To HATE school competitions

[Pumpkinhate]

Yeah yeah its good to learn how to lose and all that, but...

For the fifth year in a row my kids came home with their faces in their boots today, bloody school pumpkin competition. They never win, and they never will win, because I cba and make them (gasp) do their own pumpkins (ok i help with the sharp knife bit). Most of the other kids have parents who get waaay more involved (i.e clearly do it all for them), so theirs look ace and professional and they win.

I dunno, what am I teaching my kids? That life isnt fair? That i am a witch? That some things just suck? I hate it!!

YABU - just do it for them, you mean mutha

YANBU - WTF, school? Reward the kids who try, not the ones who get their parents to do shit for them!

Well I teach at the school that my DD attends so she never wins anything. Poor sod. Always thinks she might. But she won’t.

I agree. Why can't it be a pumpkin gallery? I get SOME things can be competitive I suppose but it seems like everything is about winning not just doing at schools now.

I don't think everything should be a competition but surely you could put an effort in one year..?

School is a competition from the get go - and that’s what it teaches kids. Same kids win (oldest, cleverest, more privileged) some kids never win. its dry.

@AMorningstar I get I could do it, bit isn't the competition supposed to be for them, not me? I've done enough pumpkins in my life! I am the Halloween Scrooge now

I've always refused to engage in these type of competitions and the kids were not that arsed either. Real life is not a competition IMO.

Schools can be quite arbitrary about which skills get tested competitively and recognised too. Some might focus a lot on sports but not have academic prizes, some the other way around. Some much put a lot of emphasis on performing, and have regular plays, or others might give awards for artistic talent or singing.

And you don’t really know with primary schools where your child’s talent will lie before they go there, or which schools give prizes for what.

This. I don’t think schools bother to think it through. Why does it have to be a competition?! What can it possibly achieve except to upset most of the kids?

At my dds primary very often they would pick one of the ones where the kids had obviously done at least most of it themselves to win.

it’s not a competition of who has the most artistic parents.

My twins won the guy Fawkes competition last year, because they had done it themselves. They won £150!

Mii oh t at school. The local sports club

I get that, I'm a big halloween fan so I guess for me any excuse to carve a pumpkin would be taken 😂

Local school does picture comp so they decorate or color or paint picture of pumpkin. Much more child friendly

One time DS1 won a fancy dress competition because his costume was homemade and he'd helped me make it too. That was nice but I am still against competitions in school because it is the parents not the kids who really determine the outcome. Even with older kids, those who are from better off/more involved parents will have an advantage of either money or time (or even both) being available to help them prepare. I don't believe competition is always character building either, it just helps cement a hierarchy where some people are doomed to fail each time and the usual suspects take the prize. Unsurprisingly those who never win give up and those who do win can become very entitled individuals.

Parental craft competitions.

My kids don't let try to help now as they can do it better without me. My skills are dire. 🙄

I don't mind the competitions at my kids school as it seems the elaborate entries clearly not done by the child doesn't usually win. Obviously there will be some talented crafty kids out there who probably can do a better job than some parents and the teachers will be aware of their abilities.

It's just a bit of fun. Chill out.

We have an Easter garden one at our school . I entered once and let the kids do it. It looked shit. All the winners were clearly done be the parents. Never bothered to enter again. Leave the competitive parents to it.

I'm my school we always pick the ones that the children have obviously done themselves... Easter Bonnets etc

I do the same as you, I let my child do her own thing!
I totally agree with you

Ha! When my DD entered hers one year, I commented to the head that it was the only one that looked as if it was done by a child. She won that year 🤣 and that was the reason given!