Our school has banned the word Christmas?

[Fayethefair]

I’ve heard from a friend on my DD’s school’s ptfa that our Cambridgeshire school has banned the word Christmas to make the school events feel more inclusive. So now it’s Festive Party, Festive Fayre etc. I’m happy to let mumsnet know the name of the school if they don’t feel this post is genuine so they can check this themselves but I won’t put names on here as this is my child’s school, I just don’t think this right and want to see what others think.

My daughter attended a Diwali lunch put on by the school recently and I genuinely thought this was lovely. I feel everything should be represented equally, I don’t understand or agree that the head should be picking and choosing what’s allowed and what isn’t. Surely this isn’t right?

I’m 61. This was not the case in my UK school in the late 60s either. And I remember my dad talking about learning copperplate in school in the 20s, so pretty sure it’s never been a thing to teach small children capitals first.

I don’t think it’s an age thing. As I said, not in the late 60s/early 70s either. Both my parents were primary teachers. It’s never been a thing that I know of - an aberrant school maybe? Or remembering incorrectly?

All I can remember is being told off for using small letters when i started school.

Very true. I think some parents have tried teaching their children capitals before school, to the consternation of reception teachers up and down the country!

I was taught to read and write before I started school, so my memories may be everyones.

Are you sure it's not just banned until, for example, 1 December? I could get on board with that.

My child is at a primary where you can no longer have Mother's Day or Father's Day sales. They are Special Person Sales. Leaving aside thegrammar, there are some adults who think that because some children do not have a biological parent present in their lives the School should not teach appreciation for those parents for those who do, and nor should they acknowledge the role of Mothers for Mothering Sunday and certainly they should not address the differences of gender based roles in life.

Now whilst I am sorry for Little Johnny whose daddy killed himself, does Johnny's potential pain mean that the reality of every other child must be ignored? School tried to address the issue with more PSHE saying "everyone's family is different" but there was no end to the noise and now there is no whole school Mother's Day or Father's Day activity.

Advent calendars, oddly, don’t mark advent - distinctly unChristian of them. Maybe you should have a campaign. Religious, Christian advent starts on the fourth Sunday before Christmas. That’s an ecclesiastical fact.

Is that right now? Have they banned Baa Baa Black Sheep too?

That’s not why it’s been banned in this instance though is it.

We didn't have whole school Mother's and Father's Day stuff when I was at school. I can't say it made any difference to my education, or the lives of my parents. Mothering Sunday was commemorated through Churches.

You dont actually feel sorry for Little Johnny at all, do you, really?

As an aside, what even are Mother's Day Sales??

I’m going to be ‘that person’. Mothering Sunday is about the mother church, not the person or the role of mothers in general. If we are going to be religious we shouldn’t have it in its current form (and the corollary is that Fathers’ Day is made up entirely).

An attempt at guilt tripping struggling parents into spending more money.

Not the point. But then you know that.

It was previously known as the Christmas Fair but It is a very diverse school. We are allowed to teach about christmas as part of our RME curriculum ( as well as Hannukah, Diwali, Eid etc) but events that are more frivolous like parties, carol events, Nativities we do sometimes have parents withdraw their children. As the Craft fair had no link to the curriculum and was out of hours and optional, we wanted to make it so as many children could come and have fun. They'd do things like making bracelets, party crowns, glittery pinecone etc. Its just a fun event for little kids that happens to be held in December so there was no need for the use of the word Christmas when we know that that would mean some children wouldnt be allowed to attend. Hope that makes sense!

Has @Fayethefair been back to explain how the head is communicating and implementing this ‘ban on the word Christmas’?

Tsk, don’t go confusing people with actual facts about religious festivals.

I’m a big fan of starting with Sinterklaas and picking up all the dates between then and Twelfth Night. I have family distributed across all the main festival date zones 😁. If we get to squeeze in a Yul, a Hannukah, an early Diwali or Eid excuse for a get together and dinner then so much the better.

I did find old Christmas cards when sorting out parents/grandparents stuff and “seasons greetings” was by far the commonest message on cards from the 20s, 30s, 40s and onward.

Of course cards and Christmas trees in the UK were brought in by a bunch of immigrants so the OP should be thrilled to the reversion to a more traditional “winter”, “frost” or, as you say, “advent” fair.

No exactly - when I was at school the only with parents whole school events were

-sports day,
-the school plays (not whole school really as infants and juniors were separate - infants did a nativity, and juniors did a comedy musical at the end of the summer term),
-open day (for looking at work and displays related to what we were learning)

• a carol service actually in the church (which was optional and the lucky few who's parents filled in the form correctly could go home early 😝)

-the summer fair.

It was a church school which actually required proof of regular church attendance so I'm not sure why the carol service was optional (I have a feeling it had more to do with the logistics of finish time and getting home than anything else).

We had Christmas parties in the classroom if the teacher wanted, but that was individual classes and most of the teachers used the threat of withdrawing the party as a behaviour management technique all half term!

We had a vicar who came in to teach us RE, which was solely Christian, but whole school mothers and fathers day events didn't exist, and neither did any kind of Christmas fair.

Of course cards and Christmas trees in the UK were brought in by a bunch of immigrants

I think you mean "ex pats". We all know white people can't be immigrants. Perish the thought.

Well, it's Poppy Sunday, traditionally the day when Poppy-rage gives way to Christmas vs non-denominational Winterval rage, to be shortly followed by 'no Christian words or symbols on the chocolate pagan fertility eggs' Easter rage in the New Year.

Christianity is a declining religion in the uk - does it really matter what a party or event is called? A winter party and winter fair?

Oh no, a winter holiday party so all the children feel included. How awful.

😝 I think you'll find that it's wealthy white people who can't be immigrants according to that school of thought - nobody calls eastern European agricultural workers expats, but they would if they arrived to take up a job in finance...