'When did you first realise that you were 'different'?'

I think in those times it was fairly general that we would be 'pulled up' for not following the 'standard' writing of the policy of the school.

Contrariwise to your teacher, we were made to write the three with a flat top.  And also the four with an 'open' top, not making a triangle.  A nine had to have a vertical line below the circle, not one at an angle. A '1' would have to be a straight vertical line.  A '2' would be outlawed if it had a 'curly' bottom.  A '6' conversely to the '9' had to have an angled line. There was no room for individualism at all.   Punishment was handed out for offending, such as being rapped over the knuckles with the ruler, or smacked on the legs (boys wore short trousers so it would be quite painful).

There were also rules about the relative sizes within quite strict limits.  I remember one lad, who in retrospect was dyslexic, who was frequently punished for writing his capital 'R' the wrong way round, which probably didn't help him, and being left handed was also subject to punishment.

Those were the days!

I was taken to one side, aged 7, and told to stop writing my numerals using straight lines mimicking the form of seven-segment displays. 

I was taken to one side, aged 7, and told to stop writing my numerals using straight lines mimicking the form of seven-segment displays.