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AIBU?

To think playing with a dead bird is wrong?

85 replies

plaintomatopasta · 20/04/2017 17:52

So a bit of back story. I'm a teacher and was sent outside to cover a boys pe lesson. They're 14/15yr old and in mainstream education but the bottom set. Whilst outside we were playing a game of softball and the ball went wide so one ran after it and came back with a massive dead seagull. He then proceeded to kick it, chase other students with it and stab a pen through its head.

I shouted at him and tried to get him to leave it alone but he ignored me. I was the only teacher out there and none of the other boys are really trustworthy enough to go get a teacher. They all found it hilarious and encouraged him! I just ended up sending the entire group inside again back to the changing rooms whilst I got the deputy head and he dealt with them.

After the lesson I was really upset and I thought it was really sick and wrong that they found it hilarious. Not a single other teacher or anyone I've spoken to about it saw a problem and generally said "boys will be boys".

AIBU and a bit weird. I actually cried!

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Kreeshsheesh · 20/04/2017 18:52

I remember years ago whilst covering in a computing class some secondary aged pupils came across a video of a deer being struck by a car. They were laughing raucously and tried to keep playing it on repeat. I couldn't believe their lack of compassion or the anger that welled up in me! Of course I dealt with it professionally, but I won't lie and say I didn't view those particular children in a different light after that.

Oysterbabe · 20/04/2017 18:53

It's just a dead bird. I did similar when I was a young girl, I found dead things interesting for some reason. I performed an autopsy on my dead hamster looking for the cause of death. I'm not a psychopath, just not squeamish about dead things.

plaintomatopasta · 20/04/2017 18:55

I do think if they had caught me on a different day maybe I'd have handled it better. I also don't think they're psychopaths in the making because they weren't torturing it they were just being disrespectful to me and the bird (not that it cared obviously). I also think that doing things like that for fun is a sad state of affairs as to how desensitised they are.

I think I'm bothered that everyone I spoke to at school was just really blasé about it and not bothered. Also my mum laughing and saying "it's something to look forward to for when xxx is that age and does it" because I don't think my son would ever do that. He found a spider on the floor tonight and took it outside to a web he had found saying "here's your house spider. Have a nice dinner and see you soon" I'm pretty sure the bigger spider the web belonged to has probably eaten it though

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SaucyJack · 20/04/2017 18:55

Meh. Seagulls and tarantulas are exempt from cutesy animal protection orders IMO.

It's not like it was a guinea-pig.

blubberball · 20/04/2017 18:58

I think that finding dead animals interesting, and even performing an autopsy on a dead hamster is a bit different to sticking a pen through a dead sea gull's eye for a laugh. It's pretty gross.

plaintomatopasta · 20/04/2017 18:58

I've dealt with my share of dead animals. We grew up on a farm and our cat used to bring headless field mice in as presents but I didn't do anything other than pick them up and put them back outside. I opposed all mouse and rat traps on the farm though in favour of the cat because at least they had the option to run away. He was a rubbish cat tbh and only caught a few but the threat was enough.

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QueSera · 20/04/2017 18:59

Absolutely vile, disgusting and psychotic behaviour, by all those kids!! And i cant believe other adults/teachers view this as normal behaviour. That is so sad. The bird may have been dead, but it used to be a living being whose body deserves respect, not gross mutilation. If theyre enjoying mutilating a corpse, they are on the path to doing cruel acts to a live animal, and so on. Very very worrying. I'm glad there are still compassionate empathetic people like you OP, but find it so worrying that others are not.

GreatFuckability · 20/04/2017 19:03

Its not 'cruel' though, is it? It was already dead.
I saw plenty of people do similar things when I was at school. none of them are serial killers to my knowledge.
I think crying over a dead bird is a bit....dramatic? You need to toughen up if you're going to teach teenagers!

Kalizahara · 20/04/2017 19:07

I'm not sure really.

Obviously it's gross and very unhygienic. Not something I would have done as a teenager, but I knew kids that would have. They aren't now serial killers afaik.

