

The group was formed after the students saw a video about bullying, according to Brooke Kirby, 13. They wanted the fifth grade to see the same video.

When the advisers explained the content was not appropriate for the younger students, the council members decided to write a skit for the fifth-graders and perform it themselves. They invited Mariah Marnie, Colby Siegwalt and Kennedy Daziel, all 13, to help.

"If we don't stop it (bullying), it will spread," Kennedy said.

Bullies operate on school buses, in the lunchroom, around lockers and even right in the classroom, the students said.

They may trip a student climbing on the bus, steal a hat or roll their eyes to mock another student who is speaking. Bullies can also send text messages at school to hurt other students' feelings. They may move to another seat in the lunchroom or make signs with their hands to show the other person isn't wanted.

But all it takes to stop it is to tell a teacher, Connor Kwiecien, 13, said.

The Hampstead students are taking that message to other schools. This week, the students performed a skit at The Sad Cafe in Plaistow for students in the Timberlane Regional School District, Grassbaugh said.

Natalie Fabrizio, 13, said the skit includes a rap song with a message that seems to stick in students' heads.

Mariah helped sing the lyrics, which include the line, "Bullying's bad; it makes people sad."

Brooke said she has overheard some fifth-graders repeating some of the lyrics while waiting in line for the bus.

"It makes me feel good," she said. "They actually listened to us."

For fifth-graders, bullying can be "really overwhelming" because they're new to the middle school, Mariah said.

Colby said boys are "more aggressive" physically. "It's more violent — like pushing."

Nationwide, school safety continues to worry people, according to Natalie Gallo, a member of the School Board. She is launching a review of all Hampstead School District policies related to weapons in schools and bullying.

Last week, the School Board postponed the review because member Sarah Finne-Sandler, who wanted to participate in the discussion, could not attend the meeting.

But at an upcoming meeting, Gallo said she expects the board to consider bullying in school, on buses and at social activities, including athletics, even though it is not a big problem.

"We are so fortunate we don't have the overt bullying problem," Gallo said, adding that bullying can also be subtle.

"It can be done very cleverly," she said, "but somebody feels disenfranchised."

Assistant Principal Owen Harrington said he is proud of the students for helping to stop bullies. As for the policies, they are revised periodically. The middle school is a safe place to learn, he said.

"I'm confident this is a safe school," Harrington said, pointing out several measures the district has taken to protect students. For example, the school installed a second set of locked doors in the foyer near the entrance about three years ago. The other outside doors remain locked while classes are in session.

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