Denied toilet break

One half term holiday we had the toilet walls painted with fairytale Disney type characters. As you can imagine, the trips to the toilets become very frequent for a week or two! Thankfully the children got over the novelty and things soon returned to normal, (ask to go only when you need to).

Been teaching Yr 3 to Yr 6 for many years and I very quickly get to know which children are just using going to the toilet as an excuse to get out of class for a few minutes. Usually I will ask if they can hang on till play or till I have gone through my main explanation. If we allowed every child to go whenever they asked there would be a constant stream of them in and out of the classroom. Never had an accident or a complaint from parents.

Wait 2 hours to empty my bladder! - what a mess that would be! Two minutes is hard enough!

As someone else has pointed out, girls in the higher primary classes might ask to go to the loo if they think they have started a period; to refuse them the opportunity to go to the loo is just plain cruelty and nothing less.

I agree with * trisher*. Who is going to be on duty to supervise the 10 minute offenders during break and lunchtimes? Break duties are already unpopular with teaching staff because they take the staff away from preparation/marking time and even going to the toilet themselves. It's a very wasteful use of human resources.

(and what would it say? )

I'm puzzled about this 'note'.

Is it supposed to be from the child's doctor or parent? And if it's the parent, why aren't they all writing notes for their children, just in case?

All of the jobs/work places I have ever worked in had the staff been told to hold it/refused to go to the toilet there would have a hell of backlash.

Can anybody remember 'The Rag Trade'? I can just imagine Miriam Karlin (shop steward) blowing her whistle shouting 'Everybody Out'

They are children for heavens sake.

And how sympathetic are you towards a ten year-old (or older) girl who has a sudden menstrual emergency? Asking her to wait might prove hugely embarassing as would having to explin why she needs to go urgently.

golden girl

by saying no it means that i don't have a queue of children wanting the toilet, they go at break just like me, and no work time is lost. i have never noticed that it has had a negative affect on the work they produce or concentration when i have refused to let a child go to the toilet.

mcem

they are not being told they cannot go without a doctors note anymore, they can have a wee if they really need one and don't have to hold it for 2 hours, seems like a good compromise.

i agree that it is a maturity process, and if i taught key stage 1 i would always allow loo breaks, however a little encouragement to go at break will get them into routine for when they come to year 5 and i will not let them go, or even secondary school.

Re: lorry drivers and other road users research has shown that 'urgency' and having to 'hold on' affects concentration as well as encouraging health issues. Children also have to 'hold on' judging by the various posts therefore their concentration too will be reduced! So what purpose is gained from no allowing the use of the loo?

Also in the majority of work places, meetings etc it is acceptable to go to the toilet when the need arises. A school is a child's workplace..........

vic you're very dogged in your belief that they'll learn.
Why can't you see that in young children it's a maturing process and not a learning process?

yes i understand that, but it will be an incentive to remember to go at break. As they get older many teachers will be like me and not let them go at all in class time. They have to learn to go at break eventually.

vicwarren there are children who cope with the work very well and who won't suffer any ill effects from visiting the toilet and missing time, then there are children who struggle and need help and taking 10 mins off these children's playtime will not improve their performance anymore than sitting worrying if they should/shouldn't go to the loo will. Personally I hope lots of children go to the loo and the school finds itself with a lot to supervise for the 10 mins they miss, bet this idea will be swiftly dumped then!

I think that is a more sensible rule if children really need a wee they will not mind taking a forfeit, and it also means the children trying to get out of work will also think twice, they also don't miss out on work time

Oh come on that's plain ridiculous! I was just wondering if your DD is on Facebook and if the parents at the school have a group. My DIL was telling me my GDs school (she starts in September) has one and they are setting up a reception group so parents can get to know each other in advance- great idea. I think it might be a forum for things like this to be discussed and the HT presented with a united group of parents.

they have scrapped the doctors note after the little girl wet herself yesterday. They are now still denied 1st time but are allowed to go if they ask again, but will miss 10 minutes of their playtime

The teacher will surely know which children need to go and those who are just 'trying it on'.

Most will not 'need to go' during lesson time by the age of about 7 so there wouldn't be too much disruption if just one or two had a problem.

I have taught across the primary age range and to keep a child waiting until "they usually squirm, ask more than once and have a pleading look on their face. " is totally out of order. It would seem that a child has to be humiliated before there is the possibility that they will be allowed to go to the toilet.

Although it's not usual, it's not unheard of for teachers to go to the toilet during lesson times as long as they don't leave the class without adult supervision.

I'm sure the NUT, NASUWT and other union representatives would have something to say if toilet visits were totally banned for their members.

"they usually squirm,ask more than once and have a pleading look on their face. "

Hells bells.

We had the same issue with our granddaughters school, if anybody read the the old 'School Toilets Locked' thread they will see other GN posters too. I remain of the opinion this is a very sad state of affairs.

they usually squirm,ask more than once and have a pleading look on their face.

To be fair i dont get many loo requests as they know the answer will be no, they make sure they go at break and lunc

Sometimes fidgeting is an indication.

Although at least one of my DC and DGC are fidgets!

How can you tell, vicwarren? You keep repeating that.

I am surprised the teacher let it get to the point where she wet herself. As a teacher like i say i do not let children go to the toilet during lessons. However we can usually tell a genuine emergency.

A 10 year old who needs to wee more frequently than every two hours may have a medical problem.

Do they have night-time enuresis?