Collecting the wrong child from school

[Lance Jack]

I knocked on a door on Saturday morning. A boy of about six answered and said "Have you come to pick me up?" I said "No, I am the postman, here is a parcel" He looked a bit bemused, like he was suppose to go with me. As this was happening two small dogs where running round my feet as I was trying to back out the gate. Never see an adult.

 

[MarkF]

Why didn't the child ask who on earth this elderly man was?
At 6 years old I would have questioned it. I knew who my Grandads were.

That made me laugh, I had so many grandads as a kid, I could never keep track of who was actually my grandad.

 

[Sandra6]

How bizarre.
I'm not actually surprised that the child went with "grandad" tbh. It's the "power" of the teacher, when they tell a child to do something, they do it. We just generally trust them not to tell a child not to do something wreckless or stupid.
I'm not even that surprised the grandad didn't recognise the child if I'm honest, although it is worrying. I used to work in a nursery and a dad once came to pick his daughter up and went to carry the wrong child to the door, because she was wearing the same coat!
I would've thought the mistake would've been realised at the surgery though, when the child was asked what was wrong and she didn't know, perhaps.
I think the child's father is over reacting with his "did he do this, did he do that" approach, but I'd be fuming if my child was sent off with a stranger.
I was mad enough the other week when I called to collect my youngest from the after school club and was told her sister (11 year old sister!!) had already collected her. But atleast she wasn't a stranger.

 

[Sara_H]

How bizarre.
I'm not actually surprised that the child went with "grandad" tbh. It's the "power" of the teacher, when they tell a child to do something, they do it. We just generally trust them not to tell a child not to do something wreckless or stupid.
I'm not even that surprised the grandad didn't recognise the child if I'm honest, although it is worrying. I used to work in a nursery and a dad once came to pick his daughter up and went to carry the wrong child to the door, because she was wearing the same coat!
I would've thought the mistake would've been realised at the surgery though, when the child was asked what was wrong and she didn't know, perhaps.
I think the child's father is over reacting with his "did he do this, did he do that" approach, but I'd be fuming if my child was sent off with a stranger.
I was mad enough the other week when I called to collect my youngest from the after school club and was told her sister (11 year old sister!!) had already collected her. But atleast she wasn't a stranger.

Speaking as a paediatric nurse, it's not unusual for children that age to go completely mute when the doctor or nurse is trying to get info from them.

 

[Fnaar]

Speaking as a paediatric nurse

lynch her! lynch her!

1) That embarrassing feeling as a kid when you get the wrong person. I remember once coming out of church (before I went the way of Satan). I was about 8yrs old, I turned round, and pestered 'dad' to take us to the park, grabbing his hand and trying to pull him out of the church. He was showing uncharacteristic resistance. I looked up, only to realise it wasn't dad . Embarrassed!!!!

2) My parents lived for a while on a country lane, leading eventually to a hospital, but essentially in the middle of nowhere. I had got off the bus at the end of the lane, and was walking towards my parents' house.. It was pouring with rain. A car went past, and pulled up about 20 yrds in front. Mysterious hands pushed a bewildered boy of about 4yrs old out onto the path, and into the rain, and sped off. The kid was bawling his eyes out. I went to him, and made sure he was OK, and took his hand to walk him to the parents' house and call the cops (it was 1980s, no mobiles). I asked his name etc, as we walked along, and he told me his parents were in the car. After about 5 minutes, the car came back, pulled up, and a man (woman in back seat) told him to get in. The kid seemed OK with it, so I let him get in (if he hadn't been, I might have told them where to go). I asked the guy why they's pushed him out, and as he drove away, he simply shouted "Can't stand all that f**ck*ng crying". I took the reg number, and I phoned the police, explaining what happened. Never heard anything back at all, but I often hope(d) all worked out OK for that poor kid, with such stupid parents.

