School Sports Day

andekwarhola · 29-06-2016 02:17PM

El Weirdo wrote: »

Ah, I suppose at first, then it just gets depressing when you realise that these loons have actually procreated.

You just know half of their kids are pulling boiling saucepans on themselves, eating cat turds and playing with carving knives when Mammy is busy laying down some passive-aggressive parenting doctrine on the laptop upstairs.

keano_afc · 29-06-2016 02:18PM

My kid started junior infants this year so I just had my first sports day. I wish they'd keep it like it was in my day, when the kids that win actually get something to reflect this. She won a race and came third in another, but all the kids got the same "prizes". Teaching kids that the results are the same no matter how they do in life is not something I'd be a fan of, unless I'm over thinking it.

andekwarhola · 29-06-2016 02:19PM

keano_afc wrote: »

My kid started junior infants this year so I just had my first sports day. I wish they'd keep it like it was in my day, when the kids that win actually get something to reflect this. She won a race and came third in another, but all the kids got the same "prizes". Teaching kids that the results are the same no matter how they do in life is not something I'd be a fan of, unless I'm over tinking it.

It's a race for 4 and 5 year old kids. Not Chariots Of Fire.

keano_afc · 29-06-2016 02:20PM

andekwarhola wrote: »

It's a race for 4 and 5 year old kids. Not Chariots Of Fire.

All classes have the same protocol, right up to 6th. Everyone gets the same prize.

YFlyer · 29-06-2016 02:22PM

We had our sports day one year in third class of primary school. There was two Travellers in our class who were 15 and 16 years of age. They won every event.

andekwarhola · 29-06-2016 02:22PM

keano_afc wrote: »

All classes have the same protocol, right up to 6th. Everyone gets the same prize.

I don't see the harm in it. It's a bit of fun and encourages taking part.

For the older, more sporty kids, they can easily get involved with actual competitive sports anyway.

BBDBB · 29-06-2016 02:23PM

In about 50 years we will have the snowflake Olympics

*commentator mode

And you join us here in the Peoples Republic of Scotland for the 200metre Olympic Final for Snowflakes

In Lane 1 - Hestenthaler from Austria, strong runner, may fade in the final lap due to his self esteem issues and the pressure of leading

Lane 2 - Osako - Japan - always a strong finisher due in part to his overbearing parents

Lane 3- O'Reilly - Ireland -Absent with a note from his mother saying he has a chest infection and may he be excused

Lane 4 - Farage Junior- From the Principality of London, always a crowd favourite, look at him waving and refusing to give his tracksuit top to the Polish official, a bit of an argument developing there, we'll come back to that...ooh wait he's stormed off because he wanted to run his own race

Lane 5 - Gruber - the blond from Germany, ignoring the crowd and watching Farage go......well I don't think that's a very sportsmanlike gesture to be making to a fellow participant, Im sure there will be an inquiry, a conviction and an apology for any offense about 20 minutes after the race

Lane 6 - Johnson Junior the Third - USA - wanted to be in the inside lane, seems he likes the sound of gunfire, I understand he has been frisked and ...wait he seems to be waving something to the crowd......and there he is still waving as he is lead away by the SWAT team

lane 7 - Ernst Heidelberg Delgado - the "Argentinian", known for his ability to react strongly to baseless accusations of Fascism with inferences about your mother

and finally lane 8, - coming back from injury, delighted to see Irving from Australia, a lot of people weren't expecting to see him, apparently he was really hurt by the remarks about his qualification round, he consulted his lawyer from under his bed and only his mum bringing him some hot chocolate with those little marshmallows in means he's here today

So we're under starters orders and ready to participate, could be anyones race........in fact they are all winners and will be running with their medals...all except Gruber as his medal gave him a bit of a chest rash

cowboyBuilder · 29-06-2016 02:24PM

Calibos · 29-06-2016 02:26PM

Boom_Bap wrote: »

So an acedemic child cannot be a good athlete.

Obviously not True. Gary O'Toole. Irish Olympic Swimmer and World renowned Orthopedic Surgeon/Consultant.

My own anecdote was a friend of a friend.

His parents were very wealthy.
He was devastatingly handsome and had the pick of the girls.
Captain of the Rugby Team. Medal winning athlete.
Seemed like a nice guy.

My only consolation was that I assumed he wasn't the sharpest tool in the box based on the assumption that he was in the same class stream as my friend who himself wasn't the sharpest tool in the box.

A decade later I'm in hospital for an operation and who walks in to the ward only this guy. He was now a Doctor. Turns out he knew my friend via their social circle as opposed to being in the same class in school.

