Or is school out of order

[mazu]

Dd8 (yr3) while sat at the table spied a box of Nestlé cereal on the table and announced she would not be touching any of it (it wasn't hers and wasn't offered to her). She then goes of to say she would not be buying anything from them as they are horrible people and goes on full blown attack on the brand and palm oil and orangutans. I'm sat there stunned at are very strong beliefs and thought perhaps she's seen an advert on YouTube kids about it.
On the contrary it turns out her at school they were taught about the evil that Nestlé is and that they were told to write letters to the president Mr Schneider to tell him they hate nestle because they damage forests and kill orangutans.

She then spent the entire weekend feeling guilty anytime she has eaten anything with palm oil chocolate, Nutella , bread, crisps I mean everything! She pretty much stopped eating by last night.

While I am up for teaching children about environmental and ethical responsibility at a young age AIBU to feel the school went too far? I made me feel quite angry that they could pretty much teach my child the politics that could shape her entire life and little ones are quite vulnerable and without a balanced view of the facts I do not want this to be the way my child is taught about issues. I want her to read and form her own opinions not spew garbage based on someone else's agenda. Bear in mind the issue here is now the Nestlé as I'm fully aware of the atrocities they have committed in the past.

What a fantastic school! N$tle are abhorrent and I wish more people would boycott them. It's wonderful that they are raising awareness in the school.

@NotForSale
I totally agree with the fact that some of their practises (particularly in the past) haven’t been great but have you considered the fact that they came second out of the ‘big 10’ in a neutral survey across all sorts of ethical issues. If you boycott them you would have to also boycott pretty much every large food manufacturer (which you may do! In which case fair enough - just get frustrated with people using Nestle as a scapegoat)

And so as not to take the thread completely off topic - As a teacher, I think that environmental issues are a great method for a persuasive letter but it sounds like school may have gone a little over board.

I don't think the OP is coming back to the thread, not surprisingly. It's an interesting debate, though.

@littlehouseinthebigcity, not quite sure where you get that Nestle 'have been ' unethical in the past but are now 'quite good' on the ethical scale. Just take a look at this link that lists just a few of the things they've done...as recently as 2017! listverse.com/2018/01/03/10-outrageous-nestle-scandals/
Nestle are so far from ethical I'm not sure they could even see it if they stood on their tip toes!

@genius1308 thing is, all the other big food companies are just as bad. but they laugh all the way to the bank when people boycot nestle as it focuses attention off them (so they can continue do whatever they want. targetting a random
company instead of the system
means blocking one and enabling the rest

@yura, I hear what you're saying (and agree) but nestle have been in the top 10,and have been boycotted, since the 70s....thats as long time to get your act together. The boycott was called off for a short time when nestle agreed to start making improvements to their practises. Not surprisingly they didn't comply and they were boycotted again. I think a lot of people are unaware of Nestles practises because our laws make it harder for them to get away with some of their unethical practises but please research nestle in places like Philippines and india.

Haven't read the whole thread, but I hope the teacher is going to allow Mr Schneider/Nestle the right to reply - otherwise what was the point of writing to a named organisation if the letters are ignored and end up in the bin?

@genius1308 i know a lot about nestle. i also know a lot about the other big food companies. belive me, nestle has a crap PR deparment, but are not worse than the others (who are much, much better at hiding - made easy for them by peoe focussing on the competitor). boycotting one single one just enables the others to be worse.

Clavinova read the whole thread. Google persuasive writing. It’s part of the national curriculum. If you have an issue with children writing letters like this that they don’t then send, then your issue is with the DoE.

Clavinova how do you think she’d be able to stop him replying?

Clavinova how do you think she’d be able to stop him replying?

I think it's been suggested that the teacher has no intention of posting the letters. If that's the case and there is no reply - then why would the children bother writing letters in the future, why bother protesting, why bother voting etc?

I think it's been suggested that the teacher has no intention of posting the letters. If that's the case and there is no reply - then why would the children bother writing letters in the future
Because it’s a persuasive writing exercise. You know, like part of their school work. They’re not actually protesting. They are teaching children to write persuasive letters and develop their writing techniques and vocabulary. It could be on anything, but they tend to be based around a strong - and emotive - issue.

It could be on anything, but they tend to be based around a strong - and emotive - issue

No - they tend to be based on things like healthy eating, school uniform, school rules, new playground equipment, recycling - my dc have written loads.

No they don't Clavinova.

Oh OP I am embarrassed on your behalf. Your daughter is getting educated and you are angry because what she is learning is showing up your ignorance.

This is a great opportunity to learn alongside your child. She's right, the school's right, and you have missed the point entirely.

Someone has to stand up for the future, and it clearly isn't you - so well done to your daughter and her teachers.

Oh dear, Clavinova just because YOUR children have written on these subjects, doesn’t mean other teachers take a different approach. Usually teachers will want to choose subjects or issues they think children will have a strong view about.

All that proves Clavinova is that they’re the things your children have written about, at their school

No - they tend to be based on things like healthy eating, school uniform, school rules, new playground equipment, recycling - my dc have written loads.
No they can be about anything.

Usually topical issues are used as prompts as they're more interesting and students have knowledge or an awareness of them.

Original writing about eating healthy food is dull as dishwasher.

There are many ways to teach original writing.

I agree soy.

I’d be fuming to be honest. Seems highly inappropriate

Bluerussian thanks for pulling me up on my spelling mistake....

Highly inappropriate to discus issues that are unethical and profit from peoples misery and are destroying the planet? Really?

What should they discuss? How to ignore companies who have the morals of an Earthworm?

Check out how dedorestation happens. How people are being forced out of thier homes, animals killed or left orphaned, the polution. Not to mention all the other immoral practices nestle indulge in.

Open your eyes the responsibilty falls on all of us to speak up before its too late.

Clair your kids school sounds utterly unimaginative and boring. Kids should be educated in things outside thier own experiences not kept in ignorance of the world around them.

Clair (sic) your kids school sounds utterly unimaginative and boring. Kids should be educated in things outside their own experiences not kept in ignorance of the world around them

My dcs' schools have debating clubs and they win debating competitions - ds2 (Year 6) isn't a member of the club but regularly listens to the debates/motions in assembly. He attends a private school with subject specialist teachers (all secondary trained) for geography, history, science, 2 modern foreign languages and religious studies/ethics. The school invites interesting speakers to attend - giving talks on all sorts of topics. He knows all about deforestation etc. - he doesn't write letters to organisations saying, 'I hate you because...' He is much better taught.

And ds1 achieved an easy grade 9 in English Language this summer - have you seen the GCSE transactional writing tasks? Boring and uninspiring - the trick is to make the response sound interesting.

He knows all about deforestation etc. - he doesn't write letters to organisations saying, 'I hate you because...' He is much better taught

Have you seen the letters they wrote then? You know what they say?