WARNING: Is the Ned Show coming to your school?

[Clarabel22]

If it is then you need to be aware of exactly what it's about, and it's not what it seems

The Ned Show is an American invention that claims to boost children's "academic achievement and character development". The company targets schools and persuades them to let them come in to do a show to the children that involves "Ned" delivering feel good messages while performing lots of tricks using a yo-yo. The kids love it, my son was thrilled by it.

Sounds good? You might not think so when you know what's behind it. The company perform the show for FREE, on condition the school sell the yo-yos to the children for the following week. There a several types they can choose from, ranging from £5 to £10. The school take a cut of the profits. This is nothing but high pressure sales directed at vulnerable children who are unable to see the whole picture. It is a cynical money making exercise at the expense of our children's welfare. I let my kids watch TV, buy them the odd branded t-shirt but this is something altogether more sinister.

After it was performed at my son's school he cried for 3 days running in an attempt to get me to buy him one. I resolutely said NO, until I took him into school the 4th morning and realised that virtually all the kids had one. I then gave in and purchased 2, one for his little brother as well. I was between a rock and a hard place and very unhappy about it. However, I did not want to exclude my child from his peers on this occasion.

I am absolutely disgusted that our school has participated in this scam. The Ned Show is performed solely as a vehicle to sell yo-yos to the children, by introducing a craze into the playground (which the school encouraged by allowing them to be brought into school). In this case it was astoundingly successful. One friend bought her 2 children a £10 yo-yo each, one lost his and was devastated so she bought another. That's £30 she spent on 3 plastic yo-yos!

So, if you get a leaflet from your school letting you know that The Ned Show is coming to town.... think about this and if you don't like it then OBJECT STRONGLY and make it clear you will not accept your children being used like this.

(Oh yes, if you're in Scotland I expect it might be called something else......)

[LostGirl]

This came to dd's school earlier this year and she did indeed want a yoyo, so I took her to the local toy shop so she could spend her pocket money on a 99p one which lasted as long as her enthusiasm for yo-yoing did!

[LynetteScavo]

I think the presure they put on the kids to buy a yo you is very high. I'd just bought DS a really great yo-yo, but he still empties his money box (with out telling me) and bought one.

Makes me feel really bad for the kids who didn't get one, for what ever reason.

[plusonemore]

we had this at our school (am teacher) and to be fair we didn't realise quite how much the sell would be on the yoyos, the website didnt really indicate this. The show WAS fantastic, very inspiring, lots of positive messages for the kids and everyone really enjoyed it. We were still talking about it weeks and weeks later. However, lots of our parents were very cross about the pressure to buy and we would not do it again because of this.

[jamdonut]

The ned show came to the school where I work , and my youngest son (age 10) attends, today.

It was actually very good,the kids were enthralled and although there was a "sell" the children were warned by the entertainer that they should listen to their parents, and that if they said no they couldn't have a yoyo they should respect that decision.

Parents should have the courage to say no to their children . Can't believe the person who bought 3 yoyos, on the first post in this thread.

Mind you, having seen them...they seem pretty good quality, and my son had already been practising with a free yoyo he got off his Doctor Who Adventures magazine a couple of weeks ago. so I might just get him the middle range one (£7).

[RollaCoasta]

Ned is on his way. Warnings will be passed on.... thx

[Feenie]

Namechanged for that then, jamdonut? Or do you actually work for them?

[BendyBob]

Schools should be more careful.

It's wrong to push products at a captive and vulnerable audience.

[pigglediggle]

anyone know where you can buy the ned yo yo holders?

[BrigitBigKnickers]

Our school had this last week.
The arguments the new yoyos have caused in the playground have prompted the senior management team to discuss a ban on them...

[LouAnnVanHouten]

We are getting them next week .

[RollaCoasta]

Ned is cancelled!

[claig]

"anyone know where you can buy the ned yo yo holders?"
jamdonut may know.

The Ned Show will probably be given a contract to open up new free schools, that way they'll be able to push their yoyos endlessly. Yoyos will become indispensable, and the Ned Show physics syllabus will be heavily based on their use.

[fanjoforthemammaries7850]

I don't think the Ned show would work in Scotland!! (Ned=chav/yob here)

[everyone89]

I found this page while trying to figure out if the Ned Show was one of those religious programs they try to sneak Jesus into schools without their parents knowning. And while I'm glad that it is not, I should have headed the scam warnings about their high-pressure sales tactics on this page. For the last week now my child has talked about $15 yo yos nonstop. He remembers nothing of their message and only retains a desire for an overpriced piece of plastic. The kids at his school who were conned into buying one are allowed to use them during school and there has been multiple messages from administrators encouraging the students to buy them because the school gets a portion of the sales. It is absolutely disgusting to use high pressure sales tactics within somewhere the children feel safe to make a quick buck. I am ashamed of the administration for allowing it to go on simply for a cut of the money.

[FannyFifer]

I'm in Scotland as well and giggling at the thought of the Ned show coming to DS school.

Folk in trackies, drinking buckfast & fighting by swinging yoyos at each other wld not be entirely appropriate.

[Aerionix]

So our kids just got the Ned visit (Canadians here) and first I hear of it is the kids flipping out over these yoyos. To be fair, they asked once and if the answer was no, they respect that, and usually find a way to earn the money for this stuff. But yeah, there's a lot of pressure for the kids to have them like everyone else. At first I was fuming. And then I wondered how is it different from the overpriced chocolate, magazines, books, photos, and assorted trinkets the schools are constantly either selling, or getting the kids to sell for them? At least its not another damn video game. We got mid range ($10) yoyo for each of us (4) and have been having great fun. And the slogans written on the thing are positive messages to keep close. So maybe school isn't the best place to peddle this stuff, but its the first school product we've used for longer than a week. Oh and I guess since I didn't bash em, that means I work for em to like you claim the other poster does. That was classy BTW.

[StoorieHoose]

fannyfifer your post made me laugh - trackies tucked into white socks, baseball hats pulled low, saying "awright ya bawbag" and the yo yo being the weapon of choice!

[fanjoforthemammaries7850]

Gonnae buy a yoyo man

[MrsDrJohnWatson]

Wow this actually exists and isn't just an episode of the Simpsons?

[MN164]

1. Should the school be inspiring and teaching the kids this stuff, instead of farming it out?
   

1. Wouldn't the money raised by the school to pay this "business" be better spent by the PA on stuff the school actually needs?
   

Welcome to privatised education ....

[pookamoo]

Bumping this as it is going around at the moment. Unimpressed.

[Dontstepinthecowpat]

Also in Scotland and my first thoughts were some sort of anti drugs message involving neds as a sort of role model not to aspire too

[Bilberry]

In Scotland and my ds school has recently had the Ned show (I did a double-take at the name). His school has also done young writers so perhaps the management aren't the most discerning... We didn't buy into either. However, his school hasn't done the 'young entrepreneurs ' type fairs at breaks like my dd school did which saw dd spending far more of her pocket money than I realised on absolute tat that didn't even make it home in one piece.