A veritable UBERMENSCH!

jester77 · 29-06-2016 02:26PM

I thought all the kids get medals these days to appease everyone, even the slow ones. No wonder gold is going up in value :rolleyes:

People are gone so soft it is unreal. Let the kids take part, life is not always going to be so easy that they can opt out of things. They might as well learn that from a young age before they turn into a big softy that wilts at the first sign of confrontation.

maudgonner · 29-06-2016 02:29PM

Making all kids take part is a good thing.

Making the kids feel embarrassed if they don't excel at sports is a bad thing.

Nobody is good at everything, but you can participate and get pleasure from that anyway. And you can be pleased for those who are good at it getting a chance to shine. That's a worthwhile lesson for kids to learn.

El_Duderino 09 · 29-06-2016 02:32PM

Wasn't the point of sports days to have sporty events like sprints and non sporty events like egg and spoon, sack race and three leg race?

Jesus, it's just a bit of craic. Do the children care or is it the parents? Even if it is the children who don't particularly want to do it, so what? Life involves social events that you don't particularly want. Get over it

tabby aspreme · 29-06-2016 02:32PM

My daughter won every race/event last week at her school sports day, and only got one medal, should I be devastated or outraged or something in between

Lyaiera · 29-06-2016 02:41PM

El Weirdo wrote: »

You really should stay away from mumsnet. Nothing good ever comes from there.

They had a great thread about a glass of water next to the bed for post-sex willy dunking.

I don't have an issue with school sports days. I do have an issue with how school sports days are used by the school. In my place they were used as marketing material for promoting the school to prospective parents, "We do all these sports!" and then a list of sports you'd get to do for five minutes once a year. Less sports in the primary school, but more in the secondary school like discus and shot putt.

School sports days are often used as a cover for how pitiful the schools actual PE is. If they had proper PE, with an emphasis on fitness and health, and not just throwing a bunch of mental kids a football and telling them to entertain themselves it'd be far better.

As for the whole embracing sporty kids who may not be academic, what about the kids who are crap at everything? (Even the tin whistle.)

Princess Consuela Bananahammock · 29-06-2016 02:42PM

tabby aspreme wrote: »

My daughter won every race/event last week at her school sports day, and only got one medal, should I be devastated or outraged or something in between

You should be talking to Joe.

cowboyBuilder · 29-06-2016 02:42PM

I got a Gold medal for the egg n'spoon race when I was 11, I'm still celebrating ...

valoren · 29-06-2016 02:47PM

beach_walker wrote: »

boards.ie should have a sports day.

See how fast you can type y followed by n in 30 seconds aaaaaaand.....Go!

ynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynyn
ynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynyn
ynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynyn
ynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynyn
ynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynyn

cowboyBuilder · 29-06-2016 02:49PM

valoren wrote: »

See hoe fast you can type y followed by n in 30 seconds aaaaaaand.....Go!

ynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynynyn

actually I remember an olllllld PC game called Decathalon and that was basically how you ran ...

tabby aspreme · 29-06-2016 03:00PM

Princess Consuela Bananahammock wrote: »

You should be talking to Joe.

I can't , too emotional, but I'm considering feeding her nothing but mc Ds for the next year so she's too roundy for winning and never puts us parents through this harrowing experience again.

drogdub · 29-06-2016 03:16PM

Autumn Prehistoric Kettle wrote: »

I think it's the public humiliation aspect that jars. If a child who was tone deaf was forced to sing a solo in the school play, or a child who couldn't spell was forced to stand up in the assembly hall in front of fellow pupils and parents and display his lack of ability it wouldn't be tolerated.

Traditionally, though, kids who are bad at sport are expected to display their lack of ability very publicly at least once a year.

Maybe if parents weren't invited, or fun/novelty events were included it would make a less humiliating experience all around.

I feel sorry for anyone who is publicly humiliated by their children's poor sporting performances. I presume that's whose humiliation you are referring to because kids tend not to be humiliated in these situations.

I have a some experience in this, I coach a football team of players of vastly differing abilities. The weaker players can see theyre not as good as the stronger ones but they get on with it. Because they are having fun.

Also as a child I was usually among the last I never felt humiliated because I was having fun.

If someone's child shares the humiliation then the parent should do their job and assure them they have nothing to be ashamed of.

I just wish people would trust kids more. In some ways theyre more resilient than adults give them credit for.

freshpopcorn · 29-06-2016 03:20PM

Just in my experience everyone knows who terrible at sports because of P.E.
I don't buy into this my child was forced to run a race. It's primary school. They weren't!

Boom_Bap · 29-06-2016 03:22PM

Sports day also gives kids exposure to different sports, they may pick up a sport that they have a knack for or get more curious about.

c68zapdsm5i1ru · 29-06-2016 03:29PM

maudgonner wrote: »

Making all kids take part is a good thing.

