To not know what to do about my son who pretended he went to a different school?

[chasethebear]

My son started year 9 this September. He has a lot of friends at the other secondary school. They started a day earlier than his school did and thought it would be hilarious to go into school with his friends. Apparently they spent most of the morning trying to figure out which classes he was in and caused an uproar at the school. They ended up putting him in classes and telling him they'll sort him out on the system ASAP. DS then obviously never went back and attended his actual school. I have no idea what to do about it. I haven't been contacted and no other word has been said but I hate to think what the other school have done.

Brilliant and just the kind of thing dh or his dbs would have done at his age. They’ve all gone far

The child was safe and under the supervision of probably at least six staff who will have been perplexed but alert to his presence.

That's what I thought. A safeguarding fail would have been if the other school had said "oy, you aren't on roll" and thrown him out on the street. At least they looked after him for the day while they panicked.

I have no idea what you do, though, OP.

He sounds insufferable, God love you

OP this has made my evening

Totally true about the first day back as well. On the staff training day before the students started our head said that, on paper, we were going to have a record 6th form entry this year, but we wouldn't know until the next day who would actually turn up. Pretty much all of them did, and I think a few extras! My head of department is also the head of 7th form. He hasn't stopped all term so far!

I would totally be thinking I'd missed an email and just get on with it. Probably send an email to somebody once the lesson was started.

If he wasn't disrupting any lessons then why not. He will go far OP

I wouldn’t encourage any pride in it as it will genuinely have caused staff some anxiety and concern.

On a serious note as well I would be interested to know what the behaviour was like as well. Kid who know there won’t be consequences. Pals whipped up to high doe?

If you can squash the ego and attitude about it all I would be inclined to let it go. If he keeps making a thing of it I would be looking to set consequences.

A friend played truant from her school and came to our school when we were in secondary - not even the first day, so the staff already knew us. I would point out that if he’s so keen to spend his time off learning then you’ll get him a tutor - seems such a waste of the last day of his holidays when he could’ve been having a lazy day!! No serious harm done though.

I'm pleased I'm not the only one that think this is funny, and whilst I'd be giving him a (very) short shrift I'd secretly be pleased at his confidence and creativity what would I do? Honestly nothing, no harm came to anyone and you're not answerable to his old school so ignore them.

Only in MN Land would people find it bad parenting to not track every nanosecond of your 13yo in the school holidays! Perfectly normal to be out from 8.30-4 on your last day of freedom!

@Iamagreyhoundhearmeroar

Probably in town cancelling the cheque

Sorry, don't believe it happened

What a waste of precious admin time on what is an incredibly busy day for a school. With reference to another post about allergies, and an admin omission which every onE was up in arms about, your son wasted precious time for staff updating the system with medical herds, allergies, new contact details etc. So all very funny haha, but I'd be giving my child a bollocking.

This is the bit where I don't follow (persistent little bugger that I am)

You've just said the schools are years 7-12.

That whole scenario would work if the school started from Yr 9 and up, and the school had no reason to suspect he shouldn't be there. But he was there in years 7 and 8, you informed the teachers he was leaving for year 9, he's not a new face "who's this, where do we put him" student, he's a known student of two years that they've just done all the paperwork transferring him to his new school. And no one said a word?

I don't buy it. Not when you take that into account.

Still just my opinion.

I’m amazed so many people find it funny.
The first day of term must be stressful for so many teachers. I’m afraid I’d be giving him hell for wasting their time, and be marching him up there to apologise. I’m also be informing his mates’ parents.
I can see it wasn’t malicious, but it was definitely stupid. What if there was a fire? No one would know he was missing as he wasnt on the roll?

I'd punish him personally, he's disrupted the classes for other DC for sure and has staff who have plenty else to be getting on with, running about trying to resolve the problem that he's created and in the meantime he thinks he's the best thing since sliced bread. I think he is on his way to becoming an insufferable wee shite. But he's your child and you know him best.

Ha ha - this story has brightened up my evening; I thought pranks like that only happened in fictional schools! (I'm not saying it isn't true, OP - I can believe it). This is straight out Carola storms the Chalet School.

I also remember reading a story (not a true one) about a couple of teenage girls who managed to pass themselves off as 11-year-old boys, because they really wanted to go to the nearby boys' school, instead of their own school.

We did this when I was in the LIVths
😂 We were all in the girls grammar, but F had a friend M in the nearby mixed comp. We brought her over for the day, and each swapped a piece of uniform so she had the correct version, and we had the odd jumper, non-regulation shirt etcetera. It was hilarious. I'll never forget how perplexed the geography mistress was. And no one ever got to the bottom of who M was, or who was behind it.

Haha this is very Ferris Bueller! Obviously you can't condone it to his face but I would be secretly rather proud at him getting one over with no harm done.

Brilliant

Btw we did it mid-term. M just bunked off.

Love it
I like a kid who shows a bit of ingenuity and no harm is done.

A friend of mine did this many years ago. He managed to go to all the lessons without being caught.

Nowadays, they take registers in every lesson, but would the teacher actually notice that there is an extra boy in a class they hadn't been teaching last year?

They don't exactly say, "now put your hand up if I haven't called your name?", and if they did would the extra boy raise his hand?

It's all very funny but I don't believe a word of it

I think he's winding you up OP.

No way could a kid manage a full day at school without staff wanting to know exactly who he is and why they have no record of his name on the system anywhere.

Haha!

"Catch me if you can"

@Jellylover me too, she's just fluffed it up by saying the schools are years 7-12

Hilarious? People actually find this ‘hilarious’. What is wrong with you?
This isn’t hilarious at all. It’s downright stupid and irresponsible. Your kid sounds like a nightmare.

Don't believe it happened? What that he made it up to me? Or that I'm making it up?