Should Christmas school shows still be going ahead?

[justamumseekingadvice]

It’s not so much of a AIBU but just a general thought started by the imminent update from Boris tonight.

I have personally got my daughter’s school show coming up in a couple of days, but given the rising cases with this new strain and also people potentially having to isolate over Christmas which many people have been looking forward to after this last year…

Should school shows still be going ahead?

Our big Christmas show is going ahead but the year groups are being kept separate and watching it remotely. Other events like Carol concert and nativity are only open to parents of performers. I think it is a reasonable compromise given the circumstances. No one wants their kids or themselves picking up covid over Christmas.

[quote Bobholll]@RichTeaRichTea - how is having parents attend a nativity performance detrimental? The kids practice at school & then we all turn up, sit down quietly, watch the show. I cannot fathom why or how parents get in the way?! Children ‘feeling pressure’ seems silly. That’s what performance is all about. An audience. It builds their confidence & ability to speak or sing in front of others. Surely teachers pick the kids that can handle being centre stage? My DD is shy & she wasn’t given lines & that’s fine. But she LOVED the singing and I’ve got lovely videos of her performing away happily! It really boosted her confidence, she was so proud of herself ❤️

Sports day I can see a bit more. I bet some parents are a nightmare & really competitive 😂[/quote]
Agree re. sports day. Where I come from parents never attend sports day (thank God). Here I'd rather not go because my kids aren't sporty and it's always sweltering and therefore not pleasant to stand / sit by the field for 2.5h watching 6 year groups doing their egg and spoon race.

Bobholll I’m not arguing that it is detrimental (I don’t believe it is for most children though I am not an expert on this). My point is more one of logic.

Some people on this thread are saying that children are not missing out by having performances recorded with no parent audience because it is stressful for children to perform in front of other parents. And also that teachers find it much easier to run these things without parents present. I do not know whether at a general level this is true, but if it is, and children aren’t missing out by not having their parents watch them perform (and for some it is awful to have to perform in front of parents), then logic says that covid is neither here nor there and we should think about whether children should do it at all.

This isn’t my view necessarily, though in my own case I absolutely want to watch my preschooler in their nativity for my own enjoyment (and I don’t believe he will hate it - if he did I wouldn’t make him do it either), but it is the logical extension of what people are saying.

Our primary school was always going to video the Nativity and send the video out on the last day of term. Was fine with that as the hall is small and the school oversubscribed, it's claustrophobic. However today they've cancelled the after school tombola and the children singing a few carols in the school yard outdoors. I thought outdoors was okay and Boris had said not to cancel school events. This is DDs last Christmas in primary, she's the last to go through primary so that's it.

@justamumseekingadvice

It’s not so much of a AIBU but just a general thought started by the imminent update from Boris tonight.

I have personally got my daughter’s school show coming up in a couple of days, but given the rising cases with this new strain and also people potentially having to isolate over Christmas which many people have been looking forward to after this last year…

Should school shows still be going ahead?

Quite frankly no, it shouldn't. In our school, it's recorded. No P.E. Only in class parties.