One of my cousins is in the class I teach at Wasatch, and it is always so fun to see her. I have really noticed that children's personalities change a lot depending on who they are with. I think that this is true for most people, but I think that little kids especially are prone to adapt to their environment and act differently based on who they are spending their time with. I could observe this very proficiently with my cousin, as I could see her with her friends, fellow students, teachers, siblings, and parents, as well as how she behaved with me. We will call my cousin Jessica for the sake of this post.
Children really want to fit in. This is the same for teenagers. Obviously the way that children try to fit in is very different from that of the behavior of teenagers, but I think that spending so much time with little kids has really allowed me to see this. I am nearly twenty-one years old, and I have gotten to a place in my life where I am very confident and comfortable with who I am. I have been dubbed the "quirky kid" for a lot of my life, because I just march to the beat of my own drum. I care a lot about others, but not about what they think of me. They think I'm weird? Probably true. So is everyone. They think I am loud? Yeah, I definitely am. I have realized that changing to fit people's ideal person is completely useless and pointless: everyone expects something else, and everyone wants something different. But kids, especially the kids just entering school- first, second, third graders- really want to establish and uphold a good reputation and standing with the other kids.
When I was in first grade, I remember there was this boy named Mitch. Mitch was the coolest kid in the school (among the first and even the second graders, at least). Everyone knew Mitch. He was good at baseball and soccer. He was so kind and fun to be around. He was smart and seemed to be friends with everyone. One day, Mitch walked into my classroom (there were two first grade classes) because he had reading with my teacher, Mrs. Pearce. To me, it seemed like anywhere Mitch went, people called out his name. I wanted to be in this "squad". I yelled out "Mitch!!", then, right as he was turning, I ducked beneath my desk. I am not a shy person. I do not get easily embarrassed and I like to be the center of attention. I may have a lot of problems, but talking to people is not one of those problems. I think I did this for two reasons: A) I saw this kind of thing happen all the time in movies and tv shows centered around teens. The shy girl or boy will call out and hide, but eventually the more popular one will of course realize that (not to quote Taylor Swift, but definitely to always quote Taylor Swift) "Dreaming bout the the day when you wake up and find that what you're looking for has been here the whole time.... You belong with me. I think the second reason is B) I realized that there was something that was 'cool' and something that was not. And I did not think I was cool. And Mitch, to me, was so cool.
I remember Mitch turning around and me blushing behind my desk, because I liked Mitch and he looked my way, but also wondering why I couldn't be friends with him. Mitch and I had nearly every class together after first grade, up until our senior year of high school. We became really good friends, and often hung out. Mitch, as I stated before, was really kind- so why was I so sure he wouldn't want to talk to me or be my friend?
My cousin Jessica is the most confident girl you will ever meet- at home. When she is at school, she is still confident and likes who she is, but I noticed right off the bat that she is slightly more bashful and conscious of what she is doing. Jessica, like most third graders, is not in the phase in kindergarten and first grade, where everyone is friends (mostly), and everyone can cry and it not be embarrassing. At this point, kids are splitting off and forming groups and thinking things about people that are not one hundred percent positive. This realization made me slightly sad, but also happy. It is too bad that kids have to worry about being made fun of, or even just not fitting in. BUT, it is also necessary and important for this to occur, because it is what enables people to really find themselves.
Children really want to fit in. This is the same for teenagers. Obviously the way that children try to fit in is very different from that of the behavior of teenagers, but I think that spending so much time with little kids has really allowed me to see this. I am nearly twenty-one years old, and I have gotten to a place in my life where I am very confident and comfortable with who I am. I have been dubbed the "quirky kid" for a lot of my life, because I just march to the beat of my own drum. I care a lot about others, but not about what they think of me. They think I'm weird? Probably true. So is everyone. They think I am loud? Yeah, I definitely am. I have realized that changing to fit people's ideal person is completely useless and pointless: everyone expects something else, and everyone wants something different. But kids, especially the kids just entering school- first, second, third graders- really want to establish and uphold a good reputation and standing with the other kids.
When I was in first grade, I remember there was this boy named Mitch. Mitch was the coolest kid in the school (among the first and even the second graders, at least). Everyone knew Mitch. He was good at baseball and soccer. He was so kind and fun to be around. He was smart and seemed to be friends with everyone. One day, Mitch walked into my classroom (there were two first grade classes) because he had reading with my teacher, Mrs. Pearce. To me, it seemed like anywhere Mitch went, people called out his name. I wanted to be in this "squad". I yelled out "Mitch!!", then, right as he was turning, I ducked beneath my desk. I am not a shy person. I do not get easily embarrassed and I like to be the center of attention. I may have a lot of problems, but talking to people is not one of those problems. I think I did this for two reasons: A) I saw this kind of thing happen all the time in movies and tv shows centered around teens. The shy girl or boy will call out and hide, but eventually the more popular one will of course realize that (not to quote Taylor Swift, but definitely to always quote Taylor Swift) "Dreaming bout the the day when you wake up and find that what you're looking for has been here the whole time.... You belong with me. I think the second reason is B) I realized that there was something that was 'cool' and something that was not. And I did not think I was cool. And Mitch, to me, was so cool.
I remember Mitch turning around and me blushing behind my desk, because I liked Mitch and he looked my way, but also wondering why I couldn't be friends with him. Mitch and I had nearly every class together after first grade, up until our senior year of high school. We became really good friends, and often hung out. Mitch, as I stated before, was really kind- so why was I so sure he wouldn't want to talk to me or be my friend?
My cousin Jessica is the most confident girl you will ever meet- at home. When she is at school, she is still confident and likes who she is, but I noticed right off the bat that she is slightly more bashful and conscious of what she is doing. Jessica, like most third graders, is not in the phase in kindergarten and first grade, where everyone is friends (mostly), and everyone can cry and it not be embarrassing. At this point, kids are splitting off and forming groups and thinking things about people that are not one hundred percent positive. This realization made me slightly sad, but also happy. It is too bad that kids have to worry about being made fun of, or even just not fitting in. BUT, it is also necessary and important for this to occur, because it is what enables people to really find themselves.
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