DS having school lunch sat on the floor, AIBU?

[Honeybadgerdontgiveashit]

Long story short, building work as DS school has over run massively during summer holidays. Class rooms and hall remain unfinished.
Fair enough, no surprise, but these things happen.

School dinner pupils are eating in the halls, packed lunch pupils are eating packed lunch sat on the classroom floor.
This could go on until christmas.

His teacher was unable to offer an explanation as to why they could not sit at tables and chairs in the classroom. I suspect just so it saves them wiping them afterwards.

AIBU in thinking this is a bit off? He is in year 1, I'm not usually a germ freak, but this doesn't seem right to me. When I asked his teacher if she would eat her lunch sat on the floor everyday she said Yes! Of course I would and looked at me like I was mad!

Please tell me if I am being unreasonable, as I have PMT, and I am really not sure.

Thanks

I can't see any reason why pupils shouldn't wipe down the tables if it's not possible for the lunch supervisors to do so.

We lived in India for a year and our kids sat on floor (like all the other kids ) and ate with (clean) hands - was fine. As long as not eating off floor cannot see problem .........

No init, quite often we sit on the floor along with many other people in the world. Don't be insulting.

Initgrand, people in this country eat at a table. People in many other countries eat on the floor. Our way isn't necessarily the correct way.

But we aren't anywhere in the world we are talking about the UK where it is customary for people to sit at a table to eat.

Oh for goodness sake.

For goodness sake.

Does it really matter? Such a mountain out of the tiniest molehill.

Also 'The teachers could wipe down the tables whilst leading a group circle time'???

Have some people on this thread ever been inside a classroom during the school day?

Fucking unbelievable.

Which is why it has been suggested that the pupils wipe down the tables - an excellent life skill I would say.

Oh goodness yes.

However, the letter will go home saying that the children will be wiping the tables...

Parent A: 'This is disgusting. The tables must be sprayed with antibacterial spray.'

Parent B: 'My child has eczema and cannot use spray.'

Parent C: 'My child cannot wipe a table because it will detract from important learning time.'

Also, in a Foundation Unit, there are often not enough tables for every child to have a 'space' and what tables there are will have the activities set up on them - it's often not practically viable for children to sit at a table to eat their lunch.

Which goes to show that you will never keep everyone happy, whatever you do

I'm amazed that there are classrooms big enough to have 30 kids sitting in one area. My DCs classrooms are on the small side, so circle time is done in groups - if they had to sit on the floor to eat their lunch they (and the resultant mess) would be spread out across the floor and squashed in between chairs and desks.

Yes, it is customary for people to sit to eat at tables here. But to say people who use the floor are animals is very offensive!

SirChenjin - In a lot of Foundation/Reception classrooms, there are a few small tables which seat four children at the time so that they can do painting/group activities and then the rest of the classroom is floor space, meaning that there is not enough room at tables for each child to have a seat, but there is plenty of room on the floor.

Most Foundation Units have fruit/milk time on the floor anyway because of this.

We don't have Foundation/Reception here in Scotland, and I certainly don't recognise the classroom you describe from my teens time at primary or DS2 currently in P2. All the children have their own desks and chairs, art work etc is stored around the edges of the room and floor time is done is small groups. If it's a wet playtime then they sit at their desks to eat their playpiece, and then play either at their desks or in each of the play areas.

It's very much the norm in England. Above Foundation (so in KS1 - 5+), what you describe is the normal set-up.

But I think it's important to remember that there might not actually be the table space for the children to eat their lunch at tables.

(Sorry, that wasn't very clear. In Foundation, what I described is the normal set-up. Above that, all schools I've ever worked in/been in have tables and chairs as the normal set-up.)

I wonder when that changed then? I grew up in Kent - very glad I had my own desk and chair, and didn't have to do my lessons on the floor.

Children not even having their own desk space for learning?
Kids sitting on the dining room floor when others are at tables in the same room?

Bloody hell! Worse and worse.
Our schools are a shambles. Seriously.

And the point about sitting on the floor to eat in other cultures is misguided. In countries where it's customary to eat at floor level it is also customary to remove shoes.

SirChenjin: Between my being at school and working in education. Probably early 2000s with the introduction of the EYFS.

They don't do 'lessons' on the floor as such because they don't have 'lessons' - Foundation stage children learn mainly through play, although they will probably do some maths/phonics/writing work at tables, but in groups of four/five at a time with the teacher, whilst the others play, so they're rarely actually working 'on the floor'. There just isn't provision for the whole class to sit at tables at the same time, IYSWIM?

Do your DC sit outside for lunch in the summer? On the field? I certainly did, lunchbox, bum on grass (mud), eat packed lunch, come in, wash hands, back to work.

How is this any worse/different than sitting on a carpeted floor, which is probably hovered at least once or twice a week?

They also learn that it is a cultural norm to eat socially at tables. A chool employee needs to get this sorted out. The school is responsible for proViding a hygienic eating space. I'd have been uhappy about y DC being expected to do what is a reasonable expectation of a dinner lady.

Of course - I'm forgetting you start a year earlier, so Foundation is the equivalent of our pre-school year at nursery when they don't do lessons either. Nursery provision here in state schools in only 15 hours per week, so no, not enough space (or need) for all children to have their own desk and chairs as they move between group areas.

Our DC don't sit outside to have lunches - not enough supervisors to look after the packed lunch kids outside and the school lunch kids inside.

Not just in state schools - I mean state funded

I think that children are more flexible than some adults

physically and psychologically

"Also 'The teachers could wipe down the tables whilst leading a group circle time'???

Have some people on this thread ever been inside a classroom during the school day?

Fucking unbelievable."
Lawtelpus, I do this with 2 and 3 year olds, don't really see how it could be any harder with school aged children

"I'd have been uhappy about y DC being expected to do what is a reasonable expectation of a dinner lady."

So you consider that you child is too "precious" to wipe a table and they should leave that to the "staff"....???????