Do you know what pisses me off about parents evenings?

[BretonStripe]

My eldest child is in YR3, youngest in Reception. So just worked out dh and I have attended eight parents evenings so far (two per academic year).

Had ds1's tonight and got told he's working at greater depth, he's polite, works hard, contributes well etc I thanked his teachers for all their hard work...they smiled and nodded appreciation...but failed to thank us? We work hard at raising polite children, who are always on time to school with breakfast inside them, eager and willing to learn. We read with/to them every night, and help them with their homework.

Do teachers generally not credit parents for anything? Is it normal for them not to say something along the lines of "thanks for all you do too?".

maisypops - your post in italics is very strange. I have no clue what that means.

My point stands; I’ve never reported a thread for bullying before yet I have on this. You disagree, you feel you were merely making repeated comic points in jest once the OP had capitulated way back.

We don’t agree and I’m sure we won’t.

Basically there's often people who'll turn up on threads where people are being lighthearted and then decide to be the thread police who are here to tell everyone else how awful and judgey and wrong they are.

As ive said many times, should I reprimand my students for laughing about a silly thing I said? Should a colleague sanction them if they overhear the students joking about it at break? Should I try to dress them down for bringing it up days later?

Maisie - your examples aren’t comparable, as I’m sure you know (or you can tell yourself fhey are, but they’re not).

I will often say ‘she’s a delight to have in the class’ or ‘he’s been a joy to teach’. I have said in the past something along the line of a child’s success being due to him having great support from home.
I think it is worth acknowledging when parents are being very supportive.

However complaining than no one has explicitly said thank you is a bit rich.

SausageOnAFork
That's the sort of thing I say.
So and so is diligent/ polite / friendly / organiser etc.
So and so does well to manage their school work with all their extra curriculars as I'm sure you will know.

If ive had a lot of contact with a parent then that'll be mentioned too (e.g. some parents I talk to weekly due to their child needing additional TLC).

Specific 'thank you for giving the world such an amazing gift in your child who has clearly been raised by you to the highest standard' wouldn't cross my mind. (But then again I have a relative who thinks any of their children's achievement is somehow an extension of them, even when the children are in their 30s, so I find the whole parents seeking gushing statements rather ridiculous and nauseating).

Crikey, the headteacher has arrived

All the heads I've met have had a sense of humour though

Had my daughters parent teacher interview yesterday and thought it was odd that she did thank me for being involved with homework’s.

I don’t need people to thank me for doing what I’m supposed to for and with my children ( though I doubt I’d ever get tired of hearing genuine compliments about my kids!)

Very true!

Do you know what has shocked me the most on this thread? The assumption that being a teacher should mean you can't me sarcastic or swear. Teachers are just human beings like everybody else. The way they act in a classroom is one thing but in private or on a forum like this they are not in a classroom and are in the company of peers.

Gosh this is going a bit far here.

BBC Essex, you've reported it. I think you need to let the mods manage it and stop lashing out now.

Oh, the assumption that teachers aren't normal people is usual. We can't possibly be tattooed, swear, drink alcohol, socialise or anything else that might be an enjoyable activity if it if more lively than church or embroidery.

If only they saw the staff at a school Christmas party 😂

sips camomile tea let's get real here some people have been a bit hive mind about this, the OP was reacting to something and perhaps it was not explained very well but I understood where she was coming from and personally I think some people preferred to remain obtuse...not everyone could understand her point and openly took great pleasure in ribbing OP...but we must admit some people were nasty and tbh it's real work to make sure a young child is ready for school, polite and engaged...and if we are honest not every parent does this

I popped in here to say 'surely the bad queuing system that always means it's a scrum and you miss your turn and the parents in front of you always take about ten hours and you lose the will to live'

But it's a bit of a melee so I'm making a rapid exit.

Of course being a parent is hard, of course some people don't do it well, in fact do it terribly if at all. I don't think that's in dispute. The question on the table was should teachers thank parents for doing it. More than that, the op was pissed off they weren't thanking her.

I don't see it as hive minded because most people think teachers should not be having to thank parents for doing the basics of child rearing,

And let's face it, feeding your kids, dressing them, supporting them in their reading is the basics and every parent should do this. The fact it's hard or every parent doesn't, doesn't change that.

LOL shady...what pisses me off is the fact that I had to walk to every teacher in rooms all over the school building!...over 2hrs ...I didn't stick to my times otherwise I would have been there all night...'Academic Review'...more like Athletic review tha bastards

I think I’ve thanked parents on occasion, sometimes it IS a pleasant surprise when parents are really supportive of school and their children’s learning.

That being said, I gave up smoking a few years ago and I’m not expecting my GP to thank me for that anytime soon. That seems a fair comparison, because I did it for me, not for them.

Bluntness you have to admit that the behaviour of some posters was unkind and taking how the OP felt out of context..strange how I could understand where she was coming from but others couldn't...as I said a complement is a thank you from a teacher.. and some people enjoy a good laugh at someone else's expense...

When I gave up smoking my G.P said 'well done Yoniverse I knew you could do it!'...not 'thanks' but he acknowledged the work I had put in to change my lifestyle...so i think the OP was talking about acknowledgement....

Had parents evening tonight and the teacher thanked me :-)

She said she wished every parent was half as good as DH and I. DS has some significant issues and struggles with social communication. He has a diagnosis of autism. He has no friends and it's really hard to work on social communication skills when you don't have play dates. He cries about it. Talking with her I asked who the class parent is and she said no one. Now it's me. She sat there open mouthed. She said it's amazing what I'm willing to do. She said your working flat out and on your own most of the time with 3DC who are young. You have 2 disabled children and a 3rd going through the terrible 2s and you find a solution to a problem your kid is having. Now I've got the contact details for all the parents in his class and the other class parents. My kid is going to have some play dates this year. Hopefully he will be invited to more than 1 birthday party this year!

What is the class parent and how did They give you all the contact details

I’d be really annoyed if my DD’s teacher gave out my contact details to a parent without my permission!

You sign a release at the start of the year. Pretty much everyone signs it. Every parent in the class signed it so I have the email addresses now. Sent an email out this morning setting up a play date for families st an indoor play area close by which is free for them to attend (we paid for the space). 5 of the 6 families are attending!

Obviously I'm not allowed to share their emails with others. Goes without saying.