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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]That 3rd grader was verbally attacked. Just because your kindergartner apologized doesn't mean the 3rd grader has to accept the apology. This is a good lesson for your kid - some things hurt people REALLY deeply. And some things you can't just apologize away. From now on, he needs to come ask what things mean before repeating them lest this happen again. It's a harsh lesson, but so is life.

The 3rd grader was verbally attacked and is now recounting what happened. You're asking an 8 or 9 yr old to have grace because your son who made a mistake is 5 or 6. But he's not required to. It's okay for a 3rd grader to be hurt and to tell people about it.[/quote]

The third grader doesn’t have to accept the apology and like OP’s child. But it’s also wrong to label a very young child who is still learning about social issues as a racist. I have a K and 3rd grade kid, so I know first hand exactly how large the developmental difference is between a 5/6 year old and an 8/9 year old. The third grader knows full stop that going around telling people this child is a racist will cause OP’s child to be excluded and potentially bullied by other students.

In fact I would say an older elementary child singling out a very young child with a negative label is a a much more intentional harmful act than a K kid repeating something they likely didn’t fully grasp the meaning of. Really, it’s the original third grader who said the word that is most at fault in this whole situation. I hope since OP quickly corrected her child and made him apologize, the other parents will nip their child in the bud from continuing this situation.

That said, there really isn’t much OP can do at this point. Any attempt to clear her child’s name will just result in a Streisand effect. I think at this point you just have to wait for it to die down … maybe loop the K teacher in so she can keep an eye on the situation. And I’d maybe tell a couple close friends what happened and how it was promptly handled with a lesson/apology so these friends can help set the record straight in case the rumor mill winds up as a game of telephone.[/quote]

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