To think that this isn't fair (school situation)

[whyisswangnotaword]

To cut a long story short, my child's school is holding a whole school trip to a beach to mark the end of the year.
It's been highly encouraged for all students to attend, albeit a little too encouraged and has come across to many as very pushy, which has been off putting.
We are not attending, due to my child's horrific travel sickness. I was called and asked if we were attending after already saying we are not - and then was further questioned as to why we are not going. That's not the point though -

We have today been told that any children not attending will be set online work to complete for the day that the school is closed for the trip.
I will be taking my child out for the day, most probably to the cinema due to bad weather .. because although she is aware of the reasons we are not attending and did not want to go due to travel sickness (it would absolutely NOT be enjoyable for anybody) it's still not nice for her to think of all of her friends out having fun whilst she is stuck at home.

Is it silly of me to think that it's unfair that the school are setting an online work day for the children that aren't attending?
I would agree with it totally if she were missing an educational trip, but it's not that. It's a whole school trips for the children and their parents to have a fun day at the beach.

Unfortunately op I think your thread has been derailed by cathedral-gate 😆.

My DD is also in reception and I think making 5 year olds travel 2.5 hours each way on a coach (leaving at 7.30!) is totally bonkers.

Her school doesn’t do whole-school trips - I can’t imagine how you’d even start planning the logistics. They went to a farm park 45 minutes away and I thought even that was ambitious.

Enjoy a nice day with you DD x

Did you see this post?

You don't drive, you don't work, and you've haven't really done everything you possibly can to track down an effective remedy for travel sickness?

Sadly I think your child is destined to grow.up with a rather narrow life experience

Yes I asked them. In fact I even said, your end of year trip will be this and this. You’ll be doing this. Just need to pay it. They then both asked me if they had to go because they really didn’t want to

Yeah I apologise OP. Sorry x

No, they're covering themselves.

When I was a secondary HoD, I'd get the opposite: parents taking their kids out during term time, but demanding work for their offspring, presumably so the school wouldn't try to block the holiday. If it was done at all, we'd get two or three hastily scribbled lines.

in end, I made up a generic out-of-school work booklet for each year group in order to spare my staff the anguish of adapting their current lessons for distance learning.

My son uses Kwells Kids, which is suitable from 4. It works well for him.
Before he was old enough for those, we used Piriton, which also seemed to work quite well (no idea why).

@TheSnootiestFox I was referring to a particular comment which read because I don't drive nor currently work, my child will have a limited childhood

Yes I did. I don't class that as nasty, just factual. Honestly, people need to stop being offended by people stating facts 🤷‍♀️

My mum didn't drive and it really hampered my opportunities and experiences. It's stating the obvious, not being nasty.

Saying a child is destined to grow up with a narrow life experience is not factual.
You have no idea what might happen in this family's life.

This, exactly.
Although has anyone ever seen on hotter, European beaches where a walk down to the beach is much easier. They seem to make the most of going to school near the sea.They have a kind of floating rope which they use to almost section off a bit of sea, staff stand in the water holding the rope and all the kids pile in and have a great time ! They are right next to the beach and cant go any further than the rope.

A previous poster said that the child of a non working non driving mother who hadn't sought out appropriate medication to solve a usually relatively simple to sort barrier to travel would have a narrow life experience, I assume compared to children with the opportunity to travel. I have no dog in the SAHM mum or not fight as I do wonder if I should have given up work myself sometimes, but my own children have had lots of experiences and opportunities provided by my own professional activities and the income from them. I do understand that that is sector specific and the OP may not have the financial need to work.

I believe that is factual and I agree with the previous poster. No insults, no nastiness, no offence needs to be taken it's just a statement of fact. I am allowed a different opinion to you, believe it or not!

@whyisswangnotaword - I meant all students, including those who are going on the trip, so your kid will be doing the work early and the ones on the trip will be allocated this work one of the days on their return? I didn't mean that just the kids that don't go on the trip. Not sure if my earlier post was clear.

