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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to think this teacher needs to more organised?

46 replies

BenjaminLinus · 03/05/2017 08:29

I came home yesterday (ironically after food shopping) to find that the ingredients list for a Food Technology Practical had been posted to the house. It's asking for ingredients that I expect most people won't readily have - sprigs of parsley, mint and coriander and 1/2 red chilli. The onion and garlic are more everyday, but I use chopped & frozen now so will have to get those too, adding the cost of the lamb mince and we're looking at £7.50 for ingredients to be bought within 24 hours and we're literally miles from the nearest supermarket.

So AIBU in expecting the teacher to at least know a week ahead what the practical will be and hand out ingredient lists in class the week before, or is this what to expect in Yr7?

OP posts:
luckylucky24 · 03/05/2017 08:37

We were always given the ingredients in class the week before. I don't think it is hard to get ingredients these days but it is still a bit strange and much more work for the teacher to post the list to students.

24HourTrainer · 03/05/2017 08:38

posted as in RM?

bigbluebus · 03/05/2017 08:39

When DS did food tech the lesson plan for the whole half term was given out so we knew what ingredients were needed for each week. 24 hrs notice is totally indequate - and why was it posted? Only important things such as school reports ever got posted from DS's school.

OverAndAbove · 03/05/2017 08:41

His ridiculous! If they messed up and forgot to tell the class the week before, why on earth didn't they make something like biscuits where you can get the ingredients at any old petrol station?!

Kissesgingers · 03/05/2017 08:42

After lots of "feedback" my daughter's school now offer the opportunity to pay per term for ingredients to be provided, exactly to save the issue you describe. Perhaps suggest this , not that it helps this time, sorry

misscarlar · 03/05/2017 08:53

Also in regards sprigs of herbs is it not more cost effective for plants to be brought

Enko · 03/05/2017 08:54

24 hours notice is pretty good in my experience of 4 children now all in 2ndary school. 15 mins is more like it usually.

I loathe cooking stuff in school they want obscure foods and have odd ideas on how it should all go together. DD3's school had the best idea as there you could see online what they would be doing when. Even that was tough to remember to check.

Blobby10 · 03/05/2017 08:56

My daughter used to remember at 4.30pm on a Sunday that she needed ingredients for her Food Tech on the Monday morning. We learned to be creative with the ingredients as our local Tesco Express were limited in their stock Grin

Funnily enough if it was something she really wanted to make then she would remember to get the ingredients on the Saturday Smile

notangelinajolie · 03/05/2017 08:57

Urghhh! Food Tech is a pain in the butt. From experience all the other tech subjects provide the materials. When DD first started at her school we used to send her in with a pound a week and school would provide all the ingredients but then the teacher left and the new one doesn't do this. Some of the ingredients they ask you to buy are ridiculous. I never shop at Waitrose but thank goodness there is one I can get to or we'd be really stuck.

BillSykesDog · 03/05/2017 08:58

If it's been 'hand delivered' DP you think maybe DS just forgot to give it to you? Or did he maybe miss last week's lesson?

SoupDragon · 03/05/2017 09:01

They hand delivered the list of ingredients to the entire class?? Confused

This is what email is for, surely?

hippy1952 · 03/05/2017 09:16

My granddaughters school ask for £20 a year for them to provide all food ingredients for their cookery lessons. They even provide containers to bring the food home.

Elendon · 03/05/2017 09:25

My dds (all girls) were asked to bring in the ingredients and it was a blooming nightmare. Often there were many parents buying the ingredients in the shop that morning - ever wonder why flour runs out in your local?

Thankfully my ds's school (all boys) asked for £10 per term. Happily paid it.

liz70 · 03/05/2017 09:27

We were sent home a form requesting a set amount of money for the school to source ingredients for the term when DDs 1 and 2 took food science/hospitality. Much simpler all round.

corythatwas · 03/05/2017 10:00

In my day cookery lessons were about how to make the most of cheap nourishing ingredients that you could find in any shop. The idea was to set everybody up for life, regardless of future income or demographic.

These days it all seems to be about presentation. Reinforcing the idea that actual cooking is only for a special breed of foodies who can go to fancy shops or at least drive to the supermarket on the outskirts of town.

Beelzebop · 03/05/2017 10:07

I bet your child hasn't given you the note speedily.

LadyPW · 03/05/2017 10:12

Did you not think after last week's lesson 'I wonder what ingredients we need for next week?' or maybe before your food shop think to ask what was needed? That might have highlighted the supposed lack of details (though my £ says child forgot)

Original poster
BenjaminLinus · 03/05/2017 10:56

Why on earth would anyone think that 'posted' means hand delivered???

So, to clarify

Posted as in sent from the teacher, by the school, dated 27th April, costing 38p, to our home address, delivered by the postman, usually about lunchtime but I wasn't in yesterday - I can always ask him today if anyone thinks that I'm not providing sufficient detail Grin.

It was the usual ingredients slip although name & date filled in by the teacher, but with an additional slip from the teacher saying 'please find enclosed the ingredients list for the next practical'.

They don't seem to 'cook' every week, and my son knows nothing about it, so unless the teacher is from Hogwarts, I doubt that the letter was sent because he hadn't given me the slip in a timely manner after the last lesson.

OP posts:
BarbaraofSeville · 03/05/2017 11:42

It's complete madness to expect a whole class to bring in bits of herbs unless they're making something taboule where you use a lot of it.

For small amounts of ingredients like herbs and spices and even things like flour that not everyone has in, they need to ask for money and then get a delivery to the school or send someone out to a shop.

It seems that school cookery lessons are the very opposite of what they need to be, using basic and seasonal ingredients to make nutritious and economical dishes so they learn to cook and be able to feed themselves cheaply in case they don't learn at home.

I've heard all sorts of rants from my sister over the years, the most memorable one where her DD was expected to take in something like 6 strawberries, one kiwi fruit, an apple, an orange and a slice of melon in the middle of winter so the strawberries were out of season, so DN could make fruit salad and they had loads left over when they didn't have a lot of spare money, or routinely eat a lot of fruit anyway.

BarbaraofSeville · 03/05/2017 11:43

Are you posting from 20 years ago? Who on earth writes letters for that sort of thing anyway, and how long is it since a stamp cost 38p?

Original poster
BenjaminLinus · 03/05/2017 11:58

Lol, clearly the postage details were not sufficient for some.

There isn't an actual stamp on the envelope, it is a printed envelope from a franking machine - most probably at the school as it has their name and address on it and it is all printed in the same colour ink - blue if you're interested - and clearly says £0.38 underneath the date - 27-04-17, which, as far as I am aware is 38p and is the cost of postage.

The envelope is brown, the address label is white and applied at a slightly jaunty angle and contains only the address, which is printed in black ink, and not a name which does seem a little odd.

OP posts:
BillSykesDog · 03/05/2017 12:15

I think what's happened here is that the teacher assumed they would be sent out first class and reach you by Friday/Saturday but the office sent them second class so with the bank holiday you didn't get it until yesterday.

Greyponcho · 03/05/2017 12:17

slightly jaunty angle LOVE the detail Grin

Are you SURE it was posted? Maybe pixies were involved somehow? Grin

MovingOnUpMovingOnOut · 03/05/2017 12:20

Posted? How quaint.

yanbu.

sparechange · 03/05/2017 12:29

Self-seal or lick-y envelope?
I'm not sure I can take this thread seriously without more details...