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Original poster

Things you can’t believe your teenager doesn’t know

671 replies

Annoyingwurringnoise · 26/12/2022 23:39

My teenage DS, who went to a Church of England primary school, does not know the song Little Donkey. I am utterly perplexed as to how this can possibly be. He’s been a donkey twice in nativity plays, once at preschool and once at school, but he swears he doesn’t remember Little Donkey.

What things have you found out your teenagers don’t know that’s just left you scratching your head in disbelief?

OP posts:
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5
Nimbostratus100 · 27/12/2022 09:32

SaintLoy · 27/12/2022 09:25

Well, I suppose it would be if you hadn't been taught and had in your course material that Victoria died in 1901, a bedridden old lady, when Adolf Hitler was an unknown 12 year old schoolboy in Austria.

Show quote history

Kaiser Wilhelm 2nd was Queen Victoria's grandson. I dont think asking if she also knew Hitler is an unreasonable question at all, for all we know, she might have met him, she was in his vicinity often enough, and who knows how many "unknown Austrians" she met?

OK, we are having a bit of a laugh at the way society has changed, and how facts we consider central are just not being passed on

I see know reason to be sneering at children asking sensible questions, about things they are trying to understand and learn about.

imnotthatkindofmum · 27/12/2022 09:33

My teens crack up when're we use well known sayings. The best one was when DH said someone was "jammy" they laughed for days about that.

A few weeks ago I told my DD that grandma had a "bee in her bonnet" and she was completely baffled. Which is rich from a child who was raised on a reading diet of mainly Enid Blyton!

Yesterday DH said "buck your ideas up" at the dinner table" (not to them but as something his parents might have said to him) cue more hysterical (any excuse for drama) laughter, increased 10 fold when I pointed out that he hadn't even used it in the right context.

They love it when we act "old"

Santancrap · 27/12/2022 09:33

My daughter didn’t know and couldn’t fathom why I had to have car insurance
she thought like health insurance I could decide .
she said , ‘well can’t you just try not to crash’

Yes dear,because now I have car insurance I go out of my way to crash, dodgem style 😂🙄

Interested in this thread?

Then you might like threads about this subject:

General education
MichaelAndEagle · 27/12/2022 09:34

My DS didn't know the meaning of lame beyond 'a bit shit' which came to light when I described a horse as lame.

cakeorwine · 27/12/2022 09:34

This is a bizarre thread. Teenagers not knowing who Cameron Diaz is?
I wonder how familiar posters were with celebrities of many years before they were born?

imnotthatkindofmum · 27/12/2022 09:35

Also in ref to op my kids had a completely different donkey song which that all know word for word They didn't go to c of e school though although did do nativities. Those random ones with a script and music the school buys in.

Hahahahohoho · 27/12/2022 09:37

Kokeshi123 · 27/12/2022 05:49

We need a Venn diagram of “people who complain about teaching of any religious content in schools, even from a strictly ‘belief-neutral’ standpoint,” and “people who express dismay when kids can’t understand cultural allusions or metaphors that are grounded in religion.”

The “core knowledge” people are right, honestly; kids need some basic knowledge of the classics and world religions.

If the schools don’t do it, parents need to do it themselves.

DD got a 9 in her GCSE Religion - she parked that knowledge at the door of the exam hall on her way out - never to allow it to enter her brain again. Her general knowledge about Christianity is very poor...no interest you see.

Nimbostratus100 · 27/12/2022 09:37

jmh740 · 27/12/2022 09:30

Full class of 12 year olds only 1 knew who John Lennon was

I'm still getting 12 years old's on my register named after Lennon!

ReviewingTheSituation · 27/12/2022 09:38

Can't believe this hasn't been shared yet!

(for context Jason Manford had Assembly Bangers as part of his set on tour, released it as a single for Trussell Trust, then followed it up with this).

Samanthascousinbrenda · 27/12/2022 09:39

Nimbostratus100 · 27/12/2022 09:23

but where does that gets us? Children then believe that there is some sort of order, beginning with Australopithecus, through Neanderthals, and on to Homo Sapiens etc - which is equally ignorant, in fact more ignorant, as it shows a fundamental misconception of what our species actually is and where it came from, as opposed to just what individuals of the species have done, where and when.

And I know people who have carried this misconception on into adulthood

Show quote history

@Nimbostratus100 please could you explain this a bit more? Surely there is a chronological order to historical events. I would like to know what you mean, if you don't mind expounding. Thanks.

