The first warning was for a puddle. After the second, Anna Yalovenko's three-year-old son still jumped into the water, and his mother was called to school. The incident is among the examples with which the Ukrainian woman describes discipline and rules in French schools to OBOZ.UA.
Yalovenko moved to France after the start of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine. She lives in Chateauroux with her three sons and observes the local education system from kindergarten to college.
Rules from the age of three
Her youngest son attends maternelle – a kindergarten for children between 3 and 6 years old. According to Yalovenko, this is not an ordinary kindergarten, but a stage of education with its own program. Children play, but at the same time learn to be independent, to listen to others, to work in a group and to name their emotions.
The classes include first exercises in reading, writing and counting, music, singing, physical activity and observation of nature. The children also engage in gardening - they plant and grow tomatoes or peppers. Part of the training is organized so that the child can see, touch and do something on their own.
In the schoolyard there is a “friendship bench“, where a child who feels lonely can sit. According to Yalovenko, however, the bench sometimes also becomes a place of punishment. If students shout, push each other or do not listen to the teachers, they can be sent to sit there. Another punishment described is for the child to put his head in his hands and be silent.
“The child should already understand the rules of the group and comply with them“, says Yalovenko.When behavior causes persistent problems, the school invites the parents for a conversation and may recommend additional support. Two of Yalovenko's three children visited a child psychologist once a week for a year. During the meetings, they built with a construction set, drew, modeled and made houses.
40 times the same sentence
In elementary school, which lasts five years, from first to fifth grade, a lot depends on the specific teacher. Yalovenko says that one of her sons often came home in a bad mood after the teacher tore pages out of his notebook for corrections.
As an additional assignment, the boy had to write the sentences "I don't laugh in class" or "I don't talk to my neighbor during class" 40 times.
Lunch is paid according to income
In the school described by Yalovenko, breakfast is not offered and children eat at home in the morning. Lunch is paid separately, and the price depends on the family's income. In Châteauroux, it is between 1.31 and 4.25 euros.
Parents declare every day whether their child will have lunch in the canteen or stay in the study room. The morning group starts at 7:30, and after school, children can stay until 6:30 p.m.
In many schools, Wednesday is a free day or classes are only until noon. In Yalovenko's family, this means additional organization, but it also allows for sports, music, a visit to the doctor, or a break.
As students get older, they take on more responsibilities. In college, they keep track of their schedules, homework, necessary notebooks, and tardiness. According to Yalovenko, this is how the French system gradually builds independence - starting with the rule not to jump into a puddle after the second warning.
Sources: shkola.obozrevatel.com