RICHARD ORD: Reindeer herding can wait... please keep your kids in school

Never underestimate the importance of reindeer herding in the modern world. (image created by AI Dall-e)Never underestimate the importance of reindeer herding in the modern world. (image created by AI Dall-e)
Never underestimate the importance of reindeer herding in the modern world. (image created by AI Dall-e)
​Does Father Christmas do maths? It’s a question that sprung to mind while trying to compute a ‘gutted’ mum’s horror at being fined for taking her kids on an educational trip to Lapland.

Mum Danielle Sands went to the national press this week after her mind was ‘blown’ at being fined for taking her three children out of school for the ‘once in a lifetime’ adventure. She had written to the school in advance, listing the 'educational' activities too.

On seeing the list of activities it’s hard to argue with her thoughts. I mean, the family went driving around on snowmobiles, herded reindeer and met Father Christmas. What’s not educational about that?

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While grammar and good punctuation have their place, they ain’t gonna help you herd reindeer when required. And we all know how often we spend gathering those nuisance creatures up when they raid the bins.

Algebra won’t help either when you’re trying to start up a snowmobile for the school run.

And I don’t need to remind you of the importance of learning from intellectual giants like Santa Claus. Especially, as Danielle hints, this one was the REAL Father Christmas.

Yet, the school funbusters fined the family £320 for taking her kids on holiday during term time. ‘We weren’t sitting on a beach for seven days,’ Danielle pointed out. Probably just as well given it’s below -10°C at that time of year, but you get her laboured point. Buried among her other complaints (including how her partner doesn’t see the kids when he’s at work!), we finally get to the real reason for the ‘educational’ trip. It’s cheaper than in term time.

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To add salt to the wounds, when Danielle’s kids returned to school there were no teachers in the classroom because they had all booked ‘educational’ trips to Ibiza.

That last bit, I made up. But then again, maybe Ibiza teachers could learn from the Easter Bunny and Tooth Fairy; I hear they enjoy the clubs in the off-season! But you get my point.

Don’t take your kids out of school. And if you do, and you get caught, take the fine on the chin and keep your mouth shut.

And keeping your mouth shut is a top Santa Claus tip to keep soot out of your mouth when jumping down a chimney. As Danielle’s ‘educated’ kids will now be able to tell you.

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