Fucking BIKES for 100% attendance?? Has the world gone mad??

[FizzyCherry]

I know this is the whole 100% attendance thing again, but I have literally seen it all now.
Not one but TWO people on my FB time line have posted pics of their kids with brand new bikes awarded for 100% attendance. AIBU to think that's taking the piss now?

The weird thing is, it's not the same school, not even the same county - they don't know each other, one parent is an old school friend in the South West, the other a former colleague in the north.

In each case, every child with 100% attendance was given a raffle ticket, the prize was a new bike. Only one prize, apparently, so none of this whole class goes to the zoo thing.
Both are primary school age, one Yr 2, the other Y4.
So these are two that I know of, how many other children are being given something that some of their peers is can only dream of, just for turning up?

My school dropped attendance certificates this year as they were felt to be divisive. How divisive is spending £100 on just one kid?

Am I missing something here, or what?

But schools can't reward every child for everything. So long as they're rewarding every child for something try to accept that there are some rewards for other children - not yours

But they AREN'T rewarding every child for something. And frankly if the only achivement your child is in the running for is pure luck of not being ill, what is it worth? Nothing.
You might as well have the "for not getting hit by lightning" award.

No of course I don't think that's fine. And if this child with the chronic illness is yours please go into school and speak to them. I promise you their aim is not to make your child as miserable as possible.

Ok - so like I said - if the school your child attends genuinely doesn't ever reward your child for anything either speak to them and make them aware or leave. Your child deserves better than a school that never recognises their achievements in any way shape or form.

No of course I don't think that's fine

But you do. You told us all how its not about the kids who don't get the reward, we should be happy for those who do. Bit different when it's a real child and not an abstract idea, isn't it?

I work with 550 children and not one of them is an abstract idea.

Well you were fine with it, then you said its not fine. It can't be both, so which is it?

No, if you read all of my posts again I continually say it's not ok for a child to never be rewarded for anything - and if that is the case for your child you should speak to them about it or move to a different school.

You're missing the point, we are talking specifically about attendance awards, not any others. Which you said you were fine about, but then not when a specific instance was outlined. So which is it?

We're no interested in other stupid made up patronising awards either, thank you. Why should we move schools because you need your kids to have a fucking party for being healthy?

Ok, I'll bow out now because once you need to resort to swearing to make your point there's really nothing else to say.

There's nothing to say because you can't explain why you think it's perfectly fine until presented with the reality of it and then it's not fine.

Hint: it's not actually fine. And we're all adults here, we can swear all we like.

There are lots of rewards for things in school that children have no control over. For example, I never won a sports day medal because I'm not talented in that area. There was no way, no matter how hard I tried, that I would beat the fastest runners in school. Did this mean they shouldn't be rewarded for it? No.

Poor example. Compare. 100% attendance is luck, nothing more. They haven't worked for it, it's not something they're good at, or through mixture of hard work and perhaps natural aptitude like sports, dance, academia. Not everyone can be good at everything, but that's different.

The reason that certain schools do this is because attendance must be bad. This isn't due to sick children. It is due to parents who don't enforce their kids going to school, or think Disneyland is educational or because of religious festivals.
Schools have to do something - otherwise attendance would be through the floor.
Just explain to your child why it happens and then they may not mind so much.

100% attendance is luck, nothing more.
No, luck is ONE element to it. It also means pushing yourself to go even when you have a sore throat, or blocked nose, or a headache.

I think it's a brilliant idea to offer a healthy reward. Much better than my kids' school who offered an IPAD! My poor kids though, both of them got 100% attendance, but that year, a new Head started and he put an end to it!

They were still proud of their 100% attendance, especially as indeed, in both cases, it involved going on some days when they felt rough and would have much prefer to stay in bed, but still managed to make it to the end of the day with the help of paracetamol.

Yes, that year, they were lucky to come down with nasty infections that gave them fever not controlled by paracetamol.

I agree that different kids will have a chance to access different rewards.

