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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Inappropriate mnemonic from school?

219 replies

Angelofmycoins · 23/05/2025 21:35

Son is doing exams Y11 - he has just told me they were taught this mnemonic in science (physics?) when they were in Y9:

'Gay X-men Use Vibrators In My Rectum'

(for remembering types of waves ie gamma, x, uv etc)

Aibu in thinking its inappropriate? He did remember it so he argues it worked!

For context, fee paying school, all boys.....

OP posts:
topcat2014 · 24/05/2025 16:01

Fahdidahlia · 24/05/2025 15:57

King prawn curry or fat greasy sausages!

For what it's worth when I started teaching a lifetime ago the same mnemonic was used for EM spectrum but I couldn't bare to ever use it despite how memorable it would be so hard a car more boring one to use!

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I wonder if they went in regions of the country - like everyone having a different nickname for woodlice

tuvamoodyson · 24/05/2025 16:04

Are you unsure whether it’s appropriate or not? What’s making you doubt yourself?

Callie247 · 24/05/2025 16:04

Dramatic · 23/05/2025 21:39

Wow 😂

I only remember which way stalagmites and stalactites go because our teacher taught us the phrase "tites (tights) must come down"

We had that. The mites go up and the tites come down 😳😂

Bigearringsbigsmile · 24/05/2025 16:10

My sons teacher in y4 taught them ' never entertain sexy women' for the compass points

Oddsocksanduglyshoes · 24/05/2025 16:25

But on the plus side two years later he still remembered it….

thiswilloutme · 24/05/2025 16:26

BalloonSlayer · 24/05/2025 15:11

Clicked on this thinking it would be primary and you were getting upset about my very elderly mother just strangled Uncle Neil's parrot.(Although recently she has had to move on to homicide and strangle Uncle Neil.) But clearly that is tame these days. 😁

ooh nice = not heard this one! Useful for pub quizzes !

thiswilloutme · 24/05/2025 16:30

topcat2014 · 24/05/2025 15:51

Mine was a Biology one for the classification of living things:
Kingdom eg Animal
Phylum
Class
Order
Family
Genus eg Homo
Species eg Sapiens

(Can't remember any of the ones in between).

Lumbricus Terestris is earth worm.

Think that's all I have left of GCSE and A Level biology - and to think, at the time I wanted to be a biology teacher.

I'm in my 70's and have always remembered Lumbricus Terrestris - and the other one Allolobophora Longa

still forget where I left my car key this morning!

LesMisSaigon · 24/05/2025 16:41

Not the same, because we weren't at school. When I worked in Sainsbury's many moons ago before Sunday opening was a thing, we had the following mnemonic- 'Well bred gentleman read papers often. ' to remember the colour codes of our daily deliveries which were Mon-Sat = White, blue,green, red ,purple orange.
We all just used 'When boys get randy pricks over-react.'

Calliopespa · 24/05/2025 16:53

IfYouPutASausageInItItsNotAViennetta · 24/05/2025 15:28

Yes, that one was well off. To mitigate him slightly, he never gave any suggestion whatsoever of being creepy or inappropriate in his behaviour towards the children - I think he liked humour and heard a lot of jokes from the pub (he was a local CAMRA stalwart), and he didn't filter the ones that were less than family friendly.

Most of the jokes were fine dad-joke style groaners. Before Christmas every year, he put up a home-made poster in the window of the chemistry lab saying "We wish you a very happy and phosphorus new year!"

Apart from the questionable jokes, he was a really fun, kind-hearted teacher - larger than life, really. He had a pet python which he sometimes brought in with him to show us. He put it in a suitcase (with air holes) and strapped it to the back rack on his motorbike - once the case came open en-route and all of the other motorists were hooting at him as the snake rose up!

He also home-made an elaborate Blockbusters machine - with a letters grid generated on an old-school computer program - and often let us learn new chemistry facts in a fun way as we played. I absolutely loved that.

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Well the Phosphorus New Year is rather endearing!

It’s always interesting how creative teachers can make such an impact on people.

