School payback punishment

[user1474462227]

My Dn who is 6 goes to junior school. Her school punishment for not listening etc is too clean lunch plates and do cleaning.This has to be done after lunch during their fun clubs. Is it me or this is terrible punishment !!! I've never heard of this. Do you think my Sister should complain to the school and governors etc?

[Post edited by MNHQ to remove name of school]

She will be identifying the child for a start. It won’t be long before the school is drawn attention to this.

Just wondering why it's such a big drama the school name is there. Is it against talk guide lines. Sorry if I'm missing something. Thanks to anyone who can educate me on this.

Well for starters the OP is hearing this third hand and secondly not sure anyone wants to end up in court.

I agree I shouldn't have named the school. I was shocked this punishment actually happens for young kids!! My sister didn't even know her dd was doing this until another mum had mentioned it. My sister has spoken to the school and said she would be reporting them. I guess I was venting and curious if other schools did this for punishment at a young age. There are other issues with the school too which the school are very much aware of.

I'm sure it's not child labour or abuse. A 6 year old is not a reliable witness.

Good god, we were hit at that age! Not me as I was a goody 2 shoes but my sister got the strap a few times for fighting - and a telling off at home for getting into trouble.

What punishment is acceptable these days?

'What punishment is acceptable these days?'
Staying in at playtime? Missing out on treats? I agree we got far worse in our day but 6yr olds cleaning in school is never going to be an appropriate deterrent now.

Why? At nursery all the kids were wiping fine the tables and tidying the play area.

I'm not saying they should be out chopping wood or up a chimney but scraping a few plates (I can't see them actually making a 6 year old do washing up) hardly sounds like cause to call childline.

Isn't it Japan where the kids clean there own school everyday?

Just a thought

"She's 6? Since I didn't wake up in Victorian England, I think it's totally unacceptable."
My 3YO helps clear the table. I must be a monster.

"My sister has spoken to the school and said she would be reporting them."
To whom? For what? Is your issue that 6YO shouldn't do chores or that the punishment doesn't fit the misdemeanor?

If the length or difficulty of the consequence is to much for minor infractions then by all means discuss it with the school, but I don't see a big problem in theory. 'If a child does something naughty you stop them playing out and they do something less fun' is pretty standard practice in schools.

If your DSis thinks threatening the school because it dared to punish your DN is the right response then perhaps removing her for home schooling will be the best outcome for all concerned.

At 12 fine ... at 6 it’s harsh

If it actually happened in this way it’s bang out of order. Thinks like ADD and dyslexia which can affect listening, attention and concentration present before 6 but are not usually diagnosed until after. Like my daughter. If she’d been made to wash dishes because of it I’d have been livid.

If the child had any of these don't you think the teacher would make necessary adjustments in any punishment? Teachers aren't idiots and six year olds do exaggerate/lie.

A relative of mine was threatened by a troglodyte parent who came crashing into the class threatening to beat him up because he had, apparently, made his little (junior school aged) angel stand in a stress position (used by the sas in training) for the whole afternoon.

It was pointed out that this was a massive exaggeration. Child sheepishly confessed that he had refused to sit on his * chair, kicked it at another child and had a sit down protest all within a 40 min lesson.

No not all teachers make adjustments and as said above, these kinds of things are not diagnosed until later. And surprise, even when they are diagnosed there are schools that refuse to put in any adjustments.

"At 12 fine ... at 6 it’s harsh"

What is? They will be clearing a few plates or wiping tables while kept in at lunch. They aren't going to be chained to the sink or scraping the bottom of the deep fat fryer.

Teachers are (mostly) pretty sharp at spotting things. I worked for a nursery and issues like these were routinely flagged to parents - even when they really didn't want to hear it.

Why should they be rewarded with fun time when they haven’t behaved themselves?

She's 6. If she was 13 and daydreaming, I'd agree. But she's 6. Punishment is not proportionate.