Public school RANT/VENT!

[Punky]

OK, I just had to rant and vent about something...I thought some of you
health conscous mama's and papa's could relate too
My son in 2nd grade this morning asked me for a quarter to by icecream at lunch; said they sell it there to have after you finish eating!
I replied, I'm sorry Logan but your are allergic to dairy and besides I don't believe in eating that type of food at school..that's for birthday parties, special occasions or sometimes on the weekends..but it's not good to eat during the school day. I feel like such a big meanie
So he told me after school that they sell it everyday at lunch to 2nd graders and above. I was fuming...last year our school district was cracking down
on junk food at school...i guess they changed their minds!
So I called up there to the office to verify if this was true and the lady said yes...she said, "BUT THEY MAKE SURE THEY FINISH THEIR LUNCH 1ST"...
like that would make all the difference to me...so I told her that I wasn't aware that I was sending my son to a birthday party and it is junk food
and it undermines everything that I teach him at home about eating healthy and nutritous and that these things are for special occassions...
than I asked her how fair it was to the diabetic children and children with food allergies to have this junk flaunted in front of them everyday...
she transfered me to the principal than! ha..
whom I just got a voicemail and repeated my whole speal pretty much.
Told her I doubt that my 2cents will change it, but just thought you should know that ice cream is not acceptable to all parents.
My husband thinks I shouldn't say anything because it won't matter and when my kids get out on their own they will eat it anyways. Well I couldn't shut my mouth...AM I LOSING IT? sigh...rant over....
p.s. my son does have food allergies but I truly believe these are not appropriate foods for school....
they would rather have children with behavioural problems than take out junk foods!!!! ok..i'll stop ranting...
what would you do? leave it be or write a letter to the school district???
probably a lost cause and I should homeschool or get over it.

any suggestions what to tell my son, besides what I have?
It is so hard for him with his restrictive diet --he already feels isolated at times...I think it's cruel to have
ice cream flaunted in front of him like that..i want to cry...
I can't even pack a non dairy ice cream because it will melt..although that's besides the point...I just hate that this could effect his self esteem...always feeling left out...

[Revvell]

I'm not a parent yet I understand your feelings...and yes, it will matter when your child is older and has money of his own...yet, not at first.

My mother was concerned about what we ate when I was a child. My neighbor use to undermine her attempts by giving me store-bought sugar cookies and Kool-aid and such. I thought my mother was pretty bad as a mother.

When I was 13, I started working. Root beer floats were my biggie ~ as was acne. As the years went by, I realized it was what I was eating/drinking that were causing my healthy problems. I did some research and realized my mother was correct. Now I totally appreciate her for her "attempts" at eating healthier. (She read Prevention Magazine and they ~ at that time anyway ~ advocated eating milk; drinking milk, etc.)

I applaud you for what you are doing.

Revvell

[Punky]

I applaud you for what you are doing.

Revvell

thanks Revvell....
i'm literally sitting here in tears...i feel like it's a losing battle on something so simple...it's a no brainer....how come other parents don't see that too...
if the icecream was just on fridays I could probably deal with it by putting
a special treat in his lunchbox...but everyday just tweaks me.....
well hopefully if enough people complain they may consider just selling it on Fridays...

[sport]

I have another worry in this. If you do manage to get them to stop the ice cream is it possible that the other kids would ever discover who was responsible and take it out on yours. Bullying is so common these days and so destructive. I do not think that that is a good enough reason to stop your campaign but it is something that you should watch out for in the future. You should find out why they changed their mind regarding the junk food.

[Punky]

I have another worry in this. If you do manage to get them to stop the ice cream is it possible that the other kids would ever discover who was responsible and take it out on yours. Bullying is so common these days and so destructive. I do not think that that is a good enough reason to stop your campaign but it is something that you should watch out for in the future. You should find out why they changed their mind regarding the junk food.

hmmm...I never even considered this..
I doubt that by me complaining that it will change anything though anyways...it would have to be a bunch of parents complaining...the best outcome I can see is them limiting the ice cream to Fridays only...

I would think that my complaint was all confidential...but one never knows...
We live in a very big and well known school districts (one of the best educationally--lots of $ in our area) in the suburbs of Dallas...

[meganthevegan]

Oh, I feel your pain. I am a teacher and it anger me that here they say "obesity is up, we must push healthy eating, more exercise but to get the funds to buy ______ we must sell candy, ice cream...". Honestly, I do not allow my students to buy that stuff, if I can stop them. and I alway eat fruit in the class.

Perhaps we are the minority but I am a teacher and I plan to make a difference however I can!

Stand up for your moral,s even if your child rebels some aspect of himself will appreciate you even if it's 20 years later when he has children. Make a special time for treats at your home (make it a "party"). Good luck.

