The Back to School with Asda Challenge

The kids broke up on Wednesday and George at Asda asked me to ask the kids and I a series of questions about what they remember about school as part of their launch of their new uniform range.

Eliza is in Reception this year and Isaac is Year 3.

• Do you remember your first day at nursery/primary/secondary school? Which?

Mum: No

Isaac: Yes

Eliza: Yes

• Did you make any friends on your first day? What were their names?

Mum: Ambi, Helen and Zoe

Eliza: Annabel, Sophie and Holly-Mae

Isaac: Yes, Alfie Morris

• Do you still keep in touch with anyone you met on your first day?

Mum: I keep in touch with Ambi and Helen

Isaac: I saw Alfie on my birthday and at Beavers

Eliza: I see my friends at school

• Who was your best friend in Primary school? Do you still keep in touch?

Mum: My best friend was Ambi and yes!

Isaac: Alfie but he doesn’t go to my school and I don’t see him much

• Did you take a packed lunch with you on your first day? Can you remember what you used to have?

Mum: I had school dinners, I remember semolina with a dollop of jam in the middle

Isaac: I had packed lunch

Eliza: I tried school dinners but didn’t like them

• Do you pack a lunch for your kids?

Mum: Yes, they don’t like school dinners

• What are your thoughts on school lunches? How are they compared to when you were at school?

Mum: Much more variety than they had in my day but they don’t cook them fresh on site which affects the quality

• Do you remember being nervous on your first day?

Mum: Yes, I remember holding the teachers hand

Isaac: A little bit

Eliza: No, I knew the classroom and teachers from when Isaac and Kian were at school

• Did your parents do anything to prepare you for your first day at school? Have you done the same things for your kids or have you prepared them differently or at all?

Mum: I don’t remember

Isaac: My new teacher came to my house to see me

Eliza: I saw my new teacher every day when we took Isaac to school

• Do you think bullying is more of a problem today than it was when you were at school? Have you given your kids any advice on how to deal with bullying?

Mum: I think it was more prevalent in my day and the teachers used to ignore it. Nowadays there is support staff and special groups to help with any issues.

• Do your kids have mobile phones? If so how old were they when they first received them?

Mum: My kids got mobile phones at 11 when they started secondary school

• Do you think kids today are more mature, developing faster than kids of your generation?

Mum: I think it depends on individual children and in my case, no

• How do your kids get to school? Are they allowed to walk on their own or take the bus by themselves? Is this different to how you travelled to school?

Mum: I walk the little ones to school but the teens walk themselves

• Do you help out with your kids’ homework?

Mum: Yes

• Has schoolwork become harder or easier in your opinion, since you were at school? Have you ever struggled with elements of your child’s homework?

Mum: Homework is less than I used to have and its now optional in primary school……….my school was very strict

• Are there any subjects you wish they’d bring back or any subjects your kids are taking that you wish had been available to you at school?

Mum: Yes – I would love to have learned photography, media studies, geology and games design at school

• How have the ‘rules of the playground’ changed since your schooldays?

Mum: More emphasis on health and safety these days but they still play some of the same games

• Have you experienced the ‘Health & Safety Police’ ruining playground traditions and games from your generation?

Mum: They still play games but things like French Elastic and taking Lolo balls to school are a thing of the past

• Do your kids play the same playground games that you used to at school? Or is there a new crop of playground games in the modern age?

Mum: Some of them

Isaac: I like to play “what’s the time Mr Wolf”

Eliza: I play “it”

• Do you keep up with the music tastes of your kids? Do you share their musical tastes?

Mum: I still listen to Radio One and do share some of the kids favourite songs………a little fed up with 7 years now, but they love to sing it!

• What’s the latest playground ‘craze’ your kids have taken part in? What were the playground crazes you took part in during your schooldays? (yoyo, pogs etc.)

Mum: It was French Elastic and skipping in my day

Isaac: I do Loom Bands club and sticker swaps

Eliza: I like Shopkins and swap at school

So there you have it, school is still school although somethings have changed for the better and some, like playground fun for the worse.

Do your kids play playground games you used to enjoy at school?