 

[Joey Shabadoo]

In a sorta related vein, when I was 16 I left my baby sister in her pram outside the butchers while I went inside. I then totally forgot about her and went home, leaving her still in the pram. It was about half an hour after I got back that my mum realised someone was missing and said "Where's your sister ?"

I raced back down and there she was, still in her pram but with about £8 in coins tucked in with her! Unfortunately, I wasn't allowed to take her out again so I didn't get the chance to supplement my pocket money that way.

 

[Sara_H]

lynch her! lynch her!

My OH's a paediatric nurse too, Does that makes us a paedo ring?

 

[threebikesmcginty]

In a sorta related vein, when I was 16 I left my baby sister in her pram outside the butchers while I went inside. I then totally forgot about her and went home, leaving her still in the pram.

Have you read the Just Willam story where they do exactly that? When they go back the kid's gone (taken home by one of the mum's friends), so William and his pals then all split up to find the pram and end up with 3 babies, William then tries to enter into a baby show, he's caught out when he says they have chops for breakfast and they've had gout and lumbago.

Well it was funny at the time...

 

[Globalti]

I once gave a very, er, argumentative woman colleague a lift into town at lunch time for some shopping. I got back to my car before her and was amused to see her come round the corner and jump briskly into an identical car parked two ahead of mine, turn to the driver and begin to instruct him to get moving, then her jaw drop in shock as she realised it wasn't me! How I laughed!

 

[Sara_H]

Have you read the Just Willam story where they do exactly that? When they go back the kid's gone (taken home by one of the mum's friends), so William and his pals then all split up to find the pram and end up with 3 babies, which William then tries to enter into a baby show, he's caught out when he says they have chops for breakfast and they've had gout and lumbago.

Well it was funny at the time...

I left my dog tied up outside the shop when I was about 11. Some kind soul brought her back a few hours later. We were in the front garden. Mum says "That dog looks like our Pepsi.........it IS OUR PEPSI!!!!".

 

[Julia9054]

Aged about 12, I had gone into town one Saturday afternoon when I spotted a frind from school. As you do when you are 12, I decided that the appropriate greeting was to run up and leap on her back - piggy back style. Imagine her terror and my complete horror when it turned out to be a complete stranger!

 

[Mad Doug Biker]

I left my dog tied up outside the shop when I was about 11. Some kind soul brought her back a few hours later. We were in the front garden. Mum says "That dog looks like our Pepsi.........it IS OUR PEPSI!!!!".

Cindy would NEVER let me do that, she'd make so much noise and fuss!

 

[Beebo]

I once gave a very, er, argumentative woman colleague a lift into town at lunch time for some shopping. I got back to my car before her and was amused to see her come round the corner and jump briskly into an identical car parked two ahead of mine, turn to the driver and begin to instruct him to get moving, then her jaw drop in shock as she realised it wasn't me! How I laughed!

I've done that. When I was about 9 or 10 I was being picked up by a friend's mum from an after school club, I saw what I thought was her red car, I opened the rear door and jumped in the back, only for the woman and teenage girl to just stare at me. Imagine the shame, I still go red thinking about it now.

 

[Saluki]

I once gave a very, er, argumentative woman colleague a lift into town at lunch time for some shopping. I got back to my car before her and was amused to see her come round the corner and jump briskly into an identical car parked two ahead of mine, turn to the driver and begin to instruct him to get moving, then her jaw drop in shock as she realised it wasn't me! How I laughed!

Why did you give an argumentative person a lift. An ex BFs Granny tried to boss me about in my own car and I told her to get out and walk. I stopped, turned the engine off and everything. Stroppy mare (not sure if the stroppy one was me or her on that day but I had had enough of her)

 

[mcshroom]

How bizarre.
I was mad enough the other week when I called to collect my youngest from the after school club and was told her sister (11 year old sister!!) had already collected her. But atleast she wasn't a stranger.

When I was 11 I used to routinely pick my younger sister up from school, as did quite a few of my mates their younger siblings. That wasn't that long ago.