[Revvell]

Make a special time for treats at your home (make it a "party"). Good luck.

I'm thinking you are meaning raw treats? IF not then, making ice cream, candy, etc. as "special" treats will in the future be someone's way of dealing with things. I've been "good" so I'll have a "treat". Junk food is not a "treat" ~ that's why it's called "junk". (Not meaning to chastise you. Lil rant here in general myself) :)

If you are talking about raw treats, then...for me, raw fudge doesn't taste any different than "real" fudge. My husband makes a GREAT almond milk shake with bananas and berries OR adding my raw fudge. There are many recipes on this site for "ice cream". How's this? Make some of these goodies and invite parents over! Don't tell them it's raw and see if they even notice? Problem is, this can't be served at school sooo, what to do?

I think anyone who stands up for what they feel is right concerning themselve and their children are to be congratulated.

[Punky]

Oh, I feel your pain. I am a teacher and it anger me that here they say "obesity is up, we must push healthy eating, more exercise but to get the funds to buy ______ we must sell candy, ice cream...". Honestly, I do not allow my students to buy that stuff, if I can stop them. and I alway eat fruit in the class.

Perhaps we are the minority but I am a teacher and I plan to make a difference however I can!

Stand up for your moral,s even if your child rebels some aspect of himself will appreciate you even if it's 20 years later when he has children. Make a special time for treats at your home (make it a "party"). Good luck.

thanks for the feedback megan,
it makes me feel better to hear it from a teacher to. I do compramise at times and let him have certain treats..but it's always in an appropriate time and place and not a daily thing. Other times I make healthy sweets sound like treats and make them fun. My boys love mangos and date "cakes" (i make up fun names for healthy food to make it fun). We made smoothies this weekend which they loved; as we put each ingrediant in I told them what vitamins, etc..and how it helped there bodies..they loved it! and repeated it back to their dad when he woke up).
I just think the public schools send a confusing message...They just studied about excercise and healthy foods in school. the teachers sent home notes saying we may send up a healthy snack and water for snack time. Than I hear this about the icecream being everyday now. very conflicting info we send our children. I will just live by example and hope my son understands
when he is older. I have explained to him about health issues too; diabetes and heart disease and strokes in very close family members. So he understands (for an 8 year old) about the relationship between junk food and disease...sigh...

[Punky]

I'm thinking you are meaning raw treats? IF not then, making ice cream, candy, etc. as "special" treats will in the future be someone's way of dealing with things. I've been "good" so I'll have a "treat". Junk food is not a "treat" ~ that's why it's called "junk". (Not meaning to chastise you. Lil rant here in general myself)

Good point Revvell --in an ideal world you are right! But
Actually I do let my kids have regular cooked food treats at times
so you can chastise me
but I do explain to them that there is nothing healthy in them and no nutrition,
at all, and if they overeat they will have health issues when they
get older... so I do compromise between the cooked and raw world...
that's just where we are right now.
BUT my kids love healthy foods too, so I think I'm on the right path
and doing something alright as a mama...they love all my raw dessert creations: pudding, icecreams and raw pies..alissa's blueberry pie doesn't last long around here. they like green smoothies and juice too as long as it has some sweetness..we call them "HULK" juice or drinks..
my youngest just brought me a box of dates from the cupboard and asked for
some.

[meganthevegan]

Don't be afarid to talk about the conflicting messages. We are all consumers and have to weed through media messages, (and whatnot) and decide what is right for ourselves. I talk about it in my classroom all the time.

Revvell, I didn't know if Punky feeds her children all raw and I feel that is a personal decision on her part. But I am finding that you are right, raw treats are great and you can guiltlessly go back for seconds!!

[SedonaSun]

You can't possibly be the only outraged mom... at least I sure hope not! Maybe you've been made aware of this because you're so passionate about it and are just the one to take up the cause.

It is totally ridiculous to sell crap like that, especially given that so many kids are ADD and obese and on cholesterol lowering drugs and getting all these other "adult" diseases.

So maybe write letters to the principals, the teachers, the board, parents you know...and don't let up. Keep sending them. Ask other parents to join you. Might not want to come across totally angry so as not to put them on the defensive immediately, but a little righteous anger is good :)

HEY!!!... have a meeting at your place to discuss it with other parents and serve them raw goodies :)

Good luck...

