To want to complain about Wheels on the Bus?

[Downwiththatsortofthing252]

I really don't want to be that parent but...

My DS who is 2 and a half is singing the wheels on the bus with the lyrics 'the mummies on the bus go chatter chatter chatter... etc' and then after that 'the daddies on the bus go stop that noise... etc'

He's picked it up from nursery, who I didn't think would teach these lyrics, they're normally really good and on the ball with things. I hate the stereotype the lyrics are projecting that mummies are silly and daddies are impatient.

I know there's another version with the mummies saying I love you, WIBU to ask nursery to change what they teach?

If I'm honest (really why would I lie) I chat a lot an awful lot my friend an I dropped our kids off for a nursery session one day stood chatting for so long outside the school we didn't have time to go home in the end so we literally waited to pick them back up again

But my ex husband and my current partner could give me a run for my money

I’m sick of bloody Humpty Dumpty falling off of his wall. Will the silly sod never learn some common sense?

'It’s the use of the word “chatter” which is only ever used about women and implies meaningless frivolous talk rather than important stuff like what the important men talk about.'

This. And for good measure the important men shush the silly chattering women.

YANBU, OP.
(Hate the bloody song anyway. We're outside the UK so I get to decide whether my kids learn it. Reader, they haven't).

Why is there so many snowflakes these days making a drama out of absolutely nothing

Everybody on the bus is on their phone, on their phone, on their phone ...

We regularly update "This Little Piggy" to cover what we've done that day. So this little piggy went to Asda, this little piggy stayed home, this little piggy had spaggybol, this little piggy had cake, and this little piggy went up the stairs, all the way to bed

Could re write back and Jill,Jeremy Kyle style but my humour is likely too warped for mumsnet 😂😂

They're bloody lucky they've got a bus service!

ffs im already annoyed about baa baa black sheep

stop being offended by everything

(As opposed to them inevitably getting it at nursery/toddler groups, etc. There are some here that are just as bad. There's one sung from the perspective of a woman who names different colours that all her clothes are and then explains that it's because of her sweetheart's job, which is associated with that colour (black - chimney sweep, white - baker, colourful - painter, etc). Sigh).

What **Ali said

😂😂

You're not wrong. Lots of childrens song have these little messages in them. The song our playgroup does that irks me is 'this is the way the lady rides' where the lady rides gently and slowly and the men ride fast.

‘Some people on the bus are travelling for free, travelling for free, travelling for free’...

@moaning I'm terrible at adulting. If i heard those words I would be sniggering like a big kid

It’s the use of the word “chatter” which is only ever used about women and implies meaningless frivolous talk rather than important stuff like what the important men talk about.
So, yes, everyday sexism and it’s right to notice and discuss this.

The word “chatter” is always used in tv and film subtitles to denote lots of people speaking at the same time e.g “indistinct radio chatter”. It’s not necessarily sexist.

Dear God.

@Moaning my MIL sings this, I've added "this is the way the hooligan BabyName rides" and pretend to rev a scrambler and bounce the kid all over the shop.

I also shoe horn in "the mummies on the bus discuss foreign affairs" whilst the daddies on the bus go "snore snore snore". No regrets.

Yanbu.

In my house the mummies on the bus say "Equal pay!" all day long, and the action is the raised fist salute.

Come.to think of it. Why don't the 3 blind mice have guide dogs. I blame the tories

@AtrociousCircumstance you've put it much better than I could ever write, it's the casual sexism that annoys me.

@consuela, go on, do Jack and Jill meet Jeremy Kyle, I'm sure it'll be as unPC as fuck which should satisfy the posters I've annoyed with this

Yep, I agree with you OP. And you're hardly making a drama out of it. Just pointing out that it's outdated old tripe. Which it is.

Maybe we should abolish all songs for children and then no one at all will be offended? That seems sensible.

You're right. The only options are teaching our children subtly sexist songs or none at all. Having non-sexist songs clearly isn't an option .

Good grief. (That's the third time I've said that on MN this week.)

I once really tuned in to the words at a singing group and every character was male just about including the animals. Yes many of them are old when women were best seen and not heard but that doesn’t make it ok. I do agree that nurseries need to make a conscious decision to give males and females fair representation free from stereotypes in every situation.

We sing "the mummies on the bus go shhh shhh shhh" I always try to sing "chatter chatter chatter" but my kids sing it after the line "the babies on the bus go waaaaa waaaa waaaaa" so they want to shhh the babies. They never bother with the dad line, dad takes the car in our house 😆 Or maybe my 2 1/2 year old and 1 year old are sensitive to the single mums out there 🤔. It's hard to tell when they are singing a nonsense made up song really lol.