Physically hurt out of school hrs

[MaySales]

Hi all.
I have a daughter (nearly 5) in kindy. She loves school and has a close group of friends. However, there is 1 girl in the class who just seems to target her for no reason. An example would be grabbing a handful of sand and filling my daughters shoes.
Other parents also mention that their child calls this particular girl a "meanie". However, it's only my daughter she seems to go after.
I don't want to type a novel, but basically the teacher knows and I feel is handling it as best as possible in the classroom...
However, we were at a class birthday party a few days ago and this other girl physically slapped (full-force) my daughter.
I saw it all and my child did not provoke in any way.
I told the grandmother (mum was hard to get a moment with). And granny just dismissed it.
Now, my child is nervous for going back to class next week (start of a new term). As she'll have to see the bully again.
So after all of that info, question is; am I right to tell the teacher about this incident? I just don't know if it's different as it happened out of school in school holidays?
I feel I should as its my job to protect my child and I love her more than infinity!
Thanks

[Courtney-RO]

Hi @MaySales and welcome to the ReachOut forums!

Thank you for sharing a little bit about your situation with us. I'm so sorry to hear that you and your daughter have been experiencing this, it sounds like it has been a really difficult and challenging time for you both. I can hear your concern and worry about sending your daughter back to class, it would have been so hard watching how this girl treated your daughter.

It is great to hear that the teacher knows and has been handling it as best as possible in the classroom. How do you feel about the way things have been handled so far? As you mentioned that your child is nervous to go back to class, I wonder if it might be worth having a chat with the teacher to let them know what happened, they might also be able to come up with a few strategies to help your daughter feel safe in the classroom again too. Is this something that you might feel comfortable doing? 

The Raising Children's Network has a really great article on Bullying, if you were interested in having a bit of a read. The article discusses how to talk with your child about what has happened as well as what you can do to help manage it. I wonder if maybe it might give you a couple of ideas on things you could try.

I thought it might also be worth mentioning that ReachOut offers free one-on-one support with an experienced professional for parents looking to navigate parenting. You can find more information on this service here if this is something you might be interested in. 

I also just wanted to remind you that you are doing such a great job supporting your daughter, she is so lucky to have such a caring and supportive parent.

We are all here for you.