How to handle grandparent's day at school without a grandparent?

[Anonymous]

Why in the world is the school doing this? Exclusionary and a waste of time. Not to mention none of these people will be background checked. Ugh.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can one of her friends in the class have both Grandma and Grandpa come to the event, and one of them can step up for your daughter? They'll be with their kid too, but yours will have A Grandparent.

We do not have local grandparents. Sent an uncle once who happened to be visiting at the time. I also sent a beloved babysitter once - not a nanny. I didn’t pay her. She volunteered. It was nice my kid had someone there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kids never had a local grandparent. It’s never really been an issue, but you could check with the teacher and see if they think you or dh should attend instead.

Do all the kids really have living local grandparents? That would strike me as unusual, especially in the DMV, given how transient people are around here.

At small private schools very possible

At our medium-sized private k-8, grandparents fly out for grandparents day. It’s a huge deal. It’s usually adjacent to Mother’s Day weekend, so often families are gathering anyway.

Usually only 2-3 kids per grade don’t have a grandparent or great aunt/uncle there. My DD has traditionally loaned out her grandparent to friends, as do others, so everyone ends up having a grandparent to walk with to the assembly and do activities with.

Last year my DD was really upset because she has one dead grandparent, one who is incapacitated and cannot travel, and one who has dementia and cannot leave memory care. Her healthy grandparent absolutely couldn’t rearrange things to be there and both that grandparent and DD were upset.

Her best friend knew about it and announced that DD was going to be sit with her grandparent for the assembly. And for the 1:1 activities, the favorite, young and fun teachers led a pull-out activity for kids who didn’t have a grandparent there that was a bit of a special privilege (doing a project in a normally restricted area of campus that “had” to happen that day). I imagine most schools do something similar.

DD came home happy and content.

[Anonymous]

PS I’m the PP and I did give DD the option to skip grandparents’ day. Once she knew it was optional, she felt better about deciding to go.

[Anonymous]

Kids' grandparents are local and retired. I don't even bother to tell grandparents to come on grandparent's day school event. There are always some kids with no local grandparents, no grandparents or grandparents not able to come for whatever reasons. I am not okay kids not going to school because of that reaaon unless there are sensitive matters like grandparents are seriously sick or recently pass away etc.

[Anonymous]

Go, or have DH go.

I’m astounded they get close to 100% participation with grandparents. We don’t even get that for a once a year parents day in early elem - maybe 75% of the parents showed up.

[Anonymous]

At our private school they specifically say they don’t want parents.

[Anonymous]

So many grandparents died. So many people are military workers on a stint in DC. So many people are here for some international gig for 4 years. There would not be enough grandparents at our school for this

[Anonymous]

Thank god our school doesn’t do this as both sets of grandparents are dead.

[Anonymous]

….you send your kid to school. You can’t protect your kid from every possible negative feeling.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thank god our school doesn’t do this as both sets of grandparents are dead.

Same. Congrats to all y’all, but this would suck for me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:….you send your kid to school. You can’t protect your kid from every possible negative feeling.

SHUT UP

[Anonymous]

I’m surprised schools are even doing these. Lots of kids don’t have grandparents, or they aren’t local, or aren’t involved.

Our school doesn’t even call parents parents anymore, let alone have mom/dad events. Everything is “caregivers” in the name of equity.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why in the world is the school doing this? Exclusionary and a waste of time. Not to mention none of these people will be background checked. Ugh.

I don’t love it either. Schools have open houses every year, plus multiple events all year that are open to family/guests. Why is a “grandparent” day necessary? I also don’t think their should be a muffins with mom event or daddy/ daughter dance

[Anonymous]

Send your kids to public school and you won't have this problem, OP.