Next lesson for boys... how to treat a woman
WHEN my eldest son was about four years old, I applied for a place at an upmarket nursery in London and we were invited to an interview.
During the meeting he was shown drawings of two parents, a woman and a man, and asked to describe what they were doing. “Dad” was in an office speaking on the phone to his secretary, while the picture of “mum” was in an apron at home.
As a working mum I was taken aback by the blatant stereotyping and not fussed when he didn’t get a place.
I was reminded of it this week when listening to a debate about whether schools are the appropriate environment to teach boys lessons about respecting women and girls.
There was a lot of resistance to the idea, mooted by Policing Minister Kit Malthouse yesterday, that this should be included in sex and relationship education, as part of his response to Sarah Everard’s disappearance and death.
And if my experience 10 years ago of out of date thinking is anything to go by, I’d probably be thinking the same. But that was then and this is now. And I believe with the right framework and forward-thinking approach, schools could be the perfect place for these basic and fundamental ideas to be taught to young people.
If the pandemic has taught us anything about schools, it’s that they are more than just places for children to learn to read, write and add up.
Lockdown reminded us they are vital places for kids, providing meals, social interaction and physical exercise among many other things.
In an ideal world this sort of teaching would happen in the home but, again, as the pandemic has highlighted, not all children live with parents who have the time to give them these vital lessons. And even if parents do have time, it’s still often not enough.
I like to think I’ve done a good job with my youngest son who’s five. But he still tells me there are colours that only girls wear, or jobs that only boys and not girls can do.
I don’t know where he gets this from and I pick him up on it, but it would be even better to have the support of the education system to back this up.
Yes, teachers have a lot on and we do ask a lot of them, but the fact is school is where most of our children spend most of their time. What better environment for them to learn some of the most important lessons in life?
With the right approach, schools could be the perfect place for this
in Rome
GAZZA shows off his fishing skills on the Italian version of I’m a Celebrity yesterday
The Geordie football legend, 53, gave his campmates tips as they tried to spear an octopus, then had them in stitches as he cracked open coconuts.
Gazza also appeared to get close to fellow contestant Daniela Martani, 47, and rubbed sun lotion on her back in the Cayos Cochinos islands off Honduras in Central America.
A source said: “He’s adapted to life as a castaway.”
A TREASURED toy horse handmade by a convalescing soldier has been restored in emotional scenes on The Repair Shop.
When Royal Artillery soldier George Forster served in Italy as a signaller during the Second World War, a motorbike accident put him in hospital for three months.
While recovering from serious leg injuries, George made a leather horse he named Garibaldi.
The toy was later played with by his daughters Ann and Shirley.
Speaking about former teacher George’s wartime suffering, Ann said: “Garibaldi reminds us of what my father had to go through.”
When he died in 2012, at the age of 94, the toy was found in box, with
flaking leather, its mane and tail gone and the bridle broken.
Sisters Ann Purden, 69, and Shirley Leitch, 74, were desperate for it to be restored for his 10 greatgrandkids to enjoy as they had.
On the BBC1 show tomorrow, leather expert Suzie Fletcher manages to nurse the horse back to health.
Ann, who lives in East Kilbride, South Lanarkshire, said: “A vehicle towing a gun carrier knocked my father off his bike. He suffered with pain all his life.
“I think making the horse was something to keep him occupied in hospital. He was very handy. He made us dressing gowns out of Army
blankets. We used to ride dolls on Garibaldi’s back. He had a hard life!”
Anne said of the moment they found him: “Poor Garibaldi! He was in such a sorry state. Shirley wrapped him in a pillowcase. Every time you touched him another piece of leather flaked off.”
The restored toy is now on her sideboard, ready for her grandchildren as soon as they can visit.
She said: “Garibaldi reminds us of my dad, how much we loved him and what a great man he was.”
The Repair Shop Monday to Friday, BBC1, 4.30pm.
Every time we touched Garibaldi leather flaked off
ANN PURDEN ON SORRY STATE OF CHILDHOOD TOY