I think some of you are overreacting. It was a seagull and it was already dead. If they'd actually killed it then that would have been another matter.

I bet most here eat chickens, turkeys and other animals without much regard for their welfare.

Whiterabbitears · 20/04/2017 19:10

OP I doubt your DS will grow up to be the same as those boys because you have probably bought him up to respect people and animals, alive or dead! He displayed that by his sensitivity to the spider, that's a good sign

Jayfee · 20/04/2017 19:12

Disgusting behaviour. In addition, they disobeyed you. You were absolutely right. I used to be a head of year and I would have spoken to the whole group about how ugly the behaviour was. The ringleader would definitely have been punished for disobeying you. Students in local halls of residence treated a dead fox very disrespectfully recently and most students were disgusted by the behaviour of the students who were responsible. The uni tried to identify the culprits but I dont know what happened. At least they had the excuse of being drunk as it happened after a big night out.

Kalizahara · 20/04/2017 19:14

That is lovely about the spider, but how old is your son?

Plenty of non psychopathic people think nothing of killing insects and pests.

Seagulls are pests and it was already dead.

Anyone torturing live animals is another matter altogether.

plaintomatopasta · 20/04/2017 19:16

@great I'm tough enough. I take a lot from the kids and I take it all in the manner they mean it which is usually to be funny or testing boundaries but this wasn't funny and they're pretty fucking wide boundaries to think that was acceptable!

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plaintomatopasta · 20/04/2017 19:19

@kalizahara he's 2. So he thought he was taking it home and I thought it was sweet so didn't mention that it might not be the right web.

I'm going to work to make sure he's not a serial killer!

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AtSea1979 · 20/04/2017 19:19

Shouting at them? That's probably where it all started to go wrong. Did you ask him to put it down and discuss the levels of bacteria and send him to wash his hands? If he can't be trusted to go wash his hands or to get another teacher then I assume they have additional needs so you shouldnt be yelling. In fact yelling is counterproductive with anyone really.

Kalizahara · 20/04/2017 19:20

Oh it's not acceptable, and they should have been reprimanded. It doesn't particularly shock me though, it wouldn't have made me cry and I'm fairly sensitive.

I've seen worse from teenagers.

plaintomatopasta · 20/04/2017 19:24

@atsea1979 I told them to leave it alone and put it down because they didn't know what germs it had and it would make them ill. The reason I had to shout was because they were across the other end of the field chasing a wide ball. They don't have special needs at all they're just not trustworthy and every second word is C word or f word based. I hate to say it but they're just immature and disrespectful. I'd taught them before in a classroom and they weren't close to that behaviour

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findingmyfeet12 · 20/04/2017 19:26

I'm shocked at the number of people who don't find this shocking.

I'd be appalled and worried if my child did that and also pretty upset to see any child doing it.

DonaldStott · 20/04/2017 19:26

Just wondering why you pointed out these kids were in the 'bottom set' and not trustworthy enough to fetch another teacher?

Are you implying they didhave this cos they were abit thick and boys in set 2 wouldn't have done it?

Because david cameron fucked a dead pigs head and I'm pretty sure he was in set 1.

DonaldStott · 20/04/2017 19:27

*did not didhave stupid fat digits

plaintomatopasta · 20/04/2017 19:30

@donaldstott it was more to explain why I couldn't leave them alone to get support and why no one else wanted to teach them. They're generally the class that gets made out of kids no one will have. There's a fair few A students in there but they are disruptive.

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plaintomatopasta · 20/04/2017 19:31

@donaldstott if I had sent them in to get someone they would have just gone for a walk or a cigarette instead. Plus if I had gone I would be leaving 14 yr10 students alone with softball bats!

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Garnethair · 20/04/2017 19:35

It's disrespectful. Even the rats that our cats kill are handled with respect here.

Tinkerbec · 20/04/2017 19:44

I would report it to CPO officer and have it recorded on their profiles. It is concerning behaviour.

springflowers11 · 20/04/2017 19:57

Report it to CPO !! I hope that was tongue in cheek - do you actually know any boys?

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