Party without treats
The obs Anne Frank in Gorinchem completely abolished the food treats on a birthday. "I see happy faces and that's what it's all about."
Image: Angeliek de Jonge
It's a hassle: treat yourself to school. Many primary schools are happy to profile themselves as a healthy school and therefore ask parents to treat them in a healthy way. But not everyone adheres to it. The reasons are diverse. If the birthday boy or girl would rather hand out bacon than a mandarin, then the decision is quickly made for some parents. In addition, candy is cheaper than fruit. Can you expect all parents to have the budget to buy fruit?
Can you expect all parents to have the budget to buy fruit?
It is complicated to navigate between the wishes and expectations of parents and children. Director Hellen Blom of the Gorinchem Anne Frank School experienced this all too often. “It happened that teachers had to keep candy skewers or crisps out of the hands of children with allergies,” says Blom. "Or because parents emphatically believed that their child should not eat anything unhealthy during school hours."
Sad
Such a situation is sad for everyone. The birthday boy is disappointed. The teacher who has to take the skewers is the boogeyman, but okay, that's part of being a teacher sometimes. The child who sees the candy picker pass by also feels cheated. Parents who keep seeing the motto of a healthy school fail, do not feel they are being taken seriously. “At my son's school it has been agreed that only healthy things may be handed out on birthdays,” says Greetje, mother of a child in group 8 of a primary school in Brabant. “But no one enforces it, and no one oversees it. I think that's bad.”
All in all too many unhappy faces. That is why they decided to do things differently at the Anne Frank School in Gorinchem in South Holland from the start of this school year. All food treats have been abolished, including the healthy ones. And instead, children are allowed to choose a birthday activity in the classroom or in the playground.
This Tuesday is Lina's birthday. The toddler feels completely chosen. Because she is turning five, there are five flags hanging from the birthday garland and Lina can choose as many activities. She chooses to decorate a chair, sit next to the teacher, sing, make music and a balloon. And so it happens. Moments later, all the toddlers are singing with a tambourine, drum, triangle or flute. The teacher conducts and Lina shakes the samba ball beaming.
The toddler feels completely chosen
Director Blom has been watching for a while. “The classroom of Lina's class was renovated during the Christmas holidays. There is new carpet and a new kitchen unit has been installed. Lina has Down's syndrome and these changes are especially exciting for her. So the new classroom, which the group sees for the first time today, she also considers a bit of her birthday present. That makes it extra festive. ”
Gelatine
According to Blom, director of the multicultural primary school for three years, the most important reason to stop eating treats was that so many children are struggling with allergies, diabetes or dietary restrictions. Teachers often could no longer see the wood for the trees and lacked eyes and ears to ensure that the wrong students did not open a bag of crisps in the end. “Sometimes a treat can contain gelatin made from a pig, Muslim children are not allowed to eat it, but without packaging we don't know exactly what the ingredients are. Other children have gluten or other allergies or are prescribed by their parents that they are not allowed to snack. ”
Without packaging we do not know exactly what the ingredients are
And so Blom can go on for a while. It became clear to the principal that her team had to make a decision that would make everyone, at least all children, as well as the teachers happy. “If food treats lead to hassle instead of connection, then something isn't quite right. We wanted to solve this. ”
Teacher Dagmar, teacher of the year-old Lina, also sees great advantages: “Sometimes large candy bags were handed out, and we had to intervene immediately. Such a candy bag is far too much to eat in one go. Then you saw such a birthday child look disappointed. Now we see that children are also looking forward to other children's birthdays because they are looking forward to an activity. ' Teacher Ellen from the senior years also noticed that every year old is now the same. “Nobody has to feel unpleasant or disadvantaged. I see happy faces and that's what it's all about. ”
There are also opinions. Some parents find it unpleasant and exaggerated or a pity that a tradition has been abolished. Blom: “But most parents now see how happy their child comes home on their birthday. That day they were allowed to choose something that suits them. ” In the senior years, a student treated to a workshop about his favorite computer game and a birthday was combined with a lesson in which children could build huts together.
Other schools that want to adopt the policy have not yet applied. Blom: "Of course, every school has to make its own choice." In any case, the year-old Lina was happy with the orchestra of classmates and the shiny samba ball.
Elimination tips
- Discuss the topic with the children. They are open to change. The theme of climate and environment also fits in with it. Many treats are wrapped in plastic or come in a plastic cup.
- Involve parents in the developments. They are often more stubborn than children. Parents are used to the treats from their own childhood and therefore want to stick to them. “We could have involved the parents earlier and better, some felt a bit taken by surprise,” says director Hellen Blom. "That could be better."
