Third grade field trip--weird? or is it just me?

[MorningGlow]

A note came home in my third grader's folder today, about a field trip scheduled for early December. They're going to a popular museum in the morning, about 30 miles away. No problem with that part. THEN they're coming back to...have lunch at a bar/restaurant in our village.

:wtf:

The visit to the bar (bar? seriously?)/restaurant struck me as really odd. Okay, I don't like it. It has no educational value whatsoever; it has no connection to the museum, and the kids won't be learning anything there--they're not going to be touring the kitchen or learning about how a restaurant works.

What's worse is the cost: $10 per student, and another $10 if a parent wants to go along as a chaperone. Most field trips cost just a few dollars; I think $5 was the highest I've seen, and that's only for the parent chaperone. All the field trips are paid for out of the school budget. So this makes me wonder if this high cost is because of the lunch at the bar/restaurant. I know that a lot of families in this cash-strapped area just can't afford this type of cost, but there was no way to opt out of the field trip (or just the lunch) in the note, although I'm sure if a parent can't afford it and talked to the school, they'd find something for the kid to do at school for the day.

What really bugs me is how much this stunt smacks of self-promotion. It's common knowledge that this particular establishment is struggling, and the owners have recently made a last-ditch effort to drum up interest in the place, hiring an advertising and marketing firm to go door to door in the village offering discount coupons. I can't help but think that this third-grade lunch is another marketing effort to get to the parents/families through the kids.

I don't know how they worked this, but I strongly suspect that it was engineered by one of my son's classmate's parents, who are big fans of the place, and the kid's mother is a bigwig (and quite a loudmouth) in the PTA. But I can't prove that connection; I just suspect it.

I dunno. It just seems so WEIRD. I mean, if the school wants to support a local eatery, have a pizza party in the classroom, you know? I've only talked to one other parent about it, and he thinks it's darn strange as well. What the heck is up with this? :crazy:

[femmocrat]

1. You can call and complain..... and so can the other parent.

Call the teacher first, and if you aren't satisfied with her/his explanation, then call the principal.

You make excellent points about the cost and the educational value. I would leave out the suspicions about the PTO connection to the restaurant.

[freshwest]

3. I'd leave out the suspicions too.

[MorningGlow]

4. Yeah, I want to ask a whole mess of questions

I wasn't sure if I should start with the teacher, as of course she's really busy and tomorrow is the last day of school before vacation. The principal is really accessible, and a heck of a nice guy, but I didn't want it to look like I was going over her head. I think I'll put a note in my son's folder asking the teacher to call me at her convenience. She's really great, and I know she will call if I ask her to. Wouldn't dream of voicing my suspicions about the PTA mom, though--definitely not. Thanks! :hi:

[freshwest]

2. Small town? I'd say incest, but I'm not talking about sex. A local church wanted parents of DD..

Kids to agree to let them take them to get pizza at what was supposed to a community 'fundraiser.'

Once there, they were all supposed to be handcuffed together like a 'chaingang,' then the local police were to come and supervise their being humiliated like that in public.

But the deal was that they wouldn't unlock them until the dining patrons paid their 'bail money.' Shall we call it 'conditioning,' yet?

Okay, that may be off topic, but there are some really ignorant and insensitive people out there. If you kid doesn't want to go, and isn't afraid of being ostracized, as that does happen, just say no.

[MorningGlow]

5. Incest is indeed rife--the small town politics variety

That's why I think this setup stinks like three-day old fish. It's pretty obvious.

I've already decided that I don't want to put a spotlight on my son (and I do want him to go to the museum), so I'm not going to yank him from he field trip. I will, however, be going as a chaperone to see what's what. I'm glad we can afford the $20 (!) so I can do that. At the very least I'd like the school to send out an addendum to itemize the cost (how much is for the museum, how much for the lunch) and at least OFFER the option of opting out of the lunch for parents who can't afford it.

:wtf: with the chain gang?! Yikes!!

[bigwillq]

6. Pack the kid a lunch and give them $5.

I would talk to the school to see what other arrangements can be made.
You're also free to keep the kid home.

[MorningGlow]

7. Yeah, I definitely want to talk to the school

I want to know how much is for the museum and how much is for the lunch--and, even more important, WHY the fuck they're busing the kids to a bar/restaurant after a museum trip.

I know that most parents will blindly go along with this, but the rebel in me is going "Nuh-uh--I want explanations!" :rofl:

[bigwillq]

8. I don't really know the whole story

Maybe your conspiracy theory is correct, but I really don't see the big deal that they're going to this place. They have to eat, right?

Best bet is to def. talk to the school.


edited: Wouldn't you want to see a struggling place survive instead of more people losing jobs?

