Why are children so cliquy?

Cliques are usually a bunch of people who are friends, but the thing is not all friendship groups are cliquy. Cliques are groups of friends that tend to leave other children out on purpose. Usually in every clique, there is a leader and that leader gets to decide who is in the clique and who isn't. Children usually act much different when they're in a clique then when they're not in a clique.

Sometimes, everyone can feel left out by their friends once in a great while. Sometimes even cliques fight but sometimes you can be kicked out of a clique for fighting with the wrong person within your clique. Kids within a clique are mean to the kids who aren't in their clique and usually people outside the clique can't hang out with the people inside the clique.

Children usually form cliques in elementary school and sometimes in middle school but usually by middle school, cliques are already made. Cliques are made of kids who share an interest in something or they can like an activity like sports or games.

When I was in elementary school, there were many cliques. There were the popular girls that liked to play with Barbie's or there were the unpopular girls who wore the sneakers with the lights at the bottom. When you were 7, 8, or 9 you weren't really that mean to other people outside your clique.

Toward middle school when you were 12, 13, or 14 cliques became stronger and instead of cliquing due to what toys you played with, you cliqued because of what kinds of clothes you wore or what kind of purse your mom bought for you at the mall. Things got to be more extreme and cliques became stronger.

By the time you were in high school you had your set friends that you hung out with every weekend and if and outsider tried to come into your group, you would definitely put them in their place.

Now in college everyone just can relax. There are no more cliques and everyone is friends because in college nobody cares where you came from they just care where you are going!

I feel that by any means possible cliques should be abolished. Yes, I was part of a clique but now I know that everyone is the same and there is no reason to oust someone just because they don't like the same toy, the same boy, or they don't wear the same clothes. Just be happy being friends with everyone. It'll help you in the long run! :)

http://kidshealth.org/kid/feeling/friend/clique.html