[Revvell]

Good point Revvell --in an ideal world you are right! But
Actually I do let my kids have regular cooked food treats at times
so you can chastise me
but I do explain to them that there is nothing healthy in them and no nutrition,
at all, and if they overeat they will have health issues when they
get older... so I do compromise between the cooked and raw world...
that's just where we are right now.
BUT my kids love healthy foods too, so I think I'm on the right path
and doing something alright as a mama...they love all my raw dessert creations: pudding, icecreams and raw pies..alissa's blueberry pie doesn't last long around here. they like green smoothies and juice too as long as it has some sweetness..we call them "HULK" juice or drinks..
my youngest just brought me a box of dates from the cupboard and asked for
some.

Punky,

Nahhh, no chastising. Being a parent is difficult w/ pressure from other children and parents; t.v. ads, and people just giving away "junk". (I've always wondered why they serve coffee for free yet, not a good juice or something). Anyway, your children will remember you and the wonderful food you are giving them. More power to you! :)

[Punky]

Don't be afarid to talk about the conflicting messages. We are all consumers and have to weed through media messages, (and whatnot) and decide what is right for ourselves. I talk about it in my classroom all the time.

Revvell, I didn't know if Punky feeds her children all raw and I feel that is a personal decision on her part. But I am finding that you are right, raw treats are great and you can guiltlessly go back for seconds!!

yes, i think I will sit down and talk to Logan about conflicting messages...I have explained to him about commercials and the messages they send are driven by money....

yes, we are a half cooked and half raw family; my husband is very cooked
and a meat eater; but he is supportive of me and my ideals.
I think my kids are more receptive to raw food at times than him.
my youngest son saw me get a raw pizza out of the dehydrator the other night and asked for some...to my surprise he ate it! although good,
it doesn't taste exactly like SAD pizza and he is very picky eater.
He ate it and asked for more He actually thought it was regular pizza..kept calling it "cheese pizza"...who was I to correct him!
another small victory!

[Leiloshka]

I'm SOOO sorry about the ice cream incident Punky!

It is so hard feeling at times I'm going against the grain by trying to eat right. But, boy, when you try to have your kids eat right too, it seems like everybody looks at you like you are depriving the kid! It's so aggravating because it seems like making smart eating choices for the child lines you up to be criticized as a mean/bad mom. Or a "troublemaker".

One suggestion on the school. My daughter's school has a prepaid lunch program where they deduct the lunch from the computer when the student goes through the line after they give their name. At the beginning of school, the parents are given a form asking if the child may have snacks at lunch. They mean chips, etc. If the parent signs, they can have snacks, but if not, no snacks.

When the child gives his name to the lunch lady she can tell on the computer if a snack form was signed. If the children want a snack, the lunch lady tells them they can't because their parents said they couldn't (or something like that I guess).

The child could be embarrased by this I guess, but with my kids, they already know they aren't suppose to have it before they ask.

Maybe you could look up what the new state guidelines are for the schools (so you can see where they are violating them) and then have a talk with the principal about what the school is doing to implement the guidelines. Then you could bring up your concerns and maybe this suggestion on a snack form. Maybe they have a committee?

My kids don't have allergies, so it's not as crucial as with your child, but, I just try to cut out the "bad stuff" when I can. When I'm around family and their dad, I see peeks of how they eat when I'm not around, but I've got to give up that fight. I can only do what I can do. :)

As to the question of WHY people don't eat right....or for goodness sakes, make better choices for the kids? I have no idea! I truly think a lot of people just don't want to tell their kids no or something. I really don't know.

[Punky]

You can't possibly be the only outraged mom... at least I sure hope not! Maybe you've been made aware of this because you're so passionate about it and are just the one to take up the cause.

It is totally ridiculous to sell crap like that, especially given that so many kids are ADD and obese and on cholesterol lowering drugs and getting all these other "adult" diseases.

So maybe write letters to the principals, the teachers, the board, parents you know...and don't let up. Keep sending them. Ask other parents to join you. Might not want to come across totally angry so as not to put them on the defensive immediately, but a little righteous anger is good :)

HEY!!!... have a meeting at your place to discuss it with other parents and serve them raw goodies :)

Good luck...

Thanks for the suggestions SedonaSun!
I think I will start with a letter and send it to the principal and school district...not angry, more factual, and based on ethics and the messages we
are sending our children. Back it up by the rise in overweight children, and children with type 2 diabetes and the ever rising behavioural problems.
I just read an article in the "DALLAS CHILD" magazine...a free publication locally on how some parents are hiring nutritionists to help there children.
Also, organic food is really starting to take off more and more in this area, along with an increase with the awareness of food allergies. Several other
children in my other sons preschool class had dairy and other food allergies.
SO I KNOW other parents out there must disapprove of this as well; we are just still the minority is the battle

but at least I will have the peace of mind that I was heard, and spoke up in what I know is right and perhaps planted a seed of some sort; or maybe they will be influenced!
Ha! you never know.