I think our school does this, I seem to remember my kids getting certificates/ not getting certificates. It was never a very big deal. But a bike would have been, and I think that is taking it too far!!
My kids pretty much have 100% attendance as they are all pretty healthy. I'm emetophobic so no one is allowed to be ill! Happily they seem to abide by this rule . Both dd s have been off a few days with bad tonsilitis, and ds got sent home after being sick at school (he was fine when he got home, but kept him off the next day)
I do know someone who seems to keep her kids off school for the slightest thing- a mild cold, she didn't sleep well last night, she just needed a "mummy day"....Actually I know a few parents like this, that obsess over their kids health and make everything a bigger deal than it is (rushed to doctor for a sore finger, kept off and rushed to doctor for stubbing their toe) Dd was friends with one of these, and the child was always complaining of feeling ill. I felt at home it was a way of getting attention. When she was at our house she once told me she didn't feel well and I immediately said I'd take her home (as I said, emetophobic!!) But she was then fine, never complained to me again.
I'm not saying all kids who take a lot of time off school are like this, but some are. They are going to be those workers that are off for the slightest thing and make everyone else's job a little harder. I am an employer. I have never had a day off work in 15 years, the last time was when I was hospitalized with a potential pulmonary embolism. I have had minor colds, sore backs, ripped my Achilles tendon, bad nights sleep, depression and I have a horrible asthmatic cough once a year that keeps me up all night for a week, but I have responsibilities. I see the student placement who takes what seems like at least one day off every week for nothing very serious. I won't be employing her, she is not reliable.
I agree a bike is too much, but maybe the idea of good attendance being a good thing isn't a bad one to instil in young minds?

Wow so many smug poster on this thread !

*posters

Unfortunately schools are subject to a blanket proclamation from the powers that be that their attendance has got to be above 97% and there are penalties if the school does not achieve it. Also schools at risk of not achieving it have to show that they are doing everything they can to pull their attendance up. That's why schools are getting desperate and offering all these silly rewards!

100% attendance is luck, nothing more.
No, luck is ONE element to it. It also means pushing yourself to go even when you have a sore throat, or blocked nose, or a headache.

Don't be so silly. You/your parents can't push yourself to go top school with most accidents or illness, or when it contravenes school policy on minor illness or infection. It is not an achievement worthy of prizes to have been fortunate enough to have enjoyed fairly good health in that academic year.

My son has multiple minor health problems and it's simply not possible for him to get 100% Attendance as he has appointments for consultants in school time. When he was in reception and he didn't get his 100% Attendance certificate it literally added insult to injury. Made me soooo mad especially knowing that some kids who were given certificates came to school with sick bugs that then spread to my children. I was livid and did not clap for them in assembly! Thankfully the new Head put a stop to this ridiculous practice.

Buy youre speaking from the viewpoint of a rssponsible parent. What about the poor kids whose parents give them days off school simply cos they cant be arsed walking them to school or whatever. The kid might want to go which might stir something up in the parent

It's an achievement when more and more kids are kept at home because of a bit of a sore throat, because they parents do to.

Yes, we are a family that believes that only you are really ill, you push yourself to keep going, and amazingly, we do indeed manage.

When I hear the reasons for parents to keep their kids at home, I despair of our society.

So yes, I accept that a number of kids are kept at home with genuine illnesses that would make them incapable of functioning at school, I think that too many cases are of children being over-indulged.

When my kids told me they didn't feel well, I always asked them if to ask themselves if they would be too ill to go do an activity they really enjoy. If the answer is yes, then they are too ill, if they say no, they can go to school.

It's not being smug, it's teaching kids the value of resilience.

And to add, DS stayed home for one day last month after he had his injection. He got up at 5am with a 39.3 fever. He took paracetamol, but when he got up again at 8am, it was still 38.6.

He went back to bed and did nothing that day, no playing on the Xbox or even watching TV. He slept all day.

It's an achievement when more and more kids are kept at home because of a bit of a sore throat, because they parents do to.

'A bit of a sore throat' isn't the sort of illness we're talking about where the child and parents have no choice but to keep the child at home. All the 'resilience' and 'pushing' in the world would be of no use there, even, and for example, in the case of more minor illnesses such as sickness and/or diarrhoea (at least I hope you wouldn't be sending your child into school). I don't consider being fortunate enough to have avoided those health scenarios as an achievement or something to be proud of.

I'm sure there are parents who keep their children off school

I wonder how many of our kids have become sick because Sergeant major Work Ethic won't let little tarquin take a day off? There's a certificate to be had, after all!

Oops, posted too soon!