Greengr · 27/12/2022 09:40

My 19 year old Ds hasn't been feeling great. I suggested he take two paracetamol.
His reply ' I took two yesterday'🤷‍♀️

EspeciallyD · 27/12/2022 09:41

I don't think its at all unreasonable that teens don't know how to use a CD, phone box, landline phone or whatever, these things are disappearing fast. Different to not knowing the basics of religion, history etc.

cakeorwine · 27/12/2022 09:42

jmh740 · 27/12/2022 09:30

Full class of 12 year olds only 1 knew who John Lennon was

The Beatles were in the 1960s

Were you familiar with the great singers of the 1910s when you were 12?

ReviewingTheSituation · 27/12/2022 09:42

Hmmmm. My link doesn't work. Search 'Jason manford Christmas bangers' on YouTube and it comes up. Assembley Bangers worth a look too!

Tilllly · 27/12/2022 09:44

My now grown up DS was horrified aged 12-13 to see us eating spare ribs. Genuinely thought they were human...

DS2 started Uni this year. Baffled by washing detergent AND fab conditioner. Thought they were different names for the same thing

🤣

DrMadelineMaxwell · 27/12/2022 09:44

It became clear when dd was 17 that she had confused carpet-fitter and carpenter in her head when she confidently told me that Jesus's dad was a carpet fitter too when we were talking about getting her new flooring fitted.

Walkerbean16 · 27/12/2022 09:45

My 12 year old got a Polaroid camera for Christmas and when the photo came out white she was asking how long it takes to "load" 😩

SaintLoy · 27/12/2022 09:45

Nimbostratus100 · 27/12/2022 09:32

Kaiser Wilhelm 2nd was Queen Victoria's grandson. I dont think asking if she also knew Hitler is an unreasonable question at all, for all we know, she might have met him, she was in his vicinity often enough, and who knows how many "unknown Austrians" she met?

OK, we are having a bit of a laugh at the way society has changed, and how facts we consider central are just not being passed on

I see know reason to be sneering at children asking sensible questions, about things they are trying to understand and learn about.

Show quote history

How often did Victoria go to the Linz area of Austria-Hungary (which was a separate country to Germany), and what does the Kaiser being her grandson have to do with anything?

Hahahahohoho · 27/12/2022 09:45

AnotherAppleThief · 27/12/2022 07:34

During a game on Christmas day, found out my 19 and 16 year old didn't know who Cameron Diaz was.

A couple of years a go, when my dcs were 16, they didn't know who William and Harry were - not even what they looked like - I felt just a little bit proud at that moment!

Gingerlygreen · 27/12/2022 09:46

I've just asked my 7 and 9 year olds about Little Donkey, the 7yr old knew it but not the 9yr old. To be fair none of the nativity plays they've been in have had any well known songs, they're usually nursery Rhyme tunes with nativity themed words.

They both knew what stamps were for but not where they'd buy them from, 7yr old said she'd get them from the fire station 😆

AmberGer · 27/12/2022 09:50

I've just asked my soon to be 11 year old. He doesn't know little donkey or silent night wtf?! 😲

SaintLoy · 27/12/2022 09:50

cakeorwine · 27/12/2022 09:34

This is a bizarre thread. Teenagers not knowing who Cameron Diaz is?
I wonder how familiar posters were with celebrities of many years before they were born?

I don't know who Cameron Diaz is.

Poppiesway1 · 27/12/2022 09:52

Hahahahohoho · 27/12/2022 09:37

DD got a 9 in her GCSE Religion - she parked that knowledge at the door of the exam hall on her way out - never to allow it to enter her brain again. Her general knowledge about Christianity is very poor...no interest you see.

Show quote history

I was told by ds RE teacher that most gcse students struggle with the Christianity section as it’s it’s quite a small module compared to the other religions they cover in gcse. In Alevel RE, Christianity is covered in fat more detail

lostinlego · 27/12/2022 09:52

VariationsonaTheme · 27/12/2022 03:31

Two teenagers in this house, both have good general knowledge - apparently have never heard Good King Wenceslas!! The joke in the cracker about how he like his pizzas took some explaining.

I hàd exactly the same experience, neither of them had heard of it. Apparently it's not a carol of there generation!

sashh · 27/12/2022 09:54

Teaching 16+ general lack of knowledge is widespread.

None can tell the time, even if they wear a watch. Well they can on their phone.

I've told this many times

Me: Did you say phesant
Student: No miss. What's a phesant?
Me: It's a bird, you can eat it
Student: Uhg who'd eat a bird?
Me: Do you eat chicken?

Something is going wrong in Coventry biology classes, only half the classes I taught knew that blood was red. They would argue it was blue and show me their wrists, after asking about if they had ever cut themselves they said that the blood hit the air and changed colour. They thought that's what oxygenation is.

I don't with to worry people but these were students heading for careers in health care.

Some displays I have seen eg posters about a health diet telling you not to drink 'Full fat coke' because fat is bad for you.