About ds's christmas school nativity?

[Hurricaneinateacup]

Oh yes, it's that time of year again.

Ds (5 and year 1) was away last week when they started rehearsing and gave out parts. He came home with a note in his diary on friday saying he was a sheep. He was happy being a sheep, I was planning in my mind how to make a sheep costume, fine.

On Monday he came home with a note saying he was now a king and also with a few lines to practice. Ds was quite pleased, although he hasn't minded being a sheep either, and started practicing his lines. He was quite proud that he had learnt them very quickly and talked about his king costume and crown.
He told me the original king was now a sheep because he couldn't behave and listen to the teacher.

On Tuesday original king's mother was complaining on playground over her child's demotion to sheep. Sigh. She said she was going to go and see the teacher.

The upshot of this is that ds is now a sheep again. I'm slightly pissed off even though I know it doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things. However where ds was originally perfectly content with his sheep role, he now feels slightly disappointed that he won't have any lines. I appreciate this is how the original king must have felt but he lost his role because he was being a pain. Ds has lost his role because original king's mother has kicked up a fuss.

It's vaguely amusing written down but I am cross!

There is a nativity called "the grumpy sheep"

Are you sure that the head teacher doesn't already know about what has happened. At the school where I work, it is the head teacher that caves to parents demands, teachers have to fall in line. Not much you can do if you want to keep your job...

Also, it sounds like we are taking a child's word over the reason for demotion. Maybe there was more to it?

That said, it does sound pretty unfair.

I believe ds. I've never known him to lie and he basically repeats conversations verbatim.
Plus I heard disruptive king's mother talking about it too (it's only a smalish school and we all know each other).

I feel very sorry for your son. It's really not fair. However, I feel a little sorry for the teacher. What she did isn't right at all, but I can see that there is only so much pointless hassle one person can take at work.

When I was teaching I usually wrote my own plays (Dr Who the musical was a classic imho) and made sure all children got a lineor two, with the less confident speakers maybe doing more dancing as compensation for having fewer lines. Only once did I Have a mum come into complain. I asked her to just trust me as her child had been secretly learning to play "sunshine brings in the morning" on the didgeridoo for the performance and hadn't told his mum as it was a surprise. (BTW this was years before we knew Rolf was dodgy).
Maybe the teacher has something like this up her sleeve... Although she sounds a shower so I doubt it.

I love the idea of a 'King Sheep' costume - you could explain to the teacher that you didn't know what to provide, as you didn't know when she would next change her mind.

Pathetic behaviour from the teacher.

This sounds almost identical to what happened to my DS when he was that age. One of the PTA's children was passed over for a main part, and DS went from being a king to being a bystander.
I went in, said I'd paid out x amount for material and trimmings for DS's king costume and either they had to refund the money I'd paid out or let DS be a king. I said that I wasn't prepared to make another costume for him or let another parent use the costume, I was in the process of making. DS ended up being frankincense king.

I'd be upset.

Does anyone remember that thread where the pan to Cinderella got demoted for being sick?! Oh I was furious for her!

The rubbish king could give a present but not say anything. The sheep-king could do the speaking (as he's learnt the lines) and give the gift of oration! Or of prayer/worship/joy etc.

This will probably out me but dd1's class last year did The Curious Sheep, about a little sheep watching all the goings on at the stable and wondering what all the fuss was about. Dd had the starring role. She even had to sing a solo.

I can remember all the words.

I feel sorry for your son but if I were the teacher I wouldn't be too happy about jhaving been abused by the other boy's mother. Bad enough being undermined by a parent but having to run the nativity play and keep all the parents happy sounds grim.

It does sound as though the teacher was a bit scared of disruptive king's mother, but be grateful you haven't got the teacher my dd1 had at the same age. She told one little girl she couldn't play Cinderella because 'Cinderella was pretty' and a boy he couldn't be Prince Charming because PC 'didn't have to wear glasses'. She was a real treat!

A friend of mine whose ds is at a different school apparently went in to see his teacher about the nativity play. He wasn't happy being a sheep. The teacher told her he'd have to accept whatever role he was given or he wouldn't be able to join in. I like that teacher.

Tbh I couldn't see any of the teachers at our school pandering to parental requests either. I'd definitely be dropping it in to the conversation how she'd got his hopes up and then dashed them again though, that was mean.

The only option OP is to equip DS with some itching powder to secretly douse other child with then be ready to rock up and take over the King role!

I also think the teacher sounds as weak as piss and nativity aside I'd be wondering about her ability tbh.

Yes go in and complain if for no other reason than to make the teacher flap! Ds was demoted from angel to cowboy one year very traumatising all round.

I think you should go in and make the teacher feel guilty. Point out your ds learned the lines etc. Teachers who cast parts based on whinging parents are just asking for trouble IMO.

Yes go in and complain if for no other reason than to make the teacher flap! Ds was demoted from angel to cowboy one year hmm very traumatising all round

If I were the teacher I think this would be the last nativity I produced if that were in my power. Of course the OP's son would be upset, as would any child who'd had their part changed but for some posters to suggest her all round teaching competence is questionable because she capitulated to an aggressive parent seems ridiculous to me. Comments like the above one make me wonder how much is about the parents though. "Traumatising"? Really?

But why can't teachers pre-empt all the parental angst by just making sure every child gets a line. Not difficult - just add in more narrators and split lines between characters or have small groups of the shyer children say a line together. I think it is understandable that patents want their children to get the chance to experience speaking on stage so if as a teacher you cast a play for 30 children which has only 15 speaking parts then quite frankly you have brought the trouble on yourself. Why can't schools just be more inclusive? It's not Broadway!

My comment was tongue in cheek ilovesooty, no one was actually traumatised (and ds's downgraded role was far more entertaining than the swishy angels)

I do think it's a bit silly for a teacher to take away a role as punishment, give it to someone else and then give it back again. Not very fair.

My comment was tongue in cheek ilovesooty, no one was actually traumatised

Phew!

Personally I don't know why all this nativity angst is necessary. Dress them all in white, wrap a bit of tinsel around their heads and get them to sing silent night and away in a manger, job done.