My little buddy is being teased at school.

[Drunken Irishman]

It breaks my heart.

I took him today and kids were pointing at him and saying something I could not understand. His face sunk and he crawled up along side my leg - so very sad.

I said something to his teacher and we'll see how they go tomorrow.

IF I hear laughing and pointing or something again, I will approach the kids and it's not going to be nice.

They don't screw with my bud.



He's shy and has a bit of a speech problem (though it's not horrible and he isn't dumb). I'm sure that doesn't help.

Kids can be so fucking cruel. :(

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

1. Teach him shockingly dirty words to call the other kids.

He'll be the most popular kid in no time.

[JANdad]

2. I am dealing with the same thing too...

Just started kidergarten and he only plays with a girl during recess. I asked him if lays with any other boys and he said: "No, they lagh at me"...broke my heart.

He is small and kinda shy as well...hope he gets past this soon!

[armyowalgreens]

4. That is the story of my childhood. I was small and very shy...

I endured a good amount of mockery all through elementary school and much of junior high. I eventually developed a "large" personality to make up for it.

It's amazing how people treat you better when you simply convey a sense of confidence.

However, I still have lingering self-confidence issues. I think it would have been better if someone helped me deal with my issues as a young kid.

[Captain Hilts]

11. It wasn't all that long ago...

folks in Blackburn say that some local yobs were hassling Susan Boyle.

She picked up a bicycle and threw it at them.

Good for her.

Her older sibs were too much older to be of any help when she was a kid.

Hang tough!

[GreenPartyVoter]

20. I was small, hyper, and bossy. Kids picked on me all the way through high school, long

after I learned to behave better. The hearing impairment didn't help things either.

It wasn't until I got to college that I really realized what you are saying about confidence, because I saw people in my dorms starting to treat me badly. That was when I realized that if you crawl around with your tail between your legs, the rest of the pack members will come after you.

[armyowalgreens]

23. Whenever I see someone who is shy or insecure, I treat them like royalty...

I have multiple friends who have a very hard time communicating with the outside world. I feel really bad for them because I see how people treat them and it isn't good.

[Captain Hilts]

26. I do the same thing. It's often like unwrapping a gift. nt

[AllenVanAllen]

3. What a great picture.

He looks like a sweet kid. Don't forget to tell your little buddy how special and loved he is, evey chance you get. It'll go a long way in building his self esteem and also deepen your connection. Kindness will help counter all of that external cruelty he may encounter. It made a world of difference in my life.

:hi:

[Skittles]

5. definitley confront those little bullies, DI

it does two things: lets the little bastards know their behavior is not acceptable and lets your little BUDDY know that behavior is bullshit

[LibertyLover]

6. That is so not right

I worry about my 7 year old daughter and her school. She is adopted from China, so she doesn't look like the other kids. I know she gets teased and it breaks my heart.

[coconuted]

7. My son went through the same thing

How old is he?

[dembotoz]

8. get the kid involved with other activities

so that school is not the only social reference group he has.
my youngest had speech problems and spent a couple of pre k years in 'special'
pre k thru the school.....

we tried
churchy stuff-not much luck
soccer-was ok
cub scouts-was in it for a long time--i don't know- mixed feelings

hockey--he found his niche in hockey. Done wonders for his self confidence.
and at that age--little hockey players are soooo damn cute.

[coconuted]

14. Football changed my sons life

He used to get picked on too. But now he's in 9th grade, he is huge (6'3" 210 lbs) and the problem is now I can't use the phone because there girls calling all day every day.

[Demoiselle]

28. .This is a really good idea. Broaden his social references...

I was a kind of nerdy outcast in my public school experience for many years.
BUT, my experience in summer camps was the opposite.. I was sort of popular and a bit of a leader, .and I think that it kept me
from giving up on myself. ...
And, as other posters have said, things change pretty fast with little kids.

[MissMillie]

9. go beat them up

j/k of course


your buddy is adorable.


The bad news is that it's not just kids who can be cruel. It's a cruel world out there. I'm glad you're doing your best to change your little corner of it.

[Captain Hilts]

10. He's lucky to have your support.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

12. He sure is a cutie!

Bonk their heads ;)

[Rambis]

13. Teach him some Gaelic

Is minic a gheibhean beal oscailt diog dunta!
An open mouth often catches a closed fist!

[Captain Hilts]

27. This is awesome!

[Rambis]

30. Is Rafa goin?

no money babel voronin dossena all unhappy

[Captain Hilts]

31. I think he be stayin'...nt

[Deep13]

15. They are going to keep doing it unless prevented.

And by prevented, I mean either physically removed from your kid or punished badly enough that the social pressure to continue will not be as bad as the punishment.

It's a survival instinct from cave-man days. First there was a competition for limited food among children. So ostracizing a few others was a good way to eliminate them from that competition. Second, in those days any difference among the children was seen as a weakness--the sign of illness or defect--and such an individual was invariably a drain on or a danger to the clan. Again, such children were ostracized from the clan.

I point this out to show you are fighting a primal instinct and not merely superficial bad behavior. That's why it must be treated harshly. If you ask the bullies why they do it, they will not know themselves and will likely respond in a way that assumes some kind of obvious need to pick on those with differences.

[NJmaverick]

16. I feel for you

My nephew told me he was picked on in summer camp. It's rough not being able to really help them.

[NewJeffCT]

17. Kids can be cruel, but they can also change at the drop of a hat

at that young an age. Is this preschool or kindergarten? Is this your son's first time in a school setting? It might just be a bit of shyness, too. If you see it happening again, I would also talk to the teacher (again) pretty directly about it, and if that doesn't solve the problem, then take it to the next level.

Make sure you document that you spoke with the teacher twice before taking it to the next level, though.

[Blue Diadem]

18. Ohhh he's such a cutie.

It makes me so sad that kids can be so mean. :(

We've going through it with our granddaughter too. This year has started off badly. She's sitting alone at lunch and this morning she left with tears in her eyes. Her best friend is in another classroom and she's stuck in a class with a girl who has bullied her since day one of kindergarten. They're in 5th grade now. The good years have always been when the bully was in another class.

edited to add: I'm glad you already mentioned it to the teacher. Hopefully she'll keep an eye out for any meanness.

[Shell Beau]

19. Bless his little heart! I hope things turn around.

Kids can be so damn mean sometimes. x( He is a cutie!

[mzteris]

21. stay and observe

"volunteer" to help out in the classroom so you can see firsthand what's going on.

Like another poster said - document that you spoke with the teacher, too.

Have you asked him what's going on? What's being said/done?

Is he receiving speech therapy?

Also, as dembotz said, get him involved with other non-school activities so he has a broader range of kids to be friends with.

[armyowalgreens]

22. Side note: Is that Costco I spy in the background?

[Soylent Brice]

24. stand up for him, until he's had some boxing training for a few years.

i always wished my parents, or someone sober perhaps, would have for me.

i have been terrified about my daughter starting kindergarten last week. fortunately for her she has had 0 problems and seems to have kids flocking to her. i was floored to hear that. total reverse of what i went through.

just sad that he'll have to learn the life lesson that most people are assholes so early in life.

you gotta cute kid there, DI.

teach him how to box. good for confidence, self-defense, and it's an activity that can be just for you two. (another way to bond)

[Beetwasher]

25. What A Cutey

Hang in there dad. That stinks.

[Deja Q]

29. "boys will be boys" or "discipline those who would bully"

It's a simple choice.

I'm so sorry your son is going through a hard time. Maybe if the schools did something, yours and others won't go through the hell...