WikimediaThere’s no doubting kids can get unnecessarily hysterical when it comes to certain words.
Utter the word ‘boobies’ and you’re sure to get a class full of laughter.
But what happens when your teacher – someone you have to see and call on every day – has an equally hysterical name? Laugh, probably – but that landed one five-year-old in a hell of a lot of trouble.
(Not the teacher) Credit: Flickr/Filip PticekPriscilla Terumalai said she was hauled into a meeting with her daughter’s school after the five-year-old laughed at her teacher’s name – Miss Butt.
Priscilla later met the teacher at a parents’ council meeting at Mayville School in Leytonstone, east London, and told her the story. She said the teacher dismissed it and did not seem bothered.
But a few days later, the mother-of-two was summoned to a meeting with the head of year, the school manager, a teacher assistant and another reception teacher to answer for her daughter’s ‘naughty’ giggles.
Sure, it’s not okay to make fun of anyone’s name – but the kid’s five and obviously has a sense of humour. Did the meeting really need every authoritative figure in the school for such a meager matter? Probably not.
Priscilla said she was ‘appalled at how pathetic and petty it was,’ and added that she now wants Annalise to be moved to a different class as a result of the tension, but because the request has fallen on deaf ears, she’s now considering moving her five-year-old daughter to another school.
As for the teacher, Priscilla says she and Miss Butt are not on speaking terms, saying: “She’s my daughter’s teacher but I won’t be going to any more meetings.”
A spokesman for Mayville Primary School said:
We’re talking to the mum on a regular basis. Generally speaking we would only transfer a child from one class to another as a last resort as it can be incredibly unsettling and disruptive for the pupil, and their wellbeing is always our priority.
Lighten up, everyone.