@TheSnootiestFox

Just to clear this up, as I did find it rude, unnecessary and not at all factual - currently I have no financial need to work. Me not working does not impact my child in negative nor positive way, it doesn't really make a difference. I have a partner/ her dad. We live in a major city meaning we do not need to drive as public transport is readily available and most used by people here.
I have a large family (most of which drive) whom we all see regularly, and we go places and do things with them that are oriented towards my child 90% of the time.
She has plenty of experiences and days out which will only continue as she gets older.
I said upthread I had tried numerous different things for the travel sickness which had not worked. I'm not going to waste time listing every single method we have tried. Is that really necessary?
Her travel sickness is much easier to deal with around family members and myself who know also how to deal with it. It's not as anxiety inducing, and we are able to pull over and stop as and when necessary. We couldn't do this on a coach full of multiple families.

This has just reminded me that I once went on a school trip to a water treatment plant 🤢💩 My mum would never have let me stay at home because it might be a sh*t trip, even when it literally was!

Yes, parents are required to accompany their child / children, otherwise the children cannot attend the trip.

Hang on, this makes no sense whatsoever.

The school have hired enough coaches to accommodate all children across all year groups and a parent for each child?? So even for a smallish primary school you're looking at 500 people, plus staff!!

Parents being expected to accompany their kids on a trip that starts at 7.30am and involves a 5 hour round trip is a HUGE ask. What about working parents who need their AL to cover holidays? What about single parents with younger kids at home, what about parents with their own health issues? Saying that if their child can't go on the trip they can't come to school is also a pretty bold move as it means parents have to take time off work regardless.

Honestly, this sounds like a nightmare for parents and staff. I work in a mainstream primary school and we have a number of children who would absolutely not cope with an all day excursion starting at 7.30am and involving 5 hours on a coach due to SEN, physical health issues or behaviour challenges. The Reception children will be completely exhausted, half of ours fell asleep on the coach on the way back from a 2 hour theatre trip!

I am amazed that the school haven't been totally inundated with complaints from parents about this.

Really can’t understand parents who stop their children going on school visits. Feel this is very unhealthy (or in a few cases, lazy). It’s not just the cathedral or the beach (which is education as well as fun), it’s also for children’s social and emotional development. Going somewhere further away from home and parents, choosing what to eat in their packed lunch, cleaning up after themselves etc etc. As a teacher, now retired, I have taken hundreds of children on visits and can only think of 1 child who was badly travel sick (up in Lakes and travelled down some very winding roads) and never had a child who didn’t enjoy the visit.
What are you going to do when DC has to go on educational visit as part of GCSE course work? Get your DC some travel sick tablets or one of those wrist bands, and cut the apron strings!

The school is required to provide an alternative day of education for students not attending the school trip. They're absolutely not being unfair - your child has the same two options as every other child.

You would be ridiculously unreasonable to complain to the school, but as a parent I think it's fine to prioritize a famiy outing that day and accept an unexcused absence if necessary.

I don't get travel sick, but first person games make me very queasy. But, one of my children gets travel sick and plays Minecraft & Fortnite with no problems.

Weird.

Parents that don’t work and have one child are all set for this school day trip. Parents that have other primary school age kids, younger children wouldn’t be able to join. Same for parents who work. The school needs to do a day trip that’s possible for all kids without parents or organise activities at school.

@whyisswangnotaword the school need to show that they have set work for any children not attending, and have not just allowed a random day off school, even though the rest of the school are on a trip. I don’t suppose they really expect it to be completed. We had this when our ds’s school had to close for a day due to a boiler fault. Very few actually did the work, nothing was said.

I hope you both have a lovely bonus day together, your idea of going to the cinema is great. Have a lovely day and don’t think too much about the work set.

I wouldn't worry about it too much, more than likely, the weather will be shite, so no-one will be going to the beach..

Just ignore it and have a nice day.
worst they do is mark them as unauthorised absense and I honestly wouldn’t worry about it.

My 7 year old loves visits to cathedrals...there's so much history and lots of fun facts. It's a great idea of a school trip.

That’s a major shame. Education about architecture, art, history, worship, awe and wonder all thrown away. YABU. Sad

I don’t understand either, my kids suffered with it too (one still does) so always have the tablets, they work brilliantly. I take them on boats and planes myself - why suffer?!