My 7-Year-Old Is Treated Like An Outcast
A child is treated like an outcast. The adults in his life need to help him learn the social skills he needs to make friends and get along with others.
QUESTION
Hi Irene,
My 7-year-old son has recently started coming home saying that he isn’t wanted at school. He asks me: Why is it that he is not accepted amongst his peers? Is there something wrong with him? He’s different and treated like an outcast.
He is the only second-grader who has been identified as gifted and talented. He has already received his black belt in martial arts. I consider him to be funny in a clumsy way. Anybody who meets my son is impressed with his maturity.
He is somewhat OCD like myself. I can see him correcting his peers or even telling on them when they are doing something wrong. At this point, I have instructed him to mind his own business but it is too late. He has already built a reputation with them.
His peers don’t allow him to participate in anything they are doing. They now are starting to call him names. It breaks my heart to see him treated like an outcast at this age. The last thing I want to happen is for him to get frustrated and end up hurting someone when they are excluding him.
Signed, Rosa
ANSWER
Hi Rosa,
It sounds like your son is different than his peers. You say he is exceptionally bright, mature beyond his years, and a bit awkward. When children are different, it’s easy to be excluded from a group.
At seven years old, your son may not yet have the social skills to fit in and may require help from the adults around him. I have two suggestions:
1) When your son has children come to your home, use the time to observe the way he interacts with other children and how they respond to him. This can be helpful in teaching him the skills he needs to fit in with others. For example, if he is bossy, you can remind him that it makes other kids feel uncomfortable.
2) At school, it would be worthwhile to speak with his classroom teacher. Tell her your concerns so she can monitor his and other children’s behavior on the playground and intervene when necessary.
You might also want to question what kinds of accommodations the school is making to assure that his work is challenging and interesting to him. If you think that he has some obsessive-compulsive traits, you may want to speak to the school psychologist or guidance counselor to see whether this is interfering with his social skills
or academic achievement.
Hope this helps.
Best, Irene
Some prior posts about children and friendship on The Friendship Blog:
- Worried Mom: My daughter doesn’t have a close friend
- My daughter feels like an outcast at school: What should I do?
- The Bad Friend: What’s a mom to do?
Category: KEEPING FRIENDS
Rosa,
I’m really sorry to hear that your son is having such a hard time. I can definitely relate – I was awkward at that age, and whilst academically and intellectually ahead of my peers, my social skills definitely lagged. In fact, it wasn’t until age 13 or so that I – with the help from a straightforward. honest friend who accepted my quirks – was able to progress in that area. She gave me specific feedback about behaviours that were alienating others, and how those behaviours were being perceived. It hurt, but the way she told me preserved my dignity, and I am grateful for that to this day.
After our conversation, I still had the occasional slip, but by then was confident enough to laugh at myself and apologise or adjust my behaviour, or both, if the situation warranted it. It didn’t happen overnight, but by the end of that school year, I could see a drastic difference in the way I was being treated by my peers from just months before.
I was an only child, being raised my a grandparent, and a bit of a loner – that was great for my intellect and imagination, but didn’t help my social skills. Aside from my kind friend mentioned above, being put into more situations aside from school, where I was around youths my age helped me out. – I could see socially acceptable behaviour modelled. You mention that your son has a black belt – does he still take karate? Are there other activities – sports, afterschool programmes, etc. – that he could get involved in?
I think it’s great that you’re taking such an interest in your child’s social development. I was only encouraged with my academic and musical development, and whilst that was good, social help whilst still in primary school could have helped make my life easier.
I know that it would probably be of little comfort to your son now, but believe me – some of the most awkward people I grew up with grew into some very respected, successful, interesting, well-adjusted adults. My husband and I were both as children awkward outcasts to some extent… well, not anymore! We’ve got a wide social circle, with some really wonderful people, who include us, and want to be included BY us. 🙂
… but we had to get here on our own, with no support in developing the social skills we needed (in fact, often being modelled incredibly damaging social behaviour). So, once again, it’s really wonderful that you’re wanting to support your son. I hope that applying some of Irene’s suggestions above, or whatever other efforts you think are necessary, will improve interactions between your son and his peers.