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My 6yo son is being bullied in school for being "bald"
My son, Ben has been diagnosed with alopecia since he was 6 months old.
Initially, it was Alopecia areata. At the age 1 1/2 yo, 100% of his scalp hair was gone. We did not have any problem dealing with alopecia during his pre-k and kinder garden years up until today.
My son started fall-classes this year as a first grader. He was so excited being able to go to "the big" school. I explained to him about the kids who might get curious about his hair loss and if someone asks why he doesn't have hair, he can just answer them, "I have alopecia" and if they ask what Alopecia is, he can tell them it means hair loss and can let them touch his head if they wanted to. In that way, other kids will know that it's not contagious or something to be afraid about.
My Son did not show self consciousness regarding his hair loss and he doesn't like wearing hats either. He had mentioned a month ago that there were kids in school who are calling him names. I called the school and my husband spoke with the teacher. After that, my son came home from school everyday being as happy as he can be and mentioned to me that the kid that called him names apologized. I thought that was the end of it.
Tonight, He woke up crying because of pain in his calves. After asking all the probing questions. He stated that there were two kids that kicked him in his legs and kept stepping on his feet because he was bald. According to my son the kids that hit him has been reprimanded by the principal. I still have to follow up on that on Monday.
I feel like educating the entire school about alopecia for them to have a better understanding why my son lost his hair and that needed to be treated as a regular kid. the problem is I don't know where or how to begin.
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Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Casey on
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That is really wrong. When i was in first grade my mom made coloring books to help them understand why i was bald. I thought it was a really good idea.
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Permalink Reply by Tallgirl on
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That was assault. Take it to the school board and police, or go to the state dept. of education.
www.naaf.org has educational videos and tools for these talks.
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Permalink Reply by Karen Smith on
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I agree with tall girl, the school should take this extremely seriously. Go as high as you need to but your son should not have to deal with this. My daughter developed alopecia in high school and she wore wigs. Most people still knew because news like that spreads. I let the counselor and teachers know and they kept an eye out but her friends really had her back.I am so sorry you and your son are going through this.
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Permalink Reply by Cindy on
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Hi, I am sorry to read this and that your son has had to face unkindness by his peers. I am applaud that the school nurse of other staff did not notify you about the incident. I would start there. It sounds like you could start educating the entire 1st grade about Alopecia and there are many good books that are age appropriate that you can read with the class and then base a discussion on the information. I also recommend contacting the Children's Alopecia Project. They will have some great resources that you can share with your son's class and they can provide some wonderful suggestions to help to a presentation. I have been involved wit CAP for 4 years and you won't find better support then from Betsy and Jeff. They may also be able to connect you with a family in your area. Best of luck..Cindy
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Permalink Reply by PaulJ on
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Yes I would definetly contact the school and make sure that those kids are taken care of and that they are educated as to alopecia, The school will need education as to alopecia aswell. Naaf can help you with excellent reference material, they might even be able to send someone maybe even Charlie Villanueva :)
I was 6 and bald once too, most of the time its OK but just the odd kid being a pain teasting.
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Permalink Reply by Sarah y. Clingman on
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I am 37 & have Alopecia & also a very close friend of mine's little girl now 7 has Alopecia. At the beginning of each school year the school counselor and myself or sometimes just the counselor goes in to her class & reads books & talks about it so all the kids know about it. I think some of the "mean" kids are mean because they are scared. Scared this is a sickness and fear that we will make them sick. Of course some kids are just mean! I see someone posted a link to the www.naaf.org that is where we get our books to read to the school. The more kids that understand what is wrong with your son I believe will make it better. Of course some kids are not raised to understand that they hurt peoples feelings. My little friend wears a wig to school but sometimes it gets itchy or she gets headach & she just takes it off lays it on her desk & is cool with it! I have learned so much from my little friend and yet we thought I would be the one helping her :)
I grew up with bald spots & sometimes sections as large as the size of my hand would be missing. Kids knew this and could see it. I had the opposite issue no one teased me or asked me what was wrong, I felt invisible growing up.
I will pray for your son. I hope he can over come the "mean" kids & grow up to understand that God made him this way for a reason. With the proper training from you he can be an advocate for this life altering disease & teach children that there is so much more to life then the way we look!
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Permalink Reply by Anastasia on
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I can’t believe the school did not contact you & tell you what happened. This reminds me so much of me, I lost all of my hair at a young age & it has shaped my life in good & bad ways. I’m not sure how educating the school would work, but since your son was assaulted by two students I think you should look into having a sit down with the teacher, principal, & parents of the students involved. Maybe even set up a play date with those children, so they can see he is no different than they are. Who knows, they may even become friends. Either way it will help show them that people (even children like them) don’t always come in the package expected, but that doesn’t make them less worthy of respect, kindness, & friendship. I hope you find this helpful = )
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Permalink Reply by Erin on
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I hate bullying, it is one thing that I feel passionate about and try my best to help others with. I was picked on but by the time I lost my hair at 15 I was confident and had great friends and my hair was not an issue. I was lucky.
My son has been bullied since kindergarten, he is not bald nor does he have alopecia. But he has been bullied nontheless. So I know a bit what it is like, to have your child come home crying every day breaks your heart.
Now I think you need to talk to the teacher, to the school, then to the parents, then to the kids. I think educating the kids on alopecia might be a good thing.
I wish you the best.
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Hello
I'm so sorry that you and your son are having to deal with this current situation. As with everyone else I believe the best step is to approach the school and get the immediate issue sorted for your son.
My daughter has alopecia, but was older when her hairloss happened. I did do what you are thinking of doing (talked to her class - educated them about the condition). This worked well, it never totally took away her vulnerability to being bullied, but it did empower her to know that when people did behave in ways that were unacceptable to her she was able to talk to her teacher and get it sorted straight away. I really think it important that the empowerment be given to the child with the help of adults.
You are doing such a great job and I understand how horrendous this will be for you and your son, but keep doing what you are doing as I believe you will make headway and this will settle down.
As tallgirl has said NAAF have some very good literature and support groups that will be able to help.
Good luck with everything and keep us in the loop as to how you are getting along.
Rosy
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Permalink Reply by suzanne on
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This is so incredibly sad to read. My daughter is also 6 years old and she has some days where kids tease her and she cries but not to the extreme your son is being bullied. We need to educate!!!
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Go on and continue to communicate this to the public. It is necessary to protect everyone who does not really understand what it is. And I want to wish your son good luck in school and not pay attention to these idiots. And to study everything well, use https://phdessay.com/ it will help to do more work at the same time and get good knowledge with free essays. Wish you luck.
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