To question what they are teaching in primary schools these days?

[wonderstuff]

DS 11 didn’t know how to make paper snowflakes! Thought it was some sort of witchcraft when I showed him 😎. DD 14 knows so it’s obviously a recent deterioration. I remember spending what felt like hours happily cutting out in primary school. It was a go to activity for wet break. Think they bung a film on now with screens in every classroom. Sad times.

@BurbageBrook

It’s incredible how many people struggled to understand your really obvious sarcasm OP!

It's not taught ..

I could never get my Blue Peter advent hanger things to work. Although I made my parents A LOT of Blue Peter desk tidy’s.

They’d teach that in university nowadays.

My DS came home with a card, a calendar and two decorations , I was impressed! Especially as he definitely would've needed extra help.

His teacher was a goddess in his eyes when she made him a paper airplane .

At my Convent primary school we learned embroidery. In September our parents had to purchase and send in to school a piece of embroidery.. traycloth, cushion cover etc. plus the materials to embroider it. We then spent an afternoon a week doing the embroidery and it went on sale at the Christmas Fair. We would pester our parents to buy the piece we had worked on, so they paid twice!
In January we would start again with a new puece for the Summer Sale of Work 😄

DD age 3 did them in nursery this week. Clearly she is a child genius compared to OPs 😎

@SilkLabrador you should have seen his efforts he understandably gave up after a couple of tries and went back to killing zombies.

I am a barely adequate parent. I’ve banned computer games until Boxing Day, I’m going to get him decorating biscuits tomorrow!

I’m a teacher and I haven’t taught my class to make paper snowflakes because I’ve been busy teaching them all to make those paper decision maker things

I've noticed there is very little Papier mache-mache happening in school these days. Back in the early 80s I think it was compulsory that every child left primary school knowing how to make a Papier-mache plate and pig. How will children of today know how to create almost anything out of newspaper, wallpaper paste and a bit of paint?

Have you seen the mischief that some primary children can get up to with a pair of scissors when the teacher's back is turned? I am not surprised that cutting out paper snowflakes is now off the syllabus!

Dd7 can make an amazing snowflake, paperchain, Christmas tree decoration and almost every Christmas craft known to man.

However, she doesn't know how to play hot chocolate, red letter, British bulldog, stuck in the mud or cats cradle. What the hell do they all do at breaktime, run around aimlessly until its time to go back in?

I had a year 9 childcare class as a supply teacher.

They are supposed to start the curriculum but really it's treading water for most of the year.

Being supply I could claim lots of stuff on expenses.

If I'd carried on longer I was going to teach them to knit.
So I had a lot of fun with arts and crafts, all relevant to the course eg they made a children's story book using glitter letters and a scrap book, and they also made videos to show children what happens on a hospital visit, but before they made the film they had to make puppets for the characters.

We had a lot of fun in that class.

Adding to @Frlrlrubert's list

Use a computer with a mouse.

Understand how blinds work.

The blinds thing is important on really hot days, I've almost had to physically restrain students who think putting the blinds up will cool a room down.

However, she doesn't know how to play hot chocolate, red letter, British bulldog, stuck in the mud or cats cradle. What the hell do they all do at breaktime, run around aimlessly until its time to go back in?
@Littlewhiteballs - they play red light green light these days.

I realised mine didnt know elastics, or the skipping games/clapping games we used to play. I feel old!

Whats hot chocolate?

Your yr 9 class sounds amazing! And more creative than primary are allowed to be... which is nuts!

@ReceptionTA 😂😂 We actually had a letter home informing us that Squid Games was not for children and we shouldn't let them watch it. Apparently lots of children had been reenacting it in the playground. I live in a deprived area with some shocking parenting examples but we're not THAT bad!

@WoodenReindeer

ctac.esrc.unimelb.edu.au/biogs/E000177b.htm

Ahh, memories!

Ah we played that but by another name. And now I can't remember the name because I'm thinking "hot chocolate" 🤣.

It will come to me later I'm sure!

@WoodenReindeer @Littlewhiteballs
I vaguely think I remember hot chocolate. Is this the one where you have to walk in “pigeon steps” “giant steps” depending on what the person who is it says?

See also
Grandma’s footsteps
What’s the time mr wolf

I blame Blue Peter. I miss the Advent Crown.
I agree about the mess once you've got the class hooked on the paper snowflakes as they make them every spare moment. I always have to buy the cleaner a special 'thank you' due to the extra work after Christmas craft. You should hear his cheers when I stated I won't be using glitter this year!

Must say I was impressed with this when I was googling for the Blue Peter clip.

As a year 6 teacher I was under strict orders to maintain normal lessons and interventions until the last day. I did manage to sneak in some painting for Xmas cards prior to this one afternoon (had to buy the card and acrylic myself as my request for supplies was refused) but we did have a lovely last day where we played games (musical chairs, after 8 challenge, hot potato, and balloon races) and then I taught them how to do French skipping and double dutch plus clapping games and fortune tellers. I am a goddess now because double dutch is like MAGIC.

I did clean up some of the words to Apple Sticky and When Suzie Was a Baby.

a lot of kids in the primary i work in can't tie shoelaces, tell you what an anagram is, recite the alphabet or 2, 3, 4 time tables. loads of them don't know when their birthday is, nor what their parents first names are.
they also don't know their address or the road where they live.

lots of reception kids can't put their coat on. (and get put in a pushchair before/after school. seriously)

Ha ha. Agree. They should be teaching them this. Instead of some of the rubbish they do!

I have 3 year 6's who can't tie their shoelaces! At the start of the year I always check they can do shoelaces, know their full address and a parents telephone number, can use a knife and fork properly - the residential throws this particular skill into hideous spotlight- and can fold clothes (for PE and the residential). By the end of the year I make sure they can do these plus tell me a safe route with safe crossing places for their walk to secondary school. I also set a challenge to lear
to cook 3 meals. There's always a few boys who will be wearing velcro shoes for the rest of their lives.

I’ve passed by a very multicultural primary school in Central London daily for years and happy sigh at the window displays. Eggbox daffodils, valentines hearts, Easter eggs and lambs, autumn leaves, remembrance poppies, Diwali lights, snowmen & snowflakes. It still happens

Um, guilty on shoelaces. I keep meaning to sort that, but it’s difficult to have them retain it when they’re not using it, because Velcro shoes are easier to buy. I have taught mine sewing and knitting though.

The blinds thing is important on really hot days, I've almost had to physically restrain students who think putting the blinds up will cool a room down.

Erm, it can. Depends on the room and I’ve rarely seen well-designed classrooms, but if you physically block the sunlight from entering through glass it stops the greenhouse effect.