To think other children's snacks are irresponsible?

[cowgirljoey]

The official policy at DS's school (Year 2) is for them to bring a fruit or veg snack from home for break time. This seemed to be what happened when DS was in reception and Year 1, but over time DS tells me that his friends are regularly bringing crisps, chocolate bars and sweets in for their snack(s) and that he is one of the only ones who has fruit/veg each time.

Totally get that this needs fact-checking (I have a few reasons to think is is accurate), but if it is AIBU to think this is something I should contact school about? I don't think it's fair on the kids to be having junk food as a snack, and I've observed myself that lots of them eat barely any of their school lunch, suggesting that they aren't v. hungry at this point (understandable if they've had choc/crisps an hour beforehand). I think that parent are being irresponsible to be giving chocolate as a daily morning snack, but as I have no control over this, AIBU to think that school should be enforcing the fruit/veg policy?

Mention it to your class teacher, say it's making your kid pester you. If it's true a blanket email will get sent out reminding parents not to send shite into school as snacks, or the teacher may just turn around and say most kids have fruit, veg, ricecakes etc

I'm one of those parents that followed this religiously in the early years of primary and now don't bother. If my fit, active and slim dc wants more than an apple at morning break that they can have it. The school dinners are tiny. My busy not the schools or some other random judgy mum

Good teaching opportunity. Life is not fair and some people don’t follow rules.

Also seems to concentrate all the ignorance in one place.

I doubt v much most children do this, your son has worked out you’re easy to windup and is hoping to get a few kitkats out of it.

Ask the school the policy if you want.

But the lesson that people make choices for short and long term gain isn’t a bad one for your son. Come secondary school there will be no rules like this.

Thanks for your reply. What if it was another school rule being broken?

I'm a teacher. Kids break rules all the time. You can't actually prevent them from breaking rules, you just sanction them when they do. Are you proposing to 'ask for clarity' on the school rules every time your ds says lots of kids are breaking them, throughout his school career? Good luck with that. I'm afrathat your sphere of influence extends only to your own child's behaviour.

I think you need to put this in perspective.

there wasn’t this lunch box scrutiny when we were all at school.

maybe find a new cause? There are children sitting in that classroom who won’t have eaten much over the weekend, who steal food to bring home to their siblings, who go hungry over school holidays because there are no free school meals.

stop focusing on the naughty crisps in the well fed children’s lunch boxes and think what you can do to help the school contact child hunger. As a society that is where the outrage should be focused.

You should probably get yourself some kind of medal made up.

I tell my kids that we are following the rules even if "everyone else" isn't. Its like uniform. There's always someone with a non regulation haircut or trainers or whatever. Im not going to be parent sending my dc to school like that. I maintain standards and I don't care what other people do.

Presumably you are happy with your dcs diet so leave it at that.

Do we not have a responsibility as members of the same community to promote healthy eating habits?

I take it you go out and counsel the customers at your community Morley's Fried Chicken et al to fulfil this responsibility as you take it so seriously?

Honestly, do you not get the complexity of promoting healthy eating habits? There's only so much a school or doctor or government can do - and all you can do is focus on your DC and there's still no guarantee they won't eat junk or have an ED or any number of issues with food. It's a minefield and you should stay out of it where other people's kids are concerned. You have no idea what their situation is and the idea that you'd check with the school to clarify the policy is transparent tale-telling. Perhaps teacher will give you an apple and burn all these (probably mythical) bags of crisps to teach the others a lesson.

Our school tried a reward scheme where they got house points for taking fruit for their morning snack. The teacher would keep a tally as the kids went out and this got added up each week.
Trouble was, they were taking one bite out of an apple and putting it in the bin. The poor janitor could barely carry the bins in at the end of the day.

Seriously I don't think it's anybody's business what kids take for their snack. Our school has given up now due to abuse from parents as they didn't really have the authority - they could just suggest it as a policy. Now they brings crisps, chocolate and whatever they like,

This.

You have no idea why some of our kids do not have a fruit veg snack as per policy. Medical reasons, ALN, ARFID, ASD, all sorts of reasons and schools are required to make reasonable adjustments and gasp not tell the other kids/parents why Jimmy is allowed crisps and they aren't.

MYOB.

I think what you mean is “my DS is complaining that he has fruit and everyone else has crisps or chocolate. AIBU to be annoyed that other parents aren’t following the rules and this makes it harder for me to get my kid to eat healthily?”

That, I would agree with.

Your faux concern about other kids’ health… not so much.

Who made you the food police?

I find these days people are fairly well educated about what's healthy and what's not, apart from some hidden / sneakily unhealthy foods! They know what's in the foods and make a decision to eat them or serve them to their kids. That's up to them. Also not to throw COL at this but what if they couldn't afford fresh fruit but had a pack of crisps in the press? I wouldn't ring the school over it. If the rule being broken isn't directly affecting you or your child, why worry!

A classic example of someone that needs a hobby.

Good grief. With the way the country is at the moment - this is not an issue. If parents haven't or cannot afford to go shopping then they may have grabbed something from the back of the cupboard which had a longer shelf life like crisps. Some of the children won't like the texture of fruit- they may have sensory issues. Some parents may have had to grab snacks on the run and crisps or chocolate was all they could get in the shop. Who are you to judge? Educate your child yourself by explaining that not all families have the time or money to provide oranges or bannanas.

Oh, come onnnnnn…🙄

Sorry - don’t know how the gif got there! Lol

'Do we not have a responsibility as members of the same community to promote healthy eating habits?'

No, not really. But this is more about you not wanting to feel like the bad guy telling your child no than anything else, I suspect.
Just wait to you find out some kids wear branded trainers to school when they're not supposed to...

Grandson went in with cheese one morning bec his little friend always had cheese. Cue his teacher at school end taking mummy aside telling her cheese was forbidden. The other parents child was in a different class so it's checked.

I wouldn’t disagree with what you’ve put , it’s up to parents. However schools are supposed to under the framework of OFSTED not only promote healthy eating including a No juice policy , but activity police sandwhich boxes. Schools can fall on gradings for not ensuring good dental well-being and encouraging diets that are conducive to health in terms of mindfulness / concentration, and weight. Don’t shoot the messenger on this one just saying. Your the parent

Fruit and vegetables are given free to infants and IME most dcs go for that. I’m a TA and I seldom see pupils of that age bring in their own snacks. We can have problems in juniors though and it’s tricky for the school to handle as we don’t want to be confrontational with parents.

and he's as skinny as a rake