Hi all,
My 4yo has just started full time school. Today is her first full day but shes been going since the start of Sept. Prior to this, she was at the nursery at the same school for a year.
When they first started school, each child was given a book bag that parents pay for. Then their full names were written in huge (and I mean huge) letters on the front of them above the school logo. As a journalist with a focus on parenting, I have read a lot about the dangers of personalised items like bags etc. Basically, if a predator sees your child's name, then it will be easier for them to lure them away. 'Oh hi Penny, your mum is just over here' etc. As a result, I personally dont like personalised bags or items. I've discussed this with my daughters childminders who said to tell my lo's teacher as it may not be something that they have thought about. So, this morning, not thinking it would be a huge conversation, I raised the issue as I was leaving the class.
The reaction I got (from supposedly the nicest teacher in the school) was not pleasant at all. I simply asked why the names were put on the outside of the book bags and not on the name labels provided, and she said that the name labels were too small and the kids would never see them. When I pointed out that I'd read a lot about it possibly being a safeguarding issue, she said, 'we would assume that they would never be anywhere without you.' My daughters childminder was there with me and began to make a point, she too was swiftly shut down, 'we would assume they would never be without you.' She was very abrasive, very rude, and made a point of saying that she would give my daughter a blank bag with her name on the inside but this would hinder her progress as she would need help to pick it out. I was so shocked with the reaction I got that I left the classroom shaking. Am I absolutely nuts here? I'm not expecting policy to be changed because one parent has said something, but I also felt like I have the right to raise the point concerning safety...
The head was on the playground as i was leaving so i did talk to her about the situation, and she was much more understand and gracious. I now feel a) irritated that I now feel like there isn't an open line of communication with the teacher of my child and b) concerned about my daughter feeling singled out.
All I wanted to do was have a conversation, but clearly she didn't like her practices being questioned. The head suggested that maybe I caught her at the wrong time, but I honestly didn't think it would be a serious conversation that would cause friction like this.
Please or to access all these features
Please
or
to access all these features
Join our Primary Education forum to discuss starting school and helping your child get the most out of it.
Primary education
Disagreement with childs teacher after raising safety concern
73 replies
Kpea123 · 23/09/2019 10:53
OP posts:
Don’t want to miss threads like this?
Weekly
Sign up to our weekly round up and get all the best threads sent straight to your inbox!
Log in to update your newsletter preferences.
You've subscribed!
Please create an account
To comment on this thread you need to create a Mumsnet account.