I talked to my son about it. He says that it did bother him a little at first because he knows that it isn't just one or two kids that have this attitude toward smart, different kids like him and his friends. He says he thinks it is more like the whole town feels this way and he is probably right.
Right after he heard the comment, my son started talking about needing to finish middle school math and pre-algebra so he could start algebra. I wondered why he was talking about math when he doesn't like math as much as most other subjects. I think he was trying to show the kid that made the comment that it doesn't bother him when people say this kind of thing and that he is not going to hide his intelligence because he is proud to be a geek and he doesn't care what they think. But he knows that math ability is more respected than other academic subjects and that is why he wanted to talk about math, so that tells me that he does care a little about what people think.
I just worry about the future. I know that my daughter seemed more sensitive to what other people said about her when she started middle school and she fit in a lot better than my son would. She was a cheerleader. Also, one of my son's best friends who is four years older and gifted was verbally abused in middle school and once even physically attacked on a school bus.
My son does seem to have a lot of confidence most of the time but I worry that this might change over the next several years.
And yes, it probably does bother me more than it bothers him. But he does talk a lot about moving away to some place with more people like him and I wish I could do something to help him feel like he belongs here.