[MorningGlow]

9. It's what I said in the OP

There's no educational value to going this place, it's a bar/restaurant (not really for kids), and I don't like the political wrangling they're doing--I don't like the kids being "forced" to go there (no other options offered) and forced to pay that much for the privilege.

I never said I wanted to see the restaurant fail. I just think they could drum up business in better ways than targeting families through the schoolchildren. This setup stinks.

[bigwillq]

11. Not too many educational restaurants out there.

And the kid is not being forced. Kid doesn't have to go on trip.
Talk to the school. Hope it works out.

[Kali]

10. sounds a lot better than most of the field trip my kids went on

driving all the way to Phx (3 hours) to go to a freaking amusement park!

at least the lunch is a local business rather than McDs or something (probably a kickback going on here, but hey small towns...)

[REP]

12. Agree. Most lunch stops on field trips aren't "educational"; just places that can hold bus loads

Much better to go to a local business Ruthann a Chuck E Cheese or a McDonalds. During school hours, not much bar business to worry about.

[bigwillq]

13. Damn you AutoCorrect!

:rofl:

Ruthann :rofl:

[REP]

21. Argh!

[lumpy]

14. Better than taking kids to the brand new sewage plant.

My daughter has never forgotten that marvelous 6th grade field trip.

[Kali]

15. I don't know

I think that might be a worthy trip. Water use, waste disposal, environmental issues etc etc. Seems fairly educational to me. Around here there are several wetland waste water facilities that attract birds - lots of tours go there

[RobinA]

16. Can't Say

I see what the big deal is. They have to eat, it's local not McDonalds. As a hater of packed lunches since my first day of first grade, I'd be all for it.

[MorningGlow]

17. Okay, apparently I'm not explaining myself well

It's less about the educational value as the WTFery of charging $10 and implementing a forced march to a bar (?!)/restaurant without any opportunity to opt out. But this is wrong on so many levels I can't even list them all.

I talked with my son's teacher today, and she agreed that the cost was rather high ($5 is for the museum and $5 is for the lunch), especially for families in the area who are really tight on funds--and that's quite a few. I asked what those families can do if they can't afford it, and she didn't really have an answer. She did say that if a parent approaches the school and says they didn't have money for a field trip, that the school will help them out. That's fine for a trip to a museum or a farm or something, but giving school funds to a local restaurant? I'm sorry, but that is a bit much.

On top of that, she admitted that she didn't know what the kids were going to be offered at this lunch--she surmised they'd be able to order something off the kids' menu. So that's about 40 kids, plus the adults, all ordering off the menu. The schedule is to arrive at the restaurant at 12:45, so by the time everyone orders and the kitchen makes the food, we're looking at a 1:15 lunchtime at the earliest, which is WAY past when the kids usually eat, and they haven't had time for a snack in the meantime. I also told her that I wasn't even sure my kid would want something off the menu, and other kids in his class are even pickier. So if they wait till after 1 p.m. for lunch, then end up with food they don't like for whatever reason, there are gonna be some cranky kids. (Remember, these are 8 year olds--they can't really hold out that long for food.) The teacher also admitted that was sort of a bad idea.

I told her that if they want to have a group lunch, there's nothing wrong with a pizza party--it's likely most, if not all, of the kids would be fine with pizza, and they could have it scheduled to arrive in the classroom at the time they get back from the field trip, around 12:15, much closer to their usual lunchtime. It's a less expensive option, but even then, if the parents can't afford the extra cash for pizza, kids who don't want it/can't afford it can bring their lunch or get lunch from the cafeteria and bring it back to the classroom. She agreed.

Basically, she said she and the other third grade teachers hadn't really thought it through, and they're going to go back and revisit the idea. Which is all I really wanted in the first place--to call attention to a questionable idea. I'll be interested to see how it shakes out.

[seaglass]

19. I have chaperoned my kids' field trips and they always bring a bagged lunch,

they never stopped at restaurants for lunch, not even fast food.

I would have let my kids do it if it was offered, but I think it's odd that they aren't just bringing their own lunches.

[freshwest]

22. Good job, Mom!

[trof]

25. Agree totally.

The restaurant deal is WAY out of line.
What if you just picked your kid up there after the museum?
If you're able to.

[Tom Ripley]

18. When I was a kid, all 5-th graders went on field trips to the state capitol

visit the historic buildings
and the state prison
where the highlight was
getting to sit
in the electric chair.
I kid you not.

[freshwest]

23. Bwahaha! I believe it! Ours was the Symphony. Lights out, full orchestra. We transcended reality...

Really had an impact on us, like we were among the stars. Of course, we were very quiet. College field trips were more fun took longer trips and were outside. Yes, they were very interesting.

[mzteris]

20. my son's old school had a packed bag lunch

for school trips.

[sarcasmo]

24. Perhaps the teacher knows the owner of the bar/restaurant, follow the money.