By Christine Clinton
After reading the book "Wonder" I realized for the first time that I was not alone in being bullied. In fact, Auggie and I shared nearly the exact same experience. Like Auggie, I had my own Julian when I was mainstreamed into the fourth grade. Helen was my Julian. She made sure to tell all of the other children in the fourth-grade class, besides my sister and my best friend Elizabeth, not to talk to me or have anything to do with me, because I looked physically different. She made sure to make my life miserable in school.
After that experience as a child, I want to be able to help the youth of today realize that people who are physically different are people too. When I was younger, I was bullied so much in school. I was going to the special school for five years, and while I felt like I didn't need to be there necessarily, I felt like I belonged there. Then, I was mainstreamed into my sister's school, and went into the fifth grade. Everyone in the fifth grade class, the students and the teacher, loved me. However, because I wasn't properly taught in the special school, and I was so far behind, I had to be put back into the fourth grade class, which was my sister's class. That is when everything started for me. One girl didn't like me because I was physically different, and she told all of the other students in the fourth grade class, except for my sister and my best friend Elizabeth to have nothing to do with me because of my physical differences. Because of her, she made my life miserable in school.
At the end of the day, everyone, no matter their age, needs to find ways to choose kind.
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