Healing the Hurt

I remember History Boy coming home from school not understanding why the other kids weren't his friends.  He thought of them as his friends.  I think that says it all. He sees everybody as good, or at least he used to.  He is getting used to being bullied and knows that those children are not his friends.  It is especially hard when one of the children used to be his friend several years ago.  They were in all the same classes and go along great.  Now the child calls him names and History Boy is at a loss.  What did he do wrong?...

How do I tell him and make him understand that he  did nothing wrong.  I can say it a hundred times but he still has to deal with it.  I have tried to help him with facial expressions, hoping he'll be able to tell when someone really doesn't want to hear what he has to say.  However, trying to turn off the flow of information in History Boy once it has started is virtually impossible.  I love that he loves to learn and wants to share his knowledge.  I'm a teacher, the teacher in me rejoices, but the mom in me knows that this is what hurts him. This is what makes it hard for other children to understand him.  Most kids don't want to know about WWII, the Titanic, Pompeii and other such topics.


He always wows adults with his knowledge and his willingness to learn more about a topic.  He can watch video after video or read book after book about the same topic. To the right is a pic of the book he is currently reading. It is three books in one, Marine Mysteries and Dramatic Disasters of New England, Sea disasters and inland catastrophes, and Pirates, Shipwrecks, and Historic Chronicles. Sound like History Boy anyone?  LOL.  He can converse with adults about such topics, although his opinions are if he watched it or heard it on the History Channel, it must be true, so... watch out. He constantly amazes me, but that still doesn't give me the answers I need to help him.

Here is an article which has some helpful info in it. I found it comforting to know that at least according to these tips, I was doing what I needed to be there for him, even if it doesn't feel like it.



Below is one of the pics I used with History Boy to help with facial expressions.
If it helps you too, you are welcome to it.

Emotions Handout (below is a pic of what it looks like)