Primary school closing early.

Cakeguts

You know when you see something on the telly and there is immediately something that strikes you as wrong but you can't put your finger on it straight away?

There was a primary school that was closing on Friday at lunch time because it had run out of money. I have never seen so much stuff in a classroom. There were containers with crayons in them obviously provided by the school. I thought that parents bought their children's pens crayons and pencils. Please tell me that I am not providing simple stationary items for all the children in the local school in my borough from my council tax.

The other thing about that school was the amount of paper they had and were using. Children writing words on A3 size pieces of paper it had to have been a fire risk. How can the children practice writing at home if the pieces of paper they were given to write on were too big to fit in a school bag? What happened to exercise books? It looks as if the school could spend everything they got on things not education just things. Because of all these things that their budget had been wasted on they couldn't afford to open on Friday afternoon.

elsien

You count crayons, pencils and paper as non-essential items for primary school children? Did they have the temerity to have some games in there as well? And surely not sports equipment - that really would be unreasonable.

Cakeguts

elsien wrote: »

You count crayons, pencils and paper as non-essential items for primary school children? Did they have the temerity to have some games in there as well? And surely not sports equipment - that really would be unreasonable.

When I was at school many many years ago we bought our own crayons, pencils and pens and took them to school with us. The school only provided things like large bottles of glue. The point is that people of my age are not uneducated and we didn't go to schools where everything was provided for us out of taxpayers money. Large pieces of paper were used for art once a week and we had exercise books for writing in. We didn't use large size pieces of paper to write words on in black felt tip pen we used exercise books and pencils with erasures so that if you made a mistake you could rub it out and start again. Writing with black felt tip pen on large pieces of paper is wasteful if you make a mistake you have to start again on another piece of huge paper. I can't see any educational reason for using black felt tip pens instead of pencils.

It is easy to see why the school has run out of money. They are just wasting it.

SingleSue

When I was at primary school and especially the infant years, all crayons, pencils etc were provided. I got my first pencil case when I started senior school as that was the first time we had to provide and transport them between home and school.

I'm afraid I can't remember what we used to write/draw on when I was in infants (we're talking over 40 years ago) but we did have exercise books in juniors...mum unearthed one of mine just a few weeks ago.

vivatifosi

What makes A3 paper a fire risk over and above the paper in any other classroom?

Graham_Devon

Cakeguts wrote: »

There was a primary school that was closing on Friday at lunch time because it had run out of money. I have never seen so much stuff in a classroom. There were containers with crayons in them obviously provided by the school. I thought that parents bought their children's pens crayons and pencils. Please tell me that I am not providing simple stationary items for all the children in the local school in my borough from my council tax.

Are you seriously suggesting you have a problem with your taxation money going towards crayons and stationery items for children in primary school? :huh:

And A3 paper? Fire risk? I don't... even.... what?!

Owain_Moneysaver

SingleSue wrote: »

I'm afraid I can't remember what we used to write/draw on when I was in infants (we're talking over 40 years ago) but we did have exercise books in juniors

For art and scribbling it was whatever paper the school could scrounge from wherever. I seem to remember using the back of used 'music-ruled' printer paper at times, and having to tear the perf strips off the sides.

Don't think I used one at school, but at home I had a slate and chalk for playing with.

At last year in junior school we had to provide our own fountain pen and cartridges.

With parents and teachers who remembered the war you did not waste paper.

MPD

It's the paper and crayons.

It couldn't be the NI changes.
It couldn't be the £6000 per SEN pupil no longer funded centrally.
It couldn't be the per pupil funding reductions.
It couldn't be unfunded, albeit low, pay rises for the staff.

Norman_Castle

While it does seem wasteful to write oversize letters on large pieces of paper (environmentally friendly?) I doubt it makes much difference to the cost of running a school.

Contact your local fire brigade about the potential fire risk, they could do with a laugh.

AnotherJoe

Admin, please can you check out user "cakeguts", I think the account has been hacked into by a Daily Fail reading troll.

System

When I attended a tiny rural one-class school in 1956 the slates and chalk we wrote with were provided. There was no other equipment.