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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

PE teacher forcing my son to do PE with a head injury

81 replies

rooby252 · 11/07/2023 19:47

My 10 year old son sustained a quite bad head injury over the weekend and had to go to A&E to get it glued. We were told he couldn't do sports for 7-10 days and to keep the wound dry.
I took him into school yesterday and spoke to a deputy head and the office, passing on the information that A&E had given us.
When I picked him up at the end of the day, he said the PE teacher had made him do PE. He told the PE teacher repeatedly that he wasn't allowed to but was told to do it.
Apparently, the PE teacher saw him kicking a ball around at play time and just thought my son was 'trying it on' to get out of PE.
My son is sports mad and generally loves all sports, so he is not known to try and get out of any type of sports!
My son's class teacher told my son to tell the PE teacher that he wasn't allowed to do (which he did) rather than passing the message on directly.
AIBU to be really cross with the PE teacher for not believing my son, despite him having a huge lump on his face, glue and steri strips?

OP posts:
dementedpixie · 11/07/2023 19:49

I'd maybe have sent him in with a letter for the PE teacher to excuse him from taking part

dementedpixie · 11/07/2023 19:50

I would make a complaint

Tinkietot · 11/07/2023 19:50

Yes the PE teacher should have been informed but I would also say your son shouldn’t be kicking a ball around and going against medical advice.

I can see how if the PE teacher wasn’t informed that he thought your son was trying it on.

Schools processes have fallen down here, I wouldn’t be annoyed at the teacher.

Clymene · 11/07/2023 19:51

Your son was told he wasn't to do sport for 7-10 days. That includes kicking a ball around at playtime.

Your son is at fault here, not the PE teacher. And you should have written a letter too

I am no fan of PE teachers incidentally.

burntshortbread · 11/07/2023 19:53

This is typical behaviour from PE teachers and schools generally IME.
However, you should have sent your son into school with a signed letter to the office and a copy to give to the PE teacher. A phone call to the office would have been a good idea too.
My DC have had various injuries over the years. When the PE teacher actually removed the tubigrip and bandage (applied in A&E) from my child's badly sprained wrist and made her play netball, I realised that overkill is the only way.

burntshortbread · 11/07/2023 19:54

I do agree that he should not have been kicking a ball around either.

YourNameGoesHere · 11/07/2023 19:55

To be fair to the pe teacher if he's been told no sports that includes kicking a ball around at playtime.

You can't say he is able to do one and not that other.

Original poster
rooby252 · 11/07/2023 19:56

Yes, I should have written a note with hindsight, but I honestly thought the verbal message given to the office and deputy head would have been enough.
I spoke to my son about not kicking a ball about again for the next 10 days, and he spent every break inside today to avoid the temptation.

OP posts:
MisschiefMaker · 11/07/2023 19:58

Teacher sounds a bit dim. Maybe he has sustained a head injury himself?

Peacoffee · 11/07/2023 19:58

I agree, you can’t say it’s dangerous for him to do PE but he’s perfectly happy to kick a ball around on his break with his mates.
Send him in with a letter for the next however many lessons and have a word with him about being a dick and messing about with a ball if he has a serious head injury.

PinkIcedCream · 11/07/2023 19:59

AIBU to be really cross with the PE teacher for not believing my son, despite him having a huge lump on his face, glue and steri strips?

No, YANBU and you need to make a formal complaint.

However, some PE teachers are not known for their common sense so I'm not really surprised.

DS's PE teacher doesn't believe in Covid, vaccinations and thinks mobile phones will fry your brain, etc. If she's feeling in a good mood, she takes the kids on a walk down to the local cafe for them to buy their lunch as it's the period immediately before lunchtime. Doesn't seem to matter that some of the kids have no money so are stood around like lemons waiting for the end of the lesson to go back to school. 🤦🏻‍♀️

Yes, I saw this with my own eyes after stopping at the petrol station next door and wondering why my son was standing outside the shop with the two Ukrainian girls from his class.

Apparently, PE teachers are in short supply. 😳😡

Peacoffee · 11/07/2023 19:59

MisschiefMaker · 11/07/2023 19:58

Teacher sounds a bit dim. Maybe he has sustained a head injury himself?

It’s dim to assume if you can play football with your mates you can probably do PE too?

WildUnchartedWaters · 11/07/2023 19:59

Clymene · 11/07/2023 19:51

Your son was told he wasn't to do sport for 7-10 days. That includes kicking a ball around at playtime.

Your son is at fault here, not the PE teacher. And you should have written a letter too

I am no fan of PE teachers incidentally.

Not necessarily. Kicking a ball is a bit different to a team sport.

I dont think we should be so quick to blame a child.

The PE teacher should have used some sense espec.for a child who loves PE.

Clymene · 11/07/2023 20:01

I don't think the OP has said what kind of sport her son was playing @WildUnchartedWaters?

Did I miss it?

