I've been thinking about this thread a bit over the weekend, and the thing that most comes to mind (for me) when reading the thoughts and comments is - we can't really over-predict what other kids in any one class in any one year are going to be talking about or excited about. Trying to forecast and prepare our kids for what we think will be the pop-music or pop-movie or pop-whatever of the day conversation on the playgroung in a few months or next year is somewhat of an exercise in futility. We might get it, but we are also just as likely will be way off the mark.
My take on what makes for "social currency" in early elementary is related to a child's personality, social awareness, and social skills. Please note that by social awareness I'm not talking about which song is popular on the playground, but rather how a child reads cues from other kids, how empathetic they are, how interested they are in other children. Each of my three kids has had a different experience making friends and fitting in in kindergarten/early elementary - and I think that how it all worked out had more to do with social "IQ" than with issues arising from being an intellectual outlier. And the cool thing is, social "IQ" is something we can work on with our kids.
Best wishes,
polarbear
