Twice this week, my 8 year old has exited her classroom at the end of the day chewing a sweet that she has been rewarded for good work/behaviour. Today was the third and final straw for me when, at home, she pulled out a Curly Wurly from her book bag and told me that it was her prize for doing well in a spelling test. Dd added that they sometimes receive hardboiled sweets during the day too. My husband* jokes that it's a way for the teachers to easily spot the hardworking kids: they are all overweight with bad teeth.
I'm particularly annoyed as we parents frequently receive reminder letters about providing healthy lunch packs and snacks! I wouldn't have any problems with stickers, stamps and/or cheap/tacky stationery as rewards (or even just a "Well done!" and an old-fashioned pat on the back) and can't understand why the children are being inundated with sweets as treats.
Anyways...I was in the process of writing a letter to the headteacher about my dissatisfaction with the school's reward scheme when I paused, mid-rant, to wonder whether it would be a better idea to talk to other parents of the school first and get some kind of a "Save our Kids Teeth" campaign going. It just struck me as slightly self-serving if I simply secure an opt-out for my dd (which she would hate as her friends chow down).
What do you think? Have you had similar experiences? Would other parents care?
Carmody
- Oops...should that be "dh"? Where's the mumsnet glossary for these acronyms? Everytime I see "dh", I read "Department of Health". And "DD" were the initials of an enemy of mine at secondary school who ripped my skirt off during a scuffle (over a pencil case!) and ran off with it, laughing.