WildUnchartedWaters · 11/07/2023 20:02

Re Pps - nobody mentioned a game or mates. He could easily have been kicking it against a wall or passing to his pal. Less danger to his head ro what they were doing in pe - rugby? Hockey? Anything he could fall on?

Also, the teacher bashing is unnecessary. The pe teacher hasnt covered himself in glory here but come on.

The kid shouldn't have to be sitting inside every day. Op, ring the school and dont get caught up in the teacher bashers on here.

CornishTiger · 11/07/2023 20:02

Seriously of course a 10 year old is going to be tempted to kick a ball. They don’t always understand why they are told certain things and the consequences.

However the school should have made sure he didn’t do PE. Playground staff should have been told about sports too so they could remind him of no sports rules.

It’s the adults in school at fault here. Not the child nor the mum who told the school office ( and didn’t pass it on to ALL concerned)

WildUnchartedWaters · 11/07/2023 20:03

Clymene · 11/07/2023 20:01

I don't think the OP has said what kind of sport her son was playing @WildUnchartedWaters?

Did I miss it?

You know you didnt.

I'd imagine it was more than kicking a football to his pal though. At a guess at end of term? Athletics. Fantastic ides to make a child with a head injury do hurdles and long jump. Cant think what could go wrong.

Clymene · 11/07/2023 20:03

In the PE lesson I mean. In summer, my kids' school does athletics, not team sports.

Taylorwailer · 11/07/2023 20:03

PinkIcedCream · 11/07/2023 19:59

AIBU to be really cross with the PE teacher for not believing my son, despite him having a huge lump on his face, glue and steri strips?

No, YANBU and you need to make a formal complaint.

However, some PE teachers are not known for their common sense so I'm not really surprised.

DS's PE teacher doesn't believe in Covid, vaccinations and thinks mobile phones will fry your brain, etc. If she's feeling in a good mood, she takes the kids on a walk down to the local cafe for them to buy their lunch as it's the period immediately before lunchtime. Doesn't seem to matter that some of the kids have no money so are stood around like lemons waiting for the end of the lesson to go back to school. 🤦🏻‍♀️

Yes, I saw this with my own eyes after stopping at the petrol station next door and wondering why my son was standing outside the shop with the two Ukrainian girls from his class.

Apparently, PE teachers are in short supply. 😳😡

Sorry if I’m missing the point but why do we need to know they’re Ukrainian girls?

MisschiefMaker · 11/07/2023 20:04

@Peacoffee the kid had his head glued. The injury was visible. If teacher had any sense he could have had a calm conversation with the kid where he would have learned the circumstances and would also have learned that he could have clarified with the class teacher if he was that unwilling to take the boy's word for it.

Instead he risked making the boys serious head injury worse.

Maybe the more appropriate phrase is "arrogant with a poor approach to risk management", rather than dim.

Clymene · 11/07/2023 20:05

The fact is that the kid was kicking a ball at lunchtime - presumably with his mates - which is a team sport.

No he absolutely shouldn't be doing PE. But he shouldn't be kicking a ball either. And the OP should have written a letter.

Original poster
rooby252 · 11/07/2023 20:05

Clymene · Today 19:51
Your son was told he wasn't to do sport for 7-10 days. That includes kicking a ball around at playtime.

Your son is at fault here, not the PE teacher. And you should have written a letter too

I am no fan of PE teachers incidentally

I'm not sure how my son is at fault? At 10, he probably doesn't fully realise the consequences of having another head injury/ concussion. When I asked him why he had been kicking a ball, he said he hadn't been running around so wasn't getting the wound sweaty/wet. I explained to him in more detail why he mustn't do any sport and that is why he stayed inside today.

OP posts:
Gerrataere · 11/07/2023 20:05

Can’t believe people are blaming a primary school child. It was the school’s responsibility - not only to be clear in the message that he wasn’t to do PE (a message that the teacher evidently got to actively dismiss it), and to keep a better eye on a 19 year old ‘sports mad’ lad who evidently would get distracted by a kick around at break time. They didn’t need it in writing, the message had been received, the issue is that it was blatantly ignored and that’s what I’d been complaining about.

Actually I’d be wanting the PE teacher to personally explain himself as to why he felt he could overrule this rather than remind the son at break he wasn’t meant to be playing football due to injury, but I don’t particularly care about being ‘that parent’.

Clymene · 11/07/2023 20:06

I'm not sure how my son is at fault? At 10, he probably doesn't fully realise the consequences of having another head injury/ concussion. When I asked him why he had been kicking a ball, he said he hadn't been running around so wasn't getting the wound sweaty/wet. I explained to him in more detail why he mustn't do any sport and that is why he stayed inside today.

Okay, that's your fault then. You should have explained to him - especially as he's sport mad - that NO SPORT means NO SPORT.

Gerrataere · 11/07/2023 20:06

*that should be a 10 year old not 19 but teenagers barely have more sense in all honesty…