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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Or is teaching 6 Yr old about crucixation out of order?

386 replies

Whostoblame · 08/04/2023 20:30

I might be over reacting but after multiple nights on the trot sleeping no more than 45-60 mins at a time I'm at the end of my tether. 6 year old goes to a non dom school and we are agnostic/atheist at home. School have been teaching them about Jesus and Easter etc including how Jesus was crucified. I now have a sobbing child every night who can't get the pictures out if her mind (and I'm not surprised!!)and subsequently cant sleep from about midnight, crying. Aibu to complain to school that 6 is way too young to be taught this?!

OP posts:
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matis · 08/04/2023 20:31

What's a non dom school?

PassTheDuckie · 08/04/2023 20:33

I’d be furious.

catmg · 08/04/2023 20:34

If a non dom school means its not affiliated to any religion, then you are not BU. They should be teaching all religions equally, like the ideas they are, rather than preaching one in particular like it's fact.

HistoryFanatic · 08/04/2023 20:36

I wouldn't perhaps get too much into the detail of the crucifixion but other than that I don't see an issue with it as they are teaching about Easter. Is your 6 year old a bit sensitive? Obviously as Christians our children are taught about this.

Crocodilekneecaps · 08/04/2023 20:37

Has she seen pics of Jesus on the cross before ?

HistoryFanatic · 08/04/2023 20:37

catmg · 08/04/2023 20:34

If a non dom school means its not affiliated to any religion, then you are not BU. They should be teaching all religions equally, like the ideas they are, rather than preaching one in particular like it's fact.

Well to a Christian it is fact. As long as they teach about all sorts of religions (believe they legally have to) I don't see an issue. Obviously age appropriate!

ItsThePlayBusDingDing · 08/04/2023 20:38

Yanbu.

Not long after my dd died they started telling my dc that Jesus rise from the dead because he was so loved and important that God gave him life again blah blah, my dc couldn't understand why their sister wasn't special and couldn't come back to life again.

They need to stop saying this shit as if its fact.

PonyPatter44 · 08/04/2023 20:38

Has your kid never seen a crucifix before? Seriously?

I am surprised that the school has made a huge issue of the mechanics of crucifixion - thats not really the main point of the story, is it? Are you sure it's not other children making a big thing of the gruesome nails / spear bit?

SoCunningYouCanStickATailOnItAndCallItAFox · 08/04/2023 20:40

It was a punishment used at that historical time. It is relevant to Easter as that is the whole point of Easter.
I think you need to help her put it into context and process what she's being taught from the angle of bygone times and the ways historical authorities exacted punishment back then and how things have changed over the last 2000 years etc.

isthisit83 · 08/04/2023 20:41

Tbh I think you have a sensitive child and because you aren't religious it's maybe clouding what's appropriate. Don't get me wrong, the crucifixion is heavy BUT my son goes to a catholic school and has been learning about this since he was 3. He never seemed to think too much about the violence of it. His whole class (Year 1), have just recently been learning about Tudor's and monarchs and how Henry VIII beheaded a bunch of his wives. My son and the rest of the class thought it was funny/interesting. It's history so I don't think they really associate it with being normal for today. History is brutal and so are a lot of the stories in the Bible.

bellac11 · 08/04/2023 20:41

Im an atheist but the crucifixion is a fact, crucifying people was just a standard public execution, nothing more, nothing less

Whether you believe all the other guff around it, thats another matter but the actual act of executing the person known as Jesus (Joshua ben Joseph) was just something done to others as well

Does she understand that up to a point people used to be hanged in the UK, kids tend to love all that gory stuff.

Sometimeswinning · 08/04/2023 20:41

catmg · 08/04/2023 20:34

If a non dom school means its not affiliated to any religion, then you are not BU. They should be teaching all religions equally, like the ideas they are, rather than preaching one in particular like it's fact.

They probably do. I'm sure Easter is being mentioned because it's Easter.

Sorry op but I disagree. Your dd sounds overly sensitive. I would personally take this as a parental thing where I help her understand it. My dd, same year has done the great fire of London. She has also been asking about Bloody Mary.

Disclaimer (which is often needed here) I'm not criticising your dd for being over sensitive. I've had to more open with my dc3 because of older siblings. It's been good for her. I love that she learns everything and things aren't glossed over.

Rinoachicken · 08/04/2023 20:42

ItsThePlayBusDingDing · 08/04/2023 20:38

Yanbu.

Not long after my dd died they started telling my dc that Jesus rise from the dead because he was so loved and important that God gave him life again blah blah, my dc couldn't understand why their sister wasn't special and couldn't come back to life again.

They need to stop saying this shit as if its fact.

I’m not surprised your daughter was upset by that, I’m so sorry for your loss.

It’s not even correct, (that’s NOT ‘why’ Jesus was resurrected) - if they are going to teach about all the different religions then they at least need to get it right! Otherwise just don’t bother. And I say that as a Christian!

CottonSock · 08/04/2023 20:44

I'm pretty sure my 6yo is not learning this at school.
Year 6 yes more appropriate

MelchiorsMistress · 08/04/2023 20:44

The Easter story is on the curriculum. It would be quite difficult to teach the Easter story without mentioning crucifixion.

usererror99 · 08/04/2023 20:44

My 6 year old learnt it this year

She's been fine

Oysterbabe · 08/04/2023 20:45

My 5 year old has learnt about it at school too and is pretty fascinated by the whole thing, not upset at all. My 7 year old also doesnt give a shit. I think there are always going to be children who are more sensitive than others.

Beantag · 08/04/2023 20:45

I mean you could speak to the school to discuss how it was taught, at that age its not unreasonable to mention it as part of learning about Easter, but if it was unnecessarily graphic or whatever then yes might be inappropriate. Children will face plenty of things they find upsetting, it's useful to equip them with tools to cope with it even at this young age. I'm not advocating for exposing them to all kinds of things just to teach them lessons or whatever, but when it does happen it's a good chance to help figure out how they deal with stuff.

BasilNotBrush · 08/04/2023 20:46

I've genuinely never known a child to be THAT upset over it. Is she unusually sensitive in other ways?

QueenSmartypants · 08/04/2023 20:47

Yabu

I would expect non-dom schools to teach about religious holidays and that includes Easter at Easter.

User79853257976 · 08/04/2023 20:47

She’s only six, maybe the pictures they used were quite bloody.

HmumR · 08/04/2023 20:48

I teach this age group - Y1 is quite a common age for the Easter story in RE. I told my class along the lines of “Jesus died on a cross and Christians call this the crucifixion.” I think it’s okay at this age as long as his death isn’t spoke about graphically.

anerki10 · 08/04/2023 20:48

My 4yo goes to a CofE school. He keeps banging on about Jesus being crucified. The other day he said, "Mum, did you know, they beat and spat on Jesus before they put him on the cross." 😳

JustAnotherManicNameChange · 08/04/2023 20:48

Every single year group learns the "Easter Story" at Easter. It starts pretty basic, Jesus died/died on the cross with maybe a power point that will show Jesus on the... wait for it... cross , then it goes into more and more detail as they go through the years.

Most schools also teach it in a Christians believe kind of way or as an explanation as to why and what we celebrate at Easter.

Just tell your DD it's a story just like x,y,z done in school or read at home and that will be the end of it.

Tellmethespoiler · 08/04/2023 20:48

I would expect all children this age to know about the Easter story, and all schools to teach it.

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