School overreacted ?

@Bookish88 they were playing a game and the other child (same age) suggested that her character should be called ‘poo’ because she is brown like poo. If you think that’s just making a factual statement (as the child’s parents seemed to) then you’re part of the problem.

@piintheski it absolutely is.

That doesn't automatically mean it's appropriate to say, which is why the context and age of child is relevant, to understand whether they should have known that.

Poo CAN be a racist slur. Probably wasn't on this occasion but it will do your son no harm to learn that a) name calling is not nice; and b) calling black people poo is even more insulting.

So while there hasn't necessarily been racist intent, the impact was that a black kid (or other ethnicity) was called something that can be construed as racist. The school has addressed that and has punished the child in question.

I think that's actually a good outcome.

Two days isolation for a six year old? Even if there was a racist element (which I really can't imagine because children have been calling each other poo insults since I was at school in the sixties) two days is ridiculous and counter productive at that age. I'm a teacher by the way.

Primary kids love the word poo, and they're daft as brushes at that age. Unless your child specifically said "your skin is the colour of poo" the school is massively over-reacting.

The child who was called poo was upset by it so they did the right thing and reported it. It is important that that child who felt that s/he was being racially insulted could see their school taking action against that.

The school is at fault for not punishing all the children in this situation. They were all doing the same mean and silly thing. They all need to have an explanation of why they were in the wrong and why their choice of insult can easily be seen as racist.

Some kids are well aware of racism and racist comments at that age unfortunately due to beliefs expressed at home or familial experience of racism directed at the family. My son's friend was subjected to insults based on his race at that age from a boy in his class. One of which involved saying his skin looked like poo. There were also a lot of incidents of racism on the playground directed against children of all non-white races and ethnicities when COVID started, implying people who were not white carried COVID. This is in a school that has a very diverse intake in an inner city area.

Your child's insults may not have been intended in that way, but your child has learnt a valuable life lesson about the way you speak to people.

that is NOT a "factual statement based on observation"

She didn't say it was racist. She said she wanted to make sure it didn't continue.

@justabigdisco that's awful and clearly racist though! I think just shouting 'poo!' Has a different intent behind it. If the one non white child was singled out that also adds another element but purely going by the OPs account this seems like it was not racist.

I'm not saying it's good behaviour mind!

Ok, but with this example, what was the context of how it was said? And how old the child? If younger primary age, I'd have assumed they were simply making a factual statement based on observation. It's not automatically racist.

I guess there's certain words that could be thought of as racists and its best kids are taught at an early age.

Would you have been happy if they called a black kid a monkey? Would you have been offended if they got into trouble for it?

I agree that this punishment seems over the top, but I think a lot of you are being very naive if you don't think 6 year old know about racism. My daughter was in pre-school (so was 3) when she was told by another child in her class that she shouldn't be playing with any of the black kids and she should stick to her own kind. By another 3 year old. This was obviously the message that they had been sent into school with from home, and not the kids fault at all. But racist adults will pass those lessons onto their children early.

My daughter (half asian) had a child say to her ‘you’re brown like poo’ at around this age. I wasn’t inclined to write it off as ‘kids being kids’. The child who said it needed to know that that wasn’t an ok thing to say, regardless of the intention behind it.

I think this type of punishment is just showing children what racism is.

In my DC class at that age the white children described themselves as peach not white, black children were brown and Syrian children were tan. All self reported.

As people they didn't see a difference amongst themselves.

That has changed slightly as they've gotten older and learnt that they all don't share the same faith, so recognise their homelives are different- but luckily in their case no signs of racism yet! As they also realise not everyone goes back to the same type of house they do.

Yes, racism can be very much passed on in "some' homes - but if its not; all this school have done is turn a normal childhood taunt and turn it into a racial issue.

School have been ridiculous. Seven year olds calling people “a poo” is just a playground insult.

If the 11 year old experienced that as a racist slur, an assembly talking about racism might be appropriate, but not punishing a little kid for two days over a scatological word.

I have memories of being 6 and my best friend was black, there was also a Chinese boy in the class. I remember saying no you are made of poo and my best friend is made of chocolate after he had said my friend was made of poo.

Guess what I am trying to say is yes kids don’t know what “racism” is but they are picking up on loads of differences at a very young age.

The school have potentially overreacted seems very extreme. But I disagree that kids don’t know what racism is….it’s a child’s variant.

So I can perceive anything you say as a.sexist.or racist insult, or hate speach, or even a threat, and it makes no difference what you say in you defence, if i perceice it it is true? that is crackers.

Saying "you are.the colour of poo" and "poo!" Are 2 different things.

Well if you only call the brown kid a poo and the white kids gets other insults. And maybe the brown kid is the only brown kid in the class?

And if the same kid is always being called a poo cos he's brown. And then it becomes his nickname. I think it would upset the kid and his family very much. And would be racist.

Depends on the context.

But if that kid has been called poo several times before in an environment where the majority of kids are white/ by white kids. I could understand if the kids parents complained.

This ^

You should use this as a learning experience for your child. Regardless of intent, they are not the victim here.

Oh dear. I doubt he was being racist, just being silly like lots of 7 year olds. However, I think most children are taught in schools what racism is from a young age and hopefully at home too.

You seem more upset that your child has been labelled a racist, than that your child made another upset by making an inappropriate comment. It's for the person on the receiving end to decide if what you said hurt/insulted/upset them, not for you to determine.

Even if it was a genuine mistake, use this as a learning experience for the power of words with your child. If you adopt a stance of the school being out of order in front of your child, you may reinforce that they can just go around insulting people and it's fine..

It is nothing to do with the school. Someone perceived the child as being racist to them, so procedure is followed. Intent cant be assessed, can it, only perception, so the child needs to learn this.

I am utterly horrified by the behaviour of your child - and even more so by the casual way you mention it as if it is normal. Do you accept that sort of behaviour from her?

piintheski

the only ‘lesson’ that the OP has learnt is that the school are race obsessed nutjobs who are more concerned with appearing to be pc than fair treatment.
there is nothing at all to suggest that this was a racist incident, and it is disgusting to treat a 6 year old as though he’d used the n word.
my daughter called my husband a poo twice yesterday and she is the same age as the OPs child. It’s the insult of choice for them.

and I’m utterly done with the bollocks of if someone perceives something as racist then it is.
perception is not reality and it’s the intent that matters.