What do people think of this going on at my daughter's primary school?

Tei They have a boys vs girls competition during swimming lessons. They have to compete, as a group, to be the first out of the changing rooms each week.

They could so easily have shaken up the conventional world a little by asking the girls for savoury things and the boys for sweet, but no.

Actually I wish they wouldn't split the kids up by gender over anything. It always comes out seeming as if they're putting expectations on them.

Just wanted to say I very much agree with bertrand regarding Marie Stopes. You can't really judge her by today's sensibilities.

I wouldn't be bothered by the girls bring in sweet stuff thing. If the school is sexist I'm sure there will be lots of other stuff it does to worry about.
If this is the worst gender stereotyping issue to come up there really isn't much of an issue.

Sylvia Pankhurst is my fancy dress suggestion. She was my favourite Pankhurst.

I totally, completely get you OP. In fact, from your OP I initially suspected you were talking about DS's school - but we're even further south and west than you and another 20 years behind.

Let me guess...taken on its own this might be OK, but there's the whole drip drip of monocultural assumption behind it, perhaps? No, our school doesn't celebrate Diwali. It doesn't celebrate Eid. I'm pretty sure the kids have zero idea that these festivals exist. Meanwhile, there's a lot of sneaky promotion of Christianity, to the point that you could almost call it evangelism. Without any of the parents' prior knowledge or permission, the kids have been being bussed off to church to attend some kind of Christian service/ activity- now my 6 year old DS tells me he's a Christian and I shouldn't be saying "hell" because it's a rude word!

There's a "British Values" display in the school, with photos of the Royal Family and Winston Churchill. That's it. Not a single Briton who isn't white and upper class.

And what are these "British Values" anyway? Tolerance and democracy? Because all furriners are intolerant and undemocratic? Right....

Perhaps a good costume would be a 19th century colonialist in shorts and pith helmet? .

Wish me luck for Monday- I'll be having Words at the PTA meeting about this whole Christianity thing!

Marie Stopes views on eugenics were focused just as much on class as disability. She also had other political views and leanings that were fairly suspect. An incredible amount of apologism, special pleading and mental gymnastics goes into explaining away the troubling aspects of her activism and writing.

I'm really am sorry Doctor, I didn't mean to be mean or unkind, and I am open minded to these issues. I work in a heavily male dominated industry and do a lot within our quite large business to inspire and educate young girls as to opening their eyes to different career options. I am definitely there with you when there is a battle to fight, I just think don't think this is one of them.

if they had split it Y3/Y4, parents would moan 'oh what because they're younger they're ONLY expected to be able to make pretty little fairy cakes'.

Do you honestly think that would happen?

Mary Seacole is Jamaican with a bit of Scottish somewhere! Amazing woman and sadly undervalued. I teach about her in a unit on protest and inspirational people

If she hasn't been mentioned yet, I vote Mary Seacole. Contemporary of Florence Nightingale.

Felt like I had to comment to redress the balance as you're rightfully making a judgement on feeling based on replies to the thread OP, I wanted to throw my hat in as someone who feels this is an overreaction on your part.

People will always find opportunity to pick fault, if they had split it Y3/Y4, parents would moan 'oh what because they're younger they're ONLY expected to be able to make pretty little fairy cakes'.

I really do think you're reading too much into this, as for celebrating British culture I'm all for it and with regards to the food split, as a PP pointed out, sweet food doesn't necessarily infer pretty pink cupcakes, how about a fruit salad?

IMO, it seems you have a heightened sensitivity towards gender bias and are seeking out issues which simply don't exist. In contrast to what you have said (and I do appreciate I am not in a place to comment on your intentions so apologies in advance for this being out of line), reading your responses to the discussion of 'intentional offence' I can indeed imagine you looking forward to a letter or leaflet from school to hunt for the next perceived grandiose miscarriage of 'gender justice' to be frustrated about. It makes for an amusing picture in my mind, without wishing to belittle the issue - as it happens I am a moderate feminist - I think you need to lighten up a little on this one.

Overreaction. My ds is now yr 7 but throughout primary things were split in all different ways - usually boy/girl when food was to be shared by the class. It tended to be random - one year girls had to bring in blue things and boys red and both could bring in white.
They had a British day twice during his time there and all the children in the school loved it - Sikh, Muslim,Jewish, Christian, non/religious etc. Throughout the day they looked at voting and suffragettes, British food through the ages, changes in education, democracy etc. Ds learnt loads.
Costumes don't specify gender - send your daughter in as a knight or a King? Or how about Guinevere, Elizabeth Fry, Jane Austin, Elizabeth (I and II), Emmaline Pankhurst, Florence Nightingale ...
Make a sweet potato and cheese pie ...
You don't have to make this an argument with the school.

I think you'll find it's the Queen's 90th birthday next week which is what they are probably celebrating. You have massively overreacted imo.

People will moan at anything

I agree with Hearts. RhombusRileys post sums it up admirably, I think.

RhombusRiley Thu 14-Apr-16 13:03:38

Excellent post. Now back to read the rest of the thread.

Boudicca is a good option!!

The gender split of food wouldn't have upset me. Only on reflection and when pointed out would I perhaps question that the decision was a subtle bias of girls being sugar and spice etc. which is a perfect example of my subconscious bias. On the other hand the decision could have been as simple as flipping a coin as a PP pointed out!! Sometimes we will inevitably be offended by something.

I think a certain food for each year is the best approach.

What will you suggest to the school for the next event?

Nothing wrong with it, looks fun and educational. I think it is great. My kids celebrate Chinese New Year at school is that bad too? I don't get why you would be offended by the whole girl or boy split, you seem highly strung. Get a grip!

And if she hadn't opposed abortion she would have never worked again, and her amazing, pioneering work around contraception wouldn't have been possible.

So, more complicated than at first glance...........

Absolutely nothing wrong with it. Your being ridiculous

Marie Stopes was a product of her time- loads of people were in favour of eugenics. There was no ante natal testing, and very little effective medical/surgical help for children born with disabilities. And limited understanding of genetically transmitted disabilities. Eugenics in her case obviously didn't mean killing babies at birth- it was more about thinking about who would be allowed to have babies in the first place. Distasteful, obviously, to our sensibilities, but certainly logical, considering the circumstances prevailing.

Yeah I did think Marie stopes until I read she was into eugenics and actually opposed abortion!

How is that possible? Like, she was of the opinion that women ought to be forced to give birth to disabled children and kill them immediately after, or what?
Ah well, people have always been able to combine woman-hating attitudes, no matter of how combineable those really are. Weird that a woman would do it, though.

Boudicca. Definitely. Good choice. Very British.