...to think they could've just given him the chunk of apple?

[rachelhere]

So. I didn't bother to give the £5 'fun money' requested at the start of Year 1. Because I'm tight, and just didn't think it mattered. Turns out it was in fact 'apple money' and he was the only one in the whole class not getting his chunk of apple!! Whyyyy didn't he tell me before? And how mean of the teacher, no? Did they literally throw that chunk in the bin in front of him rather than just giving it to him? Arrggghhh! He has now taken in his 'apple' money. AIBU to think it's just mean?

So why didn't you want to pay 'fun money', didn't you want him to have fun?

The thing is, if you didn't pay and don't indicate that you are happy for him to have fruit, how are the staff to know that you won't go bananas if they give him some, apparently contrary to your wishes?

I think it would have been helpful if the school had explained what the 'fun' money was to go towards.

OP could be on a tight budget for all we know, and the school saying whether it's for fruit snacks or whether it's for some nice to have optional extra, is information that's useful in deciding how important it is to give the school the 'fun' money. And use of the term "fun money" does imply some sort of non-essential extra.

if you didn't pay and don't indicate that you are happy for him to have fruit...

Why would the OP indicate she was happy for him to have fruit when she didn't know there was fruit?

'fun money' is really vague. No child should be left out of a class treat, even a shit boring one like a piece of apple.

Fun money is vague. They should have been more specific but I personally would have asked for clarification and to moan if it was the staff party.