Lil Lookout's version of justice

[DanaC]

Alternatively, accept that in the kid world, fights do happen, bullies do exist and no word from a teacher will ever be as effective in stopping a playground bully than another kid hitting back (preferably in a clever way, which is what LL did). The bully came away with a minor injury no greater than any other risked when playing football (even at that age) and a very useful lesson in peer-justice.

More importantly, to my mind, LL handled the situation with a serious degree of control. He did not fling himself fists first at the bully, he quietly took advantage of an opportunity to settle a score, protect a very vulnerable friend, and send a message to every boy on that field that the autistic boy is not to be treated as the yard punchbag.

Personally I would leave it at that. Don't make a big thing out of it, but talk about it if you get the impression it's playing on his mind. If he does something like that again, it may be worth exploring with him why he is doing and explaining why it's not appropriate in most circumstances. A useful lesson to learn in life, though, is that sometimes it actually is appropriate.