Not sure if I’m unfairly taking DD’s side but she has been punished quite severely considering this is the first time in 5.5 years we have been contacted about her behaviour...
DD, 9, was on her way back from an inter school athletics competition when they reached the school perimeter, saw their friends in the playground and a group of about 12 kids ran, maybe 20 metres along the length of the fence to the school gate. On the pavement, no roads crossed, but obviously risked falling and she definitely did know that they weren’t supposed to run. I have no issue with her facing the repercussions, but I feel that the punishment they received is excessive:
They were called to the head and told off (so they couldn’t finish lunch despite being in school early for the competition, having no snacks during the event and DD having an after school club).
They had to write letters of apology to the teachers on the trip.
They had a detention.
They were banned from external sports event for the rest of the half term (4 weeks) - the head said it was to give them a short, sharp shock, but for DD is has been torture. She is OBSESSED with sports and has missed two events she has been looking forward to/training for, for a year. One of which she was the only person in her year to qualify for the finals for last year, and the other a sport that no one else in her year plays, but that she is talented at and plays for a club. I feel this means she is impacted to a greater degree - we are friends with some of the other kids punished and most are not interested in these two events so wouldn’t try out anyway and told me they don’t care about the punishment. I don't think she should have special treatment because of her love of sports, but I do think the punishment, while relevant to the crime, is not fair to all the children. She has also missed a couple more events that she would have liked to go to but is not as passionate about.
I have had a meeting with the head to discuss the incident, and thought that maybe there was more to it, but no. ‘Just’ the running. And she couldn’t understand how the sport ban punished some children more than others.
AIBU?
School punishment too harsh?
Witchesandwizards · 08/02/2019 23:27
I think if the OP had come here and complained that her dd had fallen and banged her head during this incident, she would have been handed her arse on a platter . 
With the exception of children with SEN who are known to be bolters, 9 year olds are not expected to need physical restraint to stop them running off.
What on earth do this school do to punish children that really misbehave? Behead them?
So ds did a very similar thing the other week. They were coming back from a swimming lesson and he ran ahead for a short distance. He had a detention, I got an email explaining why, and he had to write an apology letter to the sports teacher who was supervising. All fair and good.
It would have been over the top if they had then banned him from swimming. I will add that he has never done anything like that before, and is in fact a bit of a goody two shoes 
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