Sophia Spencer hated it when classmates taunted her for her love of insects, but seeing them kill her pet grasshoppers for fun was even worse.

Her first-grade peers couldnB次元官网网址檛 understand what she found so fascinating about bugs of all sorts or why sheB次元官网网址檇 devote spare time to catching them, reading about them, and generally carrying on like a budding entomologist.

As Sophia listened to schoolyard jeers that called her weird, or was forced to watch as her much-loved bugs were taken from her hands and stepped on for sport, she felt her confidence begin to wane.

Her mother, fearing her child would lose her independent streak, reached out to a national organization of insect researchers in search of a mentor for her daughter. Hundreds of entomologists responded, and now SophiaB次元官网网址檚 name appears alongside one of them in an international publication devoted to the study of insects.

She is listed as a co-author in a paper published in the Annals of the Entomological Society of America that explores ways social media can be used to engage the scientific community.

The story, held up for scientists as an example of social-media savvy used for the advancement of the profession, is a form of validation for the eight-year-old co-author.

B次元官网网址淎 lot of the kids saw it, and a lot of the kids knew that if they tried to bully me it wonB次元官网网址檛 really matter because B次元官网网址� I wonB次元官网网址檛 really care,B次元官网网址� Sophia said in a telephone interview from her home in Sarnia, Ont. B次元官网网址淭hey just realize that I like bugs and I wonB次元官网网址檛 stop.B次元官网网址�

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Such confidence seemed impossible for Sophia back in August 2016, according to her mother Nicole Spencer.

Anxious after a year of bullying from schoolmates, the child had become more withdrawn and less inclined to play with insects as sheB次元官网网址檇 done since she was a toddler.

Spencer said she wanted to find a mentor to help bolster her daughterB次元官网网址檚 flagging confidence and reassure her that her passion for bugs did not have to be a source of shame.

She wrote a letter to the Entomological Society of Canada outlining SophiaB次元官网网址檚 struggles and soliciting a penpal to help reassure her daughter.

The letter fell into the hands of Morgan Jackson, a PhD student at Guelph University who helped maintain the societyB次元官网网址檚 Twitter account. Moved by the story, he posted a screen shot of SpencerB次元官网网址檚 letter along with a call for volunteers accompanied by the hashtag #bugsR4Girls.

I'm really proud of this piece, and am thrilled to share the publishing experience with Sophia, who I met & collected bugs with this summer

B次元官网网址� Morgan Jackson (@BioInFocus)

The tweet got an almost instantaneous response. Would-be mentors began messaging their willingness to support Sophia within seven minutes of the tweet going live, according to the paper, and the post itself was shared thousands of times in the following weeks.

The call to action then found its way into newspapers at home and abroad, cementing it in journal editorsB次元官网网址� minds as a prime example of social media outreach done right.

When publishers planned a special edition on the issue of communication, Jackson said he was asked to contribute an account of his efforts on SophiaB次元官网网址檚 behalf. He said it seemed natural to include a section recounting the campaignB次元官网网址檚 effects written from the perspective of the person it was meant to help in the first place, which is what led to SophiaB次元官网网址檚 byline on the piece.

B次元官网网址淎fter my mom sent the message and showed me all the responses, I was happy,B次元官网网址� reads SophiaB次元官网网址檚 section in the paper. B次元官网网址淚 felt like I was famous. Because I was! It felt good to have so many people support me, and it was cool to see other girls and grown-ups studying bugs. It made me feel like I could do it too, and I definitely, definitely, definitely want to study bugs when I grow up, probably grasshoppers.B次元官网网址�

The paper concluded that when offered a stage with an audience of a million people, entomologists can use it to make a positive impact.

B次元官网网址淏y encouraging a young girlB次元官网网址檚 love for insects and entomology through an outpouring of community support made possible via social media, entomologists and insect enthusiasts not only made a difference in the life of that one girl, but spread their influence and enthusiasm across the globe,B次元官网网址� it said.

Jackson said Sophia shows a natural aptitude for science that bodes well for her future as an entomologist.

B次元官网网址淪heB次元官网网址檚 literally going through the scientific process and making her own discoveries about insect behaviour in the process of playing with them,B次元官网网址� Jackson said. B次元官网网址淭hat really struck me as being something special.B次元官网网址�

Sophia said the bullying has tapered off considerably since last year, a fact thatB次元官网网址檚 as much of a relief to her as it is to her mother.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 fantastic for a kid to see that itB次元官网网址檚 not going to last, that the bullyingB次元官网网址檚 going to stop and she can be who she wants to be,B次元官网网址� she said. B次元官网网址淭hatB次元官网网址檚 all I want for her.B次元官网网址�

Michelle McQuigge, The Canadian Press

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