Being a teacher is not easy. You have to wrangle a full classroom of students all day long, handle pressure from parents and the admins, and actually teach those young minds something in the process. Sadly, many teachers face terrible working conditions. In fact, according to one Australian survey, 80% of teachers experience bullying and harassment from students and parents.
Not every parent is a bully, but some say and do such out-of-pocket things that they need to be kept for posterity. Last year, teacher and creator @AmyThingGoes asked fellow teachers to share the most outrageous things parents have messaged them. And the teachers delivered: from ridiculous demands, entitled behavior, and straight-up disrespect, these parents did more than just make the teachers raise their eyebrows.
#21
“Can you buy pizza for the class for my daughter’s birthday and then I’ll reimburse you afterwards?” Yeahhh no
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34points
#23
"Please remove all sick children from your room for the next 2 weeks. We are going on a cruise and I don't want my child to be sick and ruin our vacation." When I told her no, I would not be targeting children based on their wellness, she went to the board.😅
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32points
#24
“My son came home without his limited edition Cinnamon Toast Crunch crocs and I’m telling the principal you stole and sold them”
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32points
#25
“Please do not talk about your sexuality, your students don’t need to know you have a wife.” After every teacher was talking about what they did for the weekend.. with their husbands.. and I was just explaining what I did with my daughter and wife..
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32points
#26
Had a senior with a 3 average in a class that’s a grad requirement. Mom asked if student could go back and do all the work for the entire semester (ended in 5 days). I laughed out loud, then said sure, if she can do 90 days worth of work in 5 days I’ll grade it. She got a 3.
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32points
#27
Went to my super bc they didn’t agree with the length of my maternity leave (50 school days, per my contract) & said it was “unprofessional” for me to get pregnant knowing I would be due during the school year & tried to speak at the school board meeting about it.
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32points
#28
“I really think you need to incorporate Spanish more into your class. It’s a disadvantage to those trying to learn” ma’am, I teach English. And we live in Puerto Rico.
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30points
#29
Went to a splash pad with students over the summer “please make sure my student has a life jacket as he cannot swim, make sure he doesn’t get too hot or cold, remind him to drink water and take breaks and don’t let him get water in his face.”
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30points
#30
I had a parent message BEYOND upset with me that I labeled their child as a BOY on their trimester assessment scores. BOY = Beginning Of Year
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30points
#31
Kid did a back flip in the cafeteria after being told not to so he owed 5 minutes of recess. Mom emailed saying we need to give him his 5 minutes back because he has ADHD and we wouldn’t ask a kid in a wheelchair to stand up, so we can’t expect him to not do backflips.
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30points
#32
Had a kid take a tumble during program and swallow her tooth. Two hours later she goes #2 and the parent asks me to go digging for it so she can put it under her pillow. EXCUSE ME?! I’m still heated and it’s been 3 years.
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30points
#33
1 parent asked me to CREATE and send out her child’s birthday party invitation and sent me all the information to include on it. The worse part was I did it, because it was my first year of teaching and I had not learned to say no yet.
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30points
#34
Special Ed teacher here: her daughter threw up and she asked me to smell it to make sure it was a “sick” smell.
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29points
#35
Emailed a parent about her child's increased behavior issues. Was told "he's performing experiments on you to prove you don't treat him fairly. When we gather the data we will go to the principal and let you know what we find"
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29points
#36
One of my parents asked me for a parent teacher conference on a Sunday….
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28points
#37
“She smells uncertainty, fear, and anxiety, so be prepared.”—this morning
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28points
#38
Got accused of teaching about “drag queens” in a lesson about Japanese kabuki. Women aren’t allowed to be kabuki actors. Lost that fight with admin
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28points
#39
"I need money for gas, otherwise (name) will not be attending school"
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26points
#40
“I realize she didn’t do any of the work. But why did she get a zero?”
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26points
