to think that teachers should be a bit more bloody creative about Red Nose Day

[radiohelen]

I've been past four schools today and at all of them the kids are wearing their pyjamas to school... doing something funny for money! I think not.
Plus I was talking to a friend who said she'd had to go and buy new pyjamas for the occasion because her sons are all a bit small and while that's fine for at home it's not fine to send them to school in. Extra cost for her and then she had the nightmare of persuading her boy to wear pants under pyjamas... "you don't wear pants AND pyjamas mummy".
It sounds like a nightmare...
What about a gurnathon? A giant jelly contest? Making a funny black and white film. Writing an essay in alphabetti spaghetti. This is just off the top of my admittedly weird head....

"I have worked in situations where you have to motivate a large number of people to get excited about something that is not necessarily that exciting... "

Gosh, how did you manage that, OP - in between being unbelievably pompous, I mean? Must have been tough.

I was wishing for PJ's... We got 'monsters'. How difficult is that? Had to get Mum to make costume for ds

My Ds's school did ' wear something red' and pay £1. This worked really well for us. My DS is scared of dressing up ( he has sensory issues) so world book day was a nightmare for him as he was the only one in the school noit dressed up! Today he happily went with his red T-shirt on.

Re the whole Pyjama thing............am I seriously the only one on here who thinks there is something a little inappropriate about having everyone wear Pjs to school???

Well done to everyone who raised money, regardless of how you did it. Hope you all had fun. x

Sorry - I'd just been told to *&^k off by two seperate posters for pointing out that a bit of creativity wouldn't hurt. How would you feel? I tried to respond like an adult.

Feenie I have made no personal attack on you yet you feel that's a proportionate response.
For the record I worked in radio. I had a ball and it wasn't tough and it wasn't pompous. You sound like you hate your job. Shame.

Radiohelen - you havent told us what you did for Comic Relief. I'd be interested...

Doesn't have to be creative but it has to be simple.

My school had 'wear red or something funny'. And then you leave ther creativity to the children. We had many fantastic and very very funny costumes. It was a hoot. The kids felt brilliant.

Not much concentration on work though.

I did nothing whatsoever. I'm such a curmudgeon. :o

"Feenie I have made no personal attack on you yet you feel that's a proportionate response."

You chose to tell teachers on this thread that wearing pyjamas was 'not bloody creative', that you were sorry they 'find their work stultifying', you told one poster that she should rethink her 'chosen path', and you followed that up by telling several people, whose work ethic and dedication you know precisely nothing about, that 'perhaps they need to consider why they got into it in the first place - especially when they have the privilege and challenge of shaping young minds.'

You got off extremely lightly with 'pompous'. I shall follow it up with 'ignorant', 'whining' and sanctimonious.

My 2.5 year old had a sponsored silly sing song at playgroup and at home we made Lamingtons to sell at our mums and tots group, and my oh sold some at work.

Feenie I'll take pompous and sanctimonius but you really need to look up whining and ignorant.
No-one who uses the word stultifying correctly is ignorant and I have certainly not been feeble or petulant.

I work in a school.

Yes, we had 'wearing our PJs for sponsor money' , a cake sale and multiple sponsored silences - unoriginal but good.

We also had lots of other stuff going on, arranged by different departments:

• 'recycle your old junk and we will turn it into something cool to sell for charity by the end of the day' activity (storming success)

• one dept dressed up in school uniform (the staff)

• one department turned the whole floor into a cafe with homemade foods contributed bu the kids for sale

• one whole year did a special assembly with performances that they charged to get into.

The whole day was fabulous. We raised nearly £2K and raised morale and a few smiles along the way.

We had a non uniform day and a dance contest, parents were invited and we sold bits and pieces we had made during the week. The PTFA sold coffee and cakes and we had a lovely time. I bought cakes for my class and we did maths by working out the perimeter, area, volume and mass of their cakes and estimating how long it would take to eat them ( their estimates were way out!)

The problem schools have is that there is a never-ending succession of "special" days thay we could/should/might participate in. Sometimes it seems as if all we are ever asked to do is to support one event after another. We do like to teach occasionally you know!

OP: yes, but what did YOU do?

I'm sorry that the teachers on here seem to find their work so stultifying.
Clam if you read your comments above in the cold light of day maybe it will give you some insight about your chosen path

For fuck's sake. I think you'll find your clothes more comfortable if you remove the coathangers first.

For the record I am not a teacher

As if you had to tell us.

I agree with those who think teachers have quite enough to do teaching.

You got 'whining' because you complained about pompous, and ignorant because you have made sweeping, insulting judgements about posters' chosen careers.

I am happy to award you a sticker for correct use of 'stultifying' if it makes you any happier.

I'm not trying to prove anything.
I think it's brilliant people have done stuff, had fun and raised lots of money. I stand by what I've said though.
unavailable see the post above - me and ds did silly singing. I made cakes and sold them...

What are you trying to prove radiohelen? You are the most amazing, inspiring and creative fundraiser ever. Teachers are a bunch of lazy, unmotivated wasters. Got it. Will you go away now please?

Perhaps if radiohelen thinks teaching is such a breeze she'll retrain and do it.

I've had to create excitement out of nothing, with no budget while still taking care of business. It also involved me starting work at 5am and often not finishing until 5pm the same day, working nights and weekends. I know about tired

[boak]

My kids school had a wear home clothes with as much red as possible with a £1 contribution. Nothing too major but the kids were very excited about it all. Made them aware of the day and cause without too much extra work for the teachers - who in my opinion already have a lot to deal with. We have a good PTA so some pressure is taken, but not all. I do like the pj idea though and will suggest it for another fundraising event.

and is it not a bit hypocritical OP to waste so much food doing your fab and wonderfully wacky idea of writing essays from alphabeti spaghetti when so many of these videos on CR feature starving children?

My school did the wear something red - kids were creative - their creativity not the teachers - isn't that what teaching is about: to inspire children , give them the trigger and let their imagination take them where they want to go? rather than have some overworked teach$er trying to fit in a gurnathon into her already tight schedule a week after World Book Day/day after St pats day etc etc etc. Try teaching for a day properly - go on, I'll sponsor you for Comic Relief - do it on your radio show and "do something funny for the money" OP cos a teacher has it easy.... just work 9-3 and have all those holidays.....