Intolerance

Submitted by lauren.c on Fri, 03/12/2010 - 12:11pm

I didn't go to school until the sixth grade, when my parents gave me the choice and I decided to try it. For the first month or so of school, before he moved away, a new, unpopular boy shared several classes with me and I saw my first cases of bullying. The pale, slightly pudgy kid tried and failed to be funny and nearly everyone, even girls, said mean things about him and made fun of his attempts to cause laughter. I think he went to the guidance counselor but, as far as I could tell, nothing happened with it.

Shortly before the boy moved away I decided to give him some advice on dealing with the other kids' intolerance. I told him that whenever someone told him something mean to just say "I can live with that." He tried it a couple times and seemed to be enjoying it, but soon afterward he moved away suddenly and I never saw him again.

I would like to think that I made a positive impact on his life and helped stop him from being bullied at his new school, but I don't think I'll ever know.

Mystery

Submitted by Tenzley on Sun, 03/14/2010 - 4:20pm.

I like how you left this a mystery at the end. Did that really happen? It was interesting to see how you approached the story from the perspective of a child that never went to school before. Does that mean your character was home schooled until sixth grade? One thing you could think about for next time is adding more detail to your life. What was your school like? When you went to sixth grade did people outcast you? Does the kid have any friends in school? Some more detail would make the reader more able to picture the story happening. Great ideas!

A University of Vermont College Mentor