How Would You Feel?

[cloudpuff]

Hi, this is my first thread so please be kind.

My DD is in yr1 and came home from school with a letter asking to use the internet to find out about Guy Fawkes and which king he wanted to blow up. So we sat at computer last night and I said what we were going to try and find out, before the page even loaded dd started saying "He was a plotter and wanted to blow up King James in 1605 because he wanted to be a Catherine (she meant Catholic)and was not allowed to be"
She then went on to say "In the olden days when people were naughty they got stretched until there fingers came off, got their guts cut out then got their heads chopped off and put on a stick" She said her teacher told her.
TBH honest I was gobsmacked, is that not a bit heavy for a 5 yr old to be taught? Or am I being silly?

Anyway she's now asking how they got stretched, and how they got the guts out and chopped the head off. What do I say to her? I'm almost tempted just to tell her to ask her teacher.

Thanks for any replies

They love the gore. The teacher is making it interesting for them - be grateful!

Ooh yes they love all that! Horrible Histories rules in our house because of it.

I bet the teacher went over lots of other details too but it's always the grusome stuff they remember in detail.

Horrible Histories is brilliant but certain scenes caused my sensitive ds to become really upset - think it was the branding of Roman slaves - he just couldn't get it out of his mind and had lots of nightmares as a result.

If your dd is upset then I'd have a chat with the teacher, I think a Yr 1 teacher needs to be mindful of the less mature, more sensitive types and there were plenty of those in my dc's class.

Lots of the times it's the gory stuff that engages them to be honest (in moderation). Let's face it - we all loved learning about mummies when we were at primary school!

She remembered it, fantastic!

I know what you mean- we listen to Horrible Histories, but I fast forwarded through a couple of bits when I realised they were putting them on sticks whilst still alive (I think it was Ruthless Roman's), and whilst he likes the gore that, for him, would have been a little too much.

In reply I would just be fairly vague if you arent terrible comfortable with it, but I bet they are talking about it at school and comparing notes today- they do some to love the gore!!

Agree that they do love the gore.

I can't stand it - had to endure the Edinburgh Horrible Histories bus tour commentary during the holidays - felt as DS1 and 2 were listening to it I should too just incase anything scared them.

They LOVED it - I hated it

It is a great bit of teaching IMO. It has clearly got the child's attention, and they have absorbed it and remembered it.

Gold star to the teacher I say.

I was surprised when my son came back from school, two weeks after starting reception, with tales of the Plague, in all its gory details. And he still talks almost daily about it. I've now come round to it and am delighted that his teacher has captured his interest.

Ooh yes, the crochet hook in the ancient Egyptian embalming process. Lovely!

Kids are togher than you think, OP.

Relax, kids love all that stuff and it clearly helps them remember it. Horrible histories books are fab.

The fact she said Catherine instead of catholic is completely adorable by the way! :)

As others have said....just wait until they do the Egyptians........but seriously, for now, can understand how shocked you were but, having been introduced to the delights of Horrible Histories via the children, it does seem that they respond well to this and similar styles of teaching and as others have pointed out, she remembered it (well, almost.....loved the 'Catherine' slip too).

Ah yes the Egyptians.

Ds researched this himself at about five. He loved the brain removal bit through the nose.

Kids love Gore.

At not much older than this I went to the london dungeons for the first time. By the time I got to year six I knew a vast amount of gory stuff and was coming up with my own theories on jack the ripper's identity. It was a passing phase and never did me any harm and tbh it really honed my research skills as it was all self motivated.

Many children do like the gory bits - that's why Horroble Histories is so popular!

But yes - I like the "ask your teacher" reply to her query

DD has just done Eygptians. they went tot he local museum for a workshop and got to extract all the different organs out of the mummy (well, not a mummy - whatever the proper "posh" name is for them). They loved it!

This has reminded me tha Horrible Hisotires is touring - need to get tickets for DD.

We saw Horrible Science last year - DD loved it. It was so gruesome and icky in places though - 3D glasses for the toilet flushing anyone? Hmm.

I'm an exception - I'd be pissed off! Because I know it would upset DD.

Thank you so much for all you replies.

My DD does not seem upset about it and is still talking about it today. I was worried a little that she'd mull over the details and get upset but she's fine. She has a weird sense of humour, like she cried for an hour when she heard about the bunny that got its ears burned, but laughed like a loon when she saw the clip of the cat put in the bin (think she confused it with you've been framed)

I think my shock was down to the big change from reception to year 1, she came home covered in paint yesterday and said they had been painting "Pollock style" - she thinks I'm a bit dim and looked at me like I was a pupil and said "he's a famous artist" She now wants to do paintings at home and sell them for " a million hundred pound on ebay" She's a funny one lol

It is a big change. Wait till she starts secondary

Thing is - the facts (apart from the Catherines thing) have got in there and it's been remembered.

Let's put it this way - I bet 90% of what we all remember from primary history is the brains coming out of the noses in Ancient Egypt! It's a cracking lesson to teach - you get endless "awwwwwwws" and "ewwwwwwwssss" mixed in with howls of laughter. Obviously if you're in the room and not just hearing about what's being taught second-hand, you get to see reactions and can spot when you need to tone the gore down a touch if someone's looking a bit sensitive - but generally most kids love the gruesome bits of history.

I'm now thinking of getting her some of the Horrible History books, which would you suggest she try first, as I know nothing about them?

Horrible histories is a massive empire now but I'd start with the basic ones about the key points in history - can't remember the alliterative names, but try Egyptians, Romans, Greeks and maybe more modern ones like Victorians, Tudors and the wars.