@busymommyof4 Yes, I think many educators feel this way. When my kids were in grades 2-8, they were often told to teach other kids when they finished their assignment. It was a hard thing to say no to as teachers often said something along the lines of: “if you know it perfectly than you can teach it” So they would use the strongest students as teacher aides. I told my kids to just say “No” They didn’t. One good outcome is my oldest often teaches kids who don’t get math stuff. S/he has made many good friends this way. Older kid do appreciate the help and often the explanation from a kid is different from the teacher. Kids haven’t taken advantage.
The thing with quirky people is they become quirky adults and often do very well in life. They often listen to their own drummer so to speak and lead interesting lives. I consider myself very quirky. According to my spouse, I don’t even hear the drum. I’ve tried to pass that on to my own kids. Telling them that they need to find their own path and not worry about what other people are doing. Peer pressure hasn’t been much of an issue for my kids except for a single year for each in middle school. They all realized that they were unique and going to be on a different path than many other kids.