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

[somersethouse]

And I don't even live in England

OP YANBU, speak to the school. Best of luck.

[valiumredhead]

It was 18 degrees in some parts of England today, hardly freezing cold!

[valiumredhead]

It's boiling in every school I've ever worked in.

[somersethouse]

To clarify, I am talking about people suggesting it is like a picnic outside.
The OP has stated it is going on until Christmas.

I was not talking about the weather generally in the UK.
I was talking about higiene. As were most, who got the point of the thread. Glad to hear it is warm near you though Valium.

[valiumredhead]

Wrt hygiene, kids wash hands before lunch. What on earth could they possibly catch from sitting on the floor?

[kali110]

I would have no problem with it. I remember in senior school eating on the floor outside lol
If theyre saying its because there isnt enough time, if they let them use the tables and then a load of lesson time is wasted would everyone be happy?

[PartyOrganisor]

I am wondering how this would work with my dcs who take hot food or salads or fruits sald to eat at lunch time...
I mean eating on the floor at that age with a sandwich and a packet of crisps meant quite a bit of mess but manageable. I can't imagine my dcs would have been able to eat what they've always have had at lunch time on the floor.

I bet all the 'Of how a fantastic lunch' comments I got would have taken another turn after having rice and salad dressing and whatever else on the carpet lol

On a more serous note, do they really expect children to be able to open pots of yogurt wo putting some everywhere whilst sitting on the floor? And what about jelly?

I really wouldn't want to be the teacher who is coming back to that classroom.

[teacherandguideleader]

I don't see the problem. Sitting on the floor won't kill them and gives them a break from sitting at their desk all day.

[PedantMarina]

They can wash their hands from here to Rapture.

You sit on the floor. If you lean back, your automatic posture is to brace yourself with your hands.

Do they wash their hands repeatedly during this sitting-on-the-floor exercise? I think not...

[Flossie82]

Why would opening yogurt pots whilst sitting on the floor make more mess than at a table?

I don't see any problem with this

[NiceTabard]

Because they are young children and the split yoghurt will go all over a carpet rather than a wipeable table. Where it will intermix with the crumbs and other debris that has also not been caught by sitting up to a table.

Picnics with young children are messy. Mine have them outside obviously where it doesn't matter but in the house usually my mantra is pull your chair up to the table sit properly if you're going to eat that pear please try and eat over the plate so it catches the juice in order to reduce mess.

Clearly a bunch of young primary school kids are going to make a god-awful mess eating sitting on the floor. Which will then be trampled around all over the place. At least at a table most of it goes onto the table.

[NiceTabard]

I am a bit foxed as to why this is not obvious?

Their drinks are far more likely to get spilled if they're all sitting around on the floor as well.

[grobagsforever]

OP you sound bonkers. What do you actually think is going to happen as a result of this? It's the floor! That's all! Like kids care where they sit. Demeaning? How? Hilarious

[MidniteScribbler]

Good grief. Next it will be expecting silver service for all these precious children.

Kids at our school choose where they want to eat. Sometimes it is the various tables, sometimes benches, more often under a nice shady tree. On rainy days they eat in th classroom, and I guarantee that 99% will taket their lunchboxes and sit in groups on the floor.

Some people are determinded to suck all the fun out of childhood.

[valiumredhead]

Will someone please think of the children??

Sorry, couldn't resist

[NiceTabard]

midnite scribbler is there an option at your school for the younger children to sit and eat in the carpeted areas?

The idea of a classful of young children lunching every day on a carpeted area is just bonkers, the more I imagine it the more I am what a godawful mess! Children start recep at just turned 4, there will be kids in ops class just turned 5. They spill stuff, they just do.

How many people would be really nonchalant about letting a bunch of 4 and 5 year olds eat every day (including yoghurt, drippy fruit, drinks) on a carpeted area of their house? It's a bizarre proposition.

Unless they are going to wipe up the spills afterwards and hoover? And the carpet will be damp for the rest of the day...

The more I think about it the more I think what a terrible idea it is.

[Remotecontrolduck]

Irrelevant, but love your username OP! Honey Badgers are the best

As a one off temporary short term measure fine, it happens. For 4 months, no! Why not just use the tables?!

I would have thought drinks will be getting kicked over constantly if they're all on the floor, as well as crumbs everywhere, squashed grapes etc. Ok, even with tables some will end up on the floor, but a lot ends up on the table! 4 months is a long time, they need to find a way of cleaning desks after.

[SirChenjin]

I wouldn't like this - not for four months, and not when there are tables available (and I'm a slattern who takes the benign neglect approach to parenting generally..). It must be a bloody messy carpet after that lunch, and how on earth do they fit 25-odd kids onto the floor around the desks? .

Surely it would be easier all round to eat at the table and then wipe - 5 minutes at most?

[TheBleedinObvious]

I'm not too sure what the problem is.

Do they not have their fruit on the carpet?

Nursery children often have snacks sitting on the carpet and packed lunches are similar.

It is not as if they are dealing with managing a tray of food with a plate, bowl, cutlery, cup etc.

They are eating sandwiches and packed lunch style food, which is fine to eat picnic style.

The only people who have reason to complain are the cleaners who have to deal with the yogurt/squash spills etc afterwards.

[jessieagain]

Then again if your child's lunch needs to be eaten with cutlery maybe this is a reason you could give when you ask for him to sit at a table.

[jessieagain]

I wouldn't be very happy either op, tell the teacher you would prefer they sit at a table.

[NiceTabard]

Our pre-school the snacks were at tables, in a room with a wipeable floor, not sitting on a carpeted floor.

The cleaners don't come in til the evening so presumably any yoghurt / bits of banana / sticky fruit juice / crumbs and so on will be trampled around all over the place?

Honestly I think it sounds really messy and grim.