Help please with school activities week

milliebear00001

Savvy_Sue wrote: »

Can you go in with her, ask to see the teacher in charge, ask what they are doing today, and if it's knitting say "OK, she will learn more about crafts if we go home and find something she'd like to do online."

This might be a nice idea, but parents don't get to pick and choose when they send their kids to school. There is a legal requirement to send her! It might be that what she's doing doesn't seem very worthwhile and interesting to either the OP or her daughter, but if I'd gone home to my parents and told them the same thing at that age, I'd have been told 'tough - go get on with it'. Sometimes kids have to do stuff they don't like or enjoy - that's life I'm afraid - and a valuable lesson to learn.

OP - what you really don't want to be doing, is giving her the impression that if ever she doesn't like what's happening at school, she can go running to mummy, who will get her out of it!

Savvy_Sue

True enough, but a week of knitting? No, I wouldn't accept that for one of my children, and yes I have sent them to suffer unexciting activities weeks.

How else do the parents communicate to the school that this was unacceptable?

milliebear00001

Savvy_Sue wrote: »

True enough, but a week of knitting? No, I wouldn't accept that for one of my children

How else do the parents communicate to the school that this was unacceptable?

In answer to your second point, there is a big difference between 'communicating' that you aren't happy with an activity they have chosen for your child, and keeping them out of school illegally, because of it.

In answer to your first point - if you 'wouldn't accept that for one of your children' what exactly would you do instead - why do you assume you would have any choice in the matter?! Parents do not get to choose what their kids do in schools. If you want input into the curriculum, you need to be a teacher or stand as a Governor.

pelirocco

milliebear00001 wrote: »

This might be a nice idea, but parents don't get to pick and choose when they send their kids to school. There is a legal requirement to send her! It might be that what she's doing doesn't seem very worthwhile and interesting to either the OP or her daughter, but if I'd gone home to my parents and told them the same thing at that age, I'd have been told 'tough - go get on with it'. Sometimes kids have to do stuff they don't like or enjoy - that's life I'm afraid - and a valuable lesson to learn.

OP - what you really don't want to be doing, is giving her the impression that if ever she doesn't like what's happening at school, she can go running to mummy, who will get her out of it!

Oh no there isnt , there is only a legal requirement to provide an education

liney

But there is a legal requirement to send them to school or Home Educate, not just pick and chose to suit yourself.

I actually think this is a great lesson for your daughter; the lesson is "We don't always get what we want, and everyone has to do things they don't like sometimes"

milliebear00001

pelirocco wrote: »

Oh no there isnt , there is only a legal requirement to provide an education

But the OP has clearly chosen not to home ed - she sends her daughter to school, and so has a legal obligation to makes sure she attends. If she wants to pick and choose what the child does educationally, then home ed is an excellent choice.

Savvy_Sue

milliebear00001 wrote: »

In answer to your second point, there is a big difference between 'communicating' that you aren't happy with an activity they have chosen for your child, and keeping them out of school illegally, because of it.

In answer to your first point - if you 'wouldn't accept that for one of your children' what exactly would you do instead - why do you assume you would have any choice in the matter?! Parents do not get to choose what their kids do in schools. If you want input into the curriculum, you need to be a teacher or stand as a Governor.

In Activities Week, we have always had a nominal choice, which hasn't always been great for my lads but at least has had some variety.

But illegal or not, I would keep my child home if they were expected to knit all week, unless they wanted to do it. And I would get my sewing machine out and we'd try different crafts at home.

And I would offer to help out the following year, if they didn't think they could do better themselves. That would give them time to check me out, do a CRB disclosure, etc etc etc.

As it happens I took one son out of school during his work experience week, because very late on they told me that what we'd planned and consulted them about wasn't acceptable (because it was abroad). It was a TEACHER who suggested, off the record, that if we happened to take a family holiday that week, and my son happened to come back with his work experience booklet completed, it would be signed off. Yes he has five days absence that year, if an employer ever cares to look at his record.

One of my colleagues also took their child out of school during activities week and went on an educational family holiday which met the child's particular interests.

Do you really think the EWO would be on the case for 3 days' unauthorised absence during activities week?

milliebear00001

Savvy_Sue wrote: »

In Activities Week, we have always had a nominal choice, which hasn't always been great for my lads but at least has had some variety.

But illegal or not, I would keep my child home if they were expected to knit all week, unless they wanted to do it. And I would get my sewing machine out and we'd try different crafts at home.

And I would offer to help out the following year, if they didn't think they could do better themselves. That would give them time to check me out, do a CRB disclosure, etc etc etc.

As it happens I took one son out of school during his work experience week, because very late on they told me that what we'd planned and consulted them about wasn't acceptable (because it was abroad). It was a TEACHER who suggested, off the record, that if we happened to take a family holiday that week, and my son happened to come back with his work experience booklet completed, it would be signed off. Yes he has five days absence that year, if an employer ever cares to look at his record.

One of my colleagues also took their child out of school during activities week and went on an educational family holiday which met the child's particular interests.

Do you really think the EWO would be on the case for 3 days' unauthorised absence during activities week?

In my experience, parents who teach their children that school is optional, depending on whether the activity on offer is personally interesting to them, are often parents whose children are absent a lot more than three days. They also do not have a leg to stand on when reprimanding those children when they later truant to do 'something more interesting'.

MrsTinks

For what it's worth - knitting isn't actually that "horrible" - I learnt it and it wasn't at school! Infact i think it's great she's learning something like that at school! Ditto crochet - people seem to think it's "old folks" who do them but it doesn't have to be... I taught myself crochet about 2 years ago (really old - 27 then!) and learnt to knit when I was about 16/17... (I did learn it earlier but had forgotten again...)
If you're not happy with one activity all week then by all means communicate that to the school, but remember that constructive critisism is far more productive not only in getting results but also in teaching your daughter how to deal with a situation... Instead of barging in f'ing and blinding like your post here then why not simply communicate like "My daughter has mentioned that she has been knitting for 2/3 days now and that she's finding it very repetitive. I was wondering if there were other crafts that they could do, maybe something I can help with or help with some materials for?" being as you are at home anyway (to be able to do crafts with her at home instead...)
Whatever you do try to be constructive instead of destructive

milliebear00001

MrsTine wrote: »

For what it's worth - knitting isn't actually that "horrible" - I learnt it and it wasn't at school! Infact i think it's great she's learning something like that at school! Ditto crochet - people seem to think it's "old folks" who do them but it doesn't have to be... I taught myself crochet about 2 years ago (really old - 27 then!) and learnt to knit when I was about 16/17... (I did learn it earlier but had forgotten again...)
If you're not happy with one activity all week then by all means communicate that to the school, but remember that constructive critisism is far more productive not only in getting results but also in teaching your daughter how to deal with a situation... Instead of barging in f'ing and blinding like your post here then why not simply communicate like "My daughter has mentioned that she has been knitting for 2/3 days now and that she's finding it very repetitive. I was wondering if there were other crafts that they could do, maybe something I can help with or help with some materials for?" being as you are at home anyway (to be able to do crafts with her at home instead...)
Whatever you do try to be constructive instead of destructive

Absolutely agree. I learned to sew at school (and use a sewing machine). I have saved hundreds of pounds over the years thanks to this skill. I know people who have to take a new pair of trousers to the drycleaners to be altered, or don't know where to start with school costumes for their kids. These are dying skills that are sorely underappreciated. The fact the school makes time for them, in an incredibly crowded curriculum, is to be applauded. They could, of course, simply keep them nose to the grindstone on maths and literacy for the final week - would this have gone down better with the children? I know which mine would choose!