DS started chewing on his collars and sleeves in 1st grade, he had a strict authoritarian teacher who I'm sure has no idea about giftedness, and who is a serious perfectionist (not really a good fit for creative gifted kids transitioning from kinder) He likes her now, but he had a hard time with her in class, and he tends to like all the teachers anyway.

I thought it was something to do with needing to move and not being able to like in kindergarten so I got him a chewable jewel (a necklace you can chew on). We also needed it for second grade, but he kept chewing through it. In third grade his teacher told him he could chew gum, which helped a little bit because he didn't want the necklace anymore.

I didn't think it was related to anxiety, I just thought because he was a kid that needed to move more (I mean he's a boy and most boys need to move more than the public schools allow) that that was why he did it. I bite my nails, I assumed it was that type of behavior and didn't see it as a sign of anything.

However he never chewed through his shirts at home.

Last edited by LAF; 06/29/14 01:36 PM.