My smart/quirky/musical theater kid did not fit in and never seemed to have any desire to fit in with the sports kids in our small town. When he was in kindergarten the teacher that told me that kids that age are very accepting of differences (like reading way above grade level and using a high level vocabulary and getting so excited about books and science and learning in general) and made it sound like it was some kind of behavior problem that we needed to fix so that he would fit in and color in the lines without complaining and act like he loved football like everyone else.
I feel a little sad for the kindergarten teacher because I think she is finding out that it doesn't work to force a child to be like everyone else. I found out recently that her own smart/quirky/artsy son who sang at all the local small town festivals and wrote some of his own music and was very good at it has turned away from his very religious upbringing and his music definitely reflects that. I wonder if he was bullied at our small town school or if he was able to hide his differences enough to avoid the bullying. My aunt, the grandmother of popular sports kids in our town, says artsy kids are bullied everywhere, that it isn't just our town that has a problem, but I don't believe it is as bad in most other places.
People are shunned and bullied here for being different, yet my son wears his hair in a style that is different from that of the sports kids because he doesn't want to appear to be associated with them in any way.
I am so happy that my child is not like the sports kids in our area. I hear those sports kids talking at restaurants with their limited vocabulary, making fun of people who are different. But I am sad that we have to be so isolated for such a long time and that my son will have to wait until college to find other kids like him.