Moglet4 · 24/05/2025 17:08

RealOliveTraybake · 24/05/2025 15:18

Not inappropriate. In school I was taught "Black Boys Rape Our Young Girls But Violet Gives Willingly" for the resistor colour code, which is just a little too far...

Oh my God

EBearhug · 24/05/2025 17:22

The planetmnemonic I know is My Very Earnest Man Just Sent Us Nature's Plan.

Calliopespa · 24/05/2025 19:24

Bigearringsbigsmile · 24/05/2025 16:10

My sons teacher in y4 taught them ' never entertain sexy women' for the compass points

Oh for goodness sake! Year 4! And surely NEWS is easier.

IHaveAlwaysLivedintheCastle · 24/05/2025 19:37

Calliopespa · 24/05/2025 19:24

Oh for goodness sake! Year 4! And surely NEWS is easier.

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Why does anyone even need a mnemonic for compass points?

BlueyNeedsToFuckOff · 24/05/2025 19:37

Calliopespa · 24/05/2025 19:24

Oh for goodness sake! Year 4! And surely NEWS is easier.

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NEWS is in the wrong order, though? But I thought everyone just learned “Never Eat Shredded Wheat”, which is also good life advice.

IfYouPutASausageInItItsNotAViennetta · 25/05/2025 02:19

EBearhug · 24/05/2025 17:22

The planetmnemonic I know is My Very Earnest Man Just Sent Us Nature's Plan.

I always used to like Men Very Easily Make Jugs Serve Useful Nocturnal Purposes.

Some fun, slightly rude, lavatorial humour, without being in any way inappropriate.

AnnabelleQuelle · 25/05/2025 02:35

Stravaig · 23/05/2025 22:50

Yeah, that 'tights down' shite is sexist creep teachers going out of their way to be misogynistic, snigger with the boys, make the girls uncomfortable.

Stalactites, with a c, grow down from the Ceiling; stalagmites, with a g, grow up from the Ground.

Tights down is much easier to remember!

AnnabelleQuelle · 25/05/2025 02:51

Haruka · 24/05/2025 07:58

Stalactites have tits in them. And they usually hang... that's how I was taught it, and it clearly stuck 😂

I also know the order of classification as "Keeping pants clean often favours good sex". Never forgot that and I can still recite the order perfectly to this day because of it.

These mnemonics work. The one your son's teacher used is crass and yes, inappropriate, but it doesn't surprise me, given how many try to be lads' lads. Have a word with them, rather than report it, and keep an eye out for reoccurences.

@Haruka what is this

Keeping pants clean often favours good sex

LBFseBrom · 25/05/2025 03:47

Report the teacher to the governing body.

TheMel · 25/05/2025 03:55

I don't get it, why would they use vibrators in 'my' rectum?

ScholesPanda · 25/05/2025 04:45

I don't believe this for one second

YourSignalFadedIntoAnotherWorld · 25/05/2025 05:09

Oh Oh Oh To Touch and Feel Various Girls Vaginas And Hymens.

I can't be the only one who was taught that for the cranial nerves.

AnnabelleQuelle · 25/05/2025 05:10

LBFseBrom · 25/05/2025 03:47

Report the teacher to the governing body.

Quoted wrong PP, sorry

AnnabelleQuelle · 25/05/2025 05:11

TheMel · 25/05/2025 03:55

I don't get it, why would they use vibrators in 'my' rectum?

Because it is a mnemonic for waves. M is for microwaves.

CanadianJohn · 25/05/2025 05:15

Dramatic · 23/05/2025 21:39

Wow 😂

I only remember which way stalagmites and stalactites go because our teacher taught us the phrase "tites (tights) must come down"

I was told that stalagmites have a "g" in the middle, so they come from the ground. Stalactites have a "c" in the middle, so they come from the ceiling.

LillyPJ · 25/05/2025 05:59

Fuckitydoodah · 23/05/2025 21:47

I really can't see any teacher who wants to keep their job teaching that.

Kids don't always tell the truth.

I know kids definitely don't always tell the truth! (I was a teacher for many years.) But I also know that some teachers aren't great at knowing where boundaries are or what's appropriate. I'd report this to SMT if I was sure the teacher said it. It might be a good idea to find out if other students back up what your DC said.

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