How can my son keep other 4th graders from teasing him?

Question

My son, a 4th grader, is being called "weird" by about 15 kids in his grade in public school. The fact however is that he is an excellent student, friendly, talkative, clean cut, good looking and loved by his teachers. He has good social skills and is not "weird". He knows a lot more than most of his peers about adult topics such as politics and professional sports and likes to talk about these subjects. He is beginning to feel a bit down about this daily teasing though. What can he do to get these kids to stop calling him names??

Answer 1

either have a talk with their parents, or teach him boxing.

Answer 2

teach him this phrase =P

"funny you should say that , considering you have a face that looks like a half chewed minty"

works a treat haha

thanks ,

Answer 3

well... he is in the 4th grade and obvousily smarted then the other kids... he knows info... and thats why he is being teased... but the 15 kids that are teasing him have most likly been teased before and taking it out on your son... to make themselves feel better... every kid gets teased in school... i did... girls gossip... ive been back and forth from popular to loser... and back... from moving around alot... i wouldent try and get to involved let them sort it out for the most part... when parents or teachers get involved to much its kinda embarressing for the kid ( trust me it makes things worse) maybe the school should get a bullying program in place... i found the schools that do have them in place helped alot more... im not a senior in high school and going to college in the fall... and i know how to be myself now... and know who real friends are... i wouldent say im in the in crowed... but i know im not WEIRD...

Answer 4

talk to his teachers who may put a stop to this.secondly,reinforce confidence in yr child by asserting that those who say he wierd are actually in awe of him becoz he knows so much more than they.

dont let him feel too much and try to make him understand that it is uaual for kids to do things like these.he wil eventually learn to cope and become emotionally stronger in class.

Answer 5

Why not tell him to come up with a good line that will make the other kids like him more, something that will put a smile on the other kid's face.  This way you'll teach your son to be clever and witty, and the other kids will eventually accept him because instead of being a "weird" kid, he'll be a fun kid to be around.  I think your son is just smarter then the rest of them and the other kids are jealous.  Wish you my best.  Keep the teachers and parents out this, otherwise your son will be teased even more.  Well...that's my two cents.  I've got sons too...and this is what I told one of my sons to do.  Now he's all grown up and is so witty, he still has everyone laughing.  Good luck though!  It's not easy as a parent or a child.

Answer 6

I was the weird kid in my class. I didn't relate well to the other kids. I was smarter than they were. I blew the bell curve on tests. I got beat up by dumb kids because they scored lower, because of it. It wasn't so bad in high school, but I was always different.

   I learned to play guitar and sing, and have done so for 38 years, as an entertainer.

   Your son is advanced beyond his years. He won't grow out of it. But if he is helpful with his classmates, he will be excepted for who he is. The guy with the right answers, that shares.

Answer 7

They think he's weird because YOU didn't teach him to be a kid.

4th graders don't CARE about politics or adult topics.  It's your fault he's weird.

Teach him to be a CHILD.

Answer 8

He sure sounds weird to me.....

Being weird is good.  It means you do not follow the norm.  I means that while everyone else plays at being stupid, the weird person is learning new stuff.

Enjoy being weird, relish it.  

I am a Christian, in our religion we are asked to act differently from the norm.  We are asked by our God.... to be weird.

I also drive a school bus, have a college degree, ran some pretty fancy restaurants, toured with some pretty well known rock bands, spent some years in the Army and also teaching kids in schools.... all of it not normal, all of it weird, and all of it fun.

Being weird is a good thing...

Answer 9

Most 10years olds have no interest in talking about politics or anyone who does.  You need to convey to him that when he is around the other children politics and professional sports might not be good topcics.  Also tell him not to sound like a "know it all" on every subject.  I really don't know what little kids talk about.  Take him too see or rent movies that are popular with kids.

Answer 10

its because hes a "teachers pet" because hes a good student and knows alot about adult topics my guess is try to get him to do a bit less so the other kids don't call hI'm weird because im more then double his age and hes more mature then me kids gotta be immature sometimes

Answer 11

I believe the children are a little jealous of him... He sounds like a great kid. Theres really not much you can do, except maybe try to persuade him to embrace that difference. I personally LOVE being considered weird. Usually when i was alot younger I embraced whatever name i was called and usually that just stopped the kids from calling me that....

Kids tend to say things that are meant to hurt other's feelings. If he embraces it and turns it into something humorous the kids would stop!

Good luck

Answer 12

You know i have heard alot of bad thing in these exact situations, from kids running away from home to kids committing suicide you really need to look into this if he is starting to become down and depressed over the whole situation it could be more serious than you think

Answer 13

You said he likes to talk about politics and other adult topics. There is your problem. To other 9 and 10 year olds this is WEIRD.  They are usually into other interests and may find him too intimidating because of what he knows.  Kids will exclude the class "know it all" or the one perceived as the "teacher's pet" at school.  It doesn't mean he is "weird" in the sense that an adult thinks of the word.

You may try talking with him and help him find some interests he can be involved in that are more normal for kids his age. Politics, while something he may enjoy, is not something typical 4th graders have as an interest and keeping it at bay aroudn peers would be a wise move.

Answer 14

It's good for your son to be able to speak to adults, but it's even more important for him to be able to speak to his peers.  Let him learn more about politics and sports if he's interested, but he should also learn about whatever his classmates are interested in so that he can converse with them.  When he gets older, there is a chance that he may be able to deal better with his peers, or maybe he'll always feel more comfortable with older people, but this will help him be more comfortable now, and that's the problem we're trying to solve.  Good luck to him.  I'm sure he's a nice kid and nobody deserves to be teased.