Inclusion
I imagine schools could feature quite heavily in this QOTW.....

My daughter attends our local Primary school, roll just under 300, and it has to be said the vast majority of pupils are white and nominally Christian. Nonetheless, all the major religious festivals are celebrated, and the kids really enjoy it. They learn about other cultures and have a bit of fun while doing it. All good so far.

There's no nonsense about Winterval instead of Christmas, all the kids take part in the Nativity play if they want to (and so far no kids or parents have objected) and the entire school recently attended the local church for the Harvest Festival.

So where is this going?

Every March, the children work for a couple of days on Mother's Day cards and (teacher depending) a wee gift of some sort. So what, you think.

Come June, Father's Day is completely ignored! In case one of the kids whose daddy isn't around is hurt or feels left out. Now judging by parents night attendances, the vast majority of these kids come from two parent families (or at least the absent parent has hung around and shows up for these things). My daughter's class has 23 pupils and I know that every last one has a dad (or father figure) in their lives. But they still don't do cards, far less wee arty-type gifts.

If they ignored both days, fair enough. There is at least one child in the school whose mother has done a runner, and at least one whose mother has died. There may even be more than that. But they still make Mother's Day cards.

None of the current teachers (I have asked) can explain this. The longer-serving teachers remember when they used to do cards for mums and dads but can't recall when it stopped - only that it was a PC influenced decision (what else!).

Now I'm a mum so I get my card - but poor old Mr Witch gets nowt. Except for very hot under the collar every year when another June goes by with no sign of a creased, badly folded, still sticky with glue and glitter (but lovingly hand-made!) acknowledgement of his role in producing his kids. Bitter? Not him!

He does get a card of course - the kids just make it at home. And he gets a pressie, too! And yet, every Father's Day, I brace myself for the now traditional rant on the subject of Primary schools and PC gone-mad!
(TheWeeWitch hasn't been here much recently .., Thu 22 Nov 2007, 14:43, 4 replies)

Trump them.
Explain that "Mothers' Day" derives from "Mothering Sunday", which has nothing much to do with any living person's mother, but is entirely to do with some arcane point of Catholicism - something to do with Mary, no doubt. It's entirely Christian and religious in its origin.

Fathers' day, by contrast, was invented merely to sell greetings cards. So although it's a cretinous idea, at least it's more PC than Mothers' Day.
( Enzyme is powered by sunlight, Thu 22 Nov 2007, 14:50, closed)

You learn something new every day
Might try that - thanks! If only to spare me the annual hissy fit (not very dignified from a 6 foot Grant Mitchell look-alike!).
(TheWeeWitch hasn't been here much recently .., Thu 22 Nov 2007, 14:58, closed)

What Enzyme said.
I don't know anyone who's every really celebrated Father's Day. In my household, my brother and I were told not to bother getting him a card or anything, because if we did we'd just be subscribing to a huge fraud that's hyped up by card companies trying to make money between Valentine's day and Christmas.

However, if we forgot Mother's Day..god help us.
(The Empress it seems you CAN polish a turd!, Thu 22 Nov 2007, 16:03, closed)

the only card i'd ever give my dad.....
.......for father's day, would be doused in petrol first and shoved lovingly through his letterbox. the cnut.
(hippyjunkiescum, Fri 23 Nov 2007, 20:56, closed)