Making the kids feel embarrassed if they don't excel at sports is a bad thing.

Nobody is good at everything, but you can participate and get pleasure from that anyway. And you can be pleased for those who are good at it getting a chance to shine. That's a worthwhile lesson for kids to learn.

But how is that done? A lot of non sporty kids do feel embarrassed trailing past the finishing line ages after everyone else, while parents and teachers give them a round of sympathetic applause. Or dropping the ball and letting the team down in front of their family.
I agree that sports days should be a fun day for everyone. But they're not always organised like that. They can sometimes be done in a way that makes the unco-ordinated or overweight kids feel mortified.

c68zapdsm5i1ru · 29-06-2016 03:34PM

drogdub wrote: »

I feel sorry for anyone who is publicly humiliated by their children's poor sporting performances. I presume that's whose humiliation you are referring to because kids tend not to be humiliated in these situations.

I have a some experience in this, I coach a football team of players of vastly differing abilities. The weaker players can see theyre not as good as the stronger ones but they get on with it. Because they are having fun.

Also as a child I was usually among the last I never felt humiliated because I was having fun.

If someone's child shares the humiliation then the parent should do their job and assure them they have nothing to be ashamed of.

I just wish people would trust kids more. In some ways theyre more resilient than adults give them credit for.

I think smaller kids just enjoy the fun and excitement, and don't really care if they win or come in last.
But older kids from about 10-11 up are much more self conscious and some of the do really feel embarrassed at having to do something they're no good at in front of an audience of parents and other kids. I think that's very understandable. Not all kids are outgoing and happy as long as they're having fun. Some kids are introspective and very sensitive and while, obviously they have to learn to deal with this, I think there's better ways.

maudgonner · 29-06-2016 03:50PM

Autumn Prehistoric Kettle wrote: »

But how is that done? A lot of non sporty kids do feel embarrassed trailing past the finishing line ages after everyone else, while parents and teachers give them a round of sympathetic applause. Or dropping the ball and letting the team down in front of their family.
I agree that sports days should be a fun day for everyone. But they're not always organised like that. They can sometimes be done in a way that makes the unco-ordinated or overweight kids feel mortified.

Of course. Some sports days are better organised than others. Some schools have a better ethos than others. That does not mean that allowing kids not to take part at all, just because they might not be good at something, is the right ethos to have.

In my school everybody had to take part in the school play/concert. Many of us were shocking singers and couldn't act to save our lives. But that was ok - the more talented kids got starring roles, others were in the background. But we all did something, and everyone enjoyed it. If for no other reason than we got out of class to practice.

How is that different to sports day?

Lt Dan · 29-06-2016 04:34PM

Autumn Prehistoric Kettle wrote: »

I've just seen an interesting discussion about school sports days on another forum. Some people think they're a good idea as it's often the only occasion a non academic child might get to shine. Others are pointing out that non academic children aren't asked to stand up in front of the entire school and their parents and show how crap they are at working out a maths equation or translating a sentence into French.

I'm with the latter group and think participating in races etc should be voluntary, and the non sporty kids should have the option of just standing on the sidelines cheering on the other children if they prefer.

No ! Sports Day is the Day of Revenge for the Thick who is good at sports. All those time Dexter snarled at thicko in class. Survival of the fittest

Get the nerd out of his comfort zone. Never know , he might be good

Lt Dan · 29-06-2016 04:37PM

The Backwards Man wrote: »

Load of balls.

I won the egg and spoon race (back when it still used an egg) in second class and I got an A1 in geography in my LC.

What does that tell you?

You are awesome?

Lt Dan · 29-06-2016 04:43PM

keano_afc wrote: »

My kid started junior infants this year so I just had my first sports day. I wish they'd keep it like it was in my day, when the kids that win actually get something to reflect this. She won a race and came third in another, but all the kids got the same "prizes". Teaching kids that the results are the same no matter how they do in life is not something I'd be a fan of, unless I'm over tinking it.

Agree , there must be competition. People must know their place , there must be hierarchy. If they do not like it, toughen up and try to do better next time damn it.

Lt Dan · 29-06-2016 04:44PM

YFlyer wrote: »

We had our sports day one year in third class of primary school. There was two Travellers in our class who were 15 and 16 years of age. They won every event.

To be fair, that is more or less all they will ever win in life. Bar maybe a caravan from the Council . But, fear not, they will be happy about that

OldNotWIse · 29-06-2016 04:47PM

What's with this new phenomenon of protecting a kid's ego at all costs. Look at some point they'll go out into the real world and realise their potentials and limitations. It's just cruel to make them feel like superheroes for so long and then feel the hit when they realise how thoroughly fúcking average they are.

School Sports Day

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