As much as I am saddened about the burns, I realize my deepest concerns revolve around everything but the sunburns.
Let me back up a bit and share what I experienced yesterday: after seeing the kids upon returning home from work, I immediately went to the school to speak with the principal. Her response centered around the the school inability to administer what they considered a prescription/medication (sunscreen) for liability reasons. And while I can sort of wrap my brain around this in theory, the practice of a blanket policy which clearly allows for students to be put in harm’s way is deeply flawed. Not only does a parent have to take an unrealistic (an un-intuitive) step by visiting a doctor for a “prescription” for an over-the-counter product, children are not allowed to carry it on their person and apply as needed. Had my children gone to school slathered in sunscreen (which they did not, it was raining), by noon – when the sun came out – they would have needed to reapply anyway. Something as simple as as sun hat might seem to bypass the prescription issue to some extent. Alas, hats are not allowed at school, even on field day.
My children indicated that several adults commented on their burns at school, including staff and other parents. One of my children remarked that their teacher used sunscreen in her presence and that it was “just for her.” So, is this an issue of passive, inactive supervision? Where is the collective awareness for student safety? If they were getting stung by bees, teachers would remove them. Staff need to be awake to possible threats or safety issues and be able to take action. Prolonged sun exposure leads to burns: either put sunscreen on or, at the very least, remove the child from the sun. A simple call would have brought me to that school in minutes to assist my kids.
Common sense missing + fear of being sued = my kids pay the price. Not okay.
EDITED TO ADD: a friend just posted to my facebook page that it would cost her about $110 in a doctor’s visit to get the required prescription for sunscreen. Incredible.
Edited at 10:20 PM to add: Thank you for your comments of support and criticism. I will address the questions and concerns tomorrow. For now, I will turn off commenting and encourage you to contact me directly should you feel compelled to do so -
Edited to add an update for those of you with further questions: http://lifephotographed.com/2012/06/your-questions-about-our-story-answered/
[...] me explain: almost as soon as the girls came home with second-degree burns from a school field day, I started getting product review offers and a few offers from companies wanting to use our story [...]
[...] most of the day outside as part of school activities. The burns were so bad that their mother Jesse Michener rushed them to the hospital. Why didn’t their school apply sunscreen to the girls, one of [...]
[...] policies applied with the blind idiocy that only a litigation-shy bureaucracy could muster: two young students were severely sunburned on a school outing because schools treat sunscreen like an over-the-counter medication, which in turn is treated like [...]
[...] policies applied with the blind idiocy that only a litigation-shy bureaucracy could muster: two young students were severely sunburned on a school outing because schools treat sunscreen like an over-the-counter medication, which in turn is treated like [...]
[...] I got to breathe a little. For the first time since the 19th, life on planet Michener is starting to right itself. It’s strange how quickly the surreal [...]
[...] outraged by this policy, wrote a post on her photography blog expressing her concern and placing her girl’s sunburn photos at the top. Michener writes, “The [...]
[...] Check out the mothers blog Sorry, you need to have javascript running to see this poll. [...]
[...] the girls’ mother was so outraged that she wrote an angry post on her blog and sparked a nationwide debate. Since then, the school district has agreed to revise [...]
[...] wrote her own account of what happened on her blog, after explaining that she is particularly irritated because one of her daughters has a documented [...]
[...] the girls’ mother was so outraged that she wrote an angry post on her blog and sparked a nationwide debate. Since then, the school district has agreed to revise [...]
[...] wrote her own account of what happened on her blog, after explaining that she is particularly irritated because one of her daughters has a documented [...]
[...] for example, the experience of photographer Jess Michener. Two of his children were going on a school field trip. It was a sunny day, and his children are [...]
[...] that makes her especially susceptible to harm from the sun’s rays. The child, Michener wrote at her blog last Wednesday, “is starting to blister on her face. Both children have headaches, chills and [...]
[...] to the parent’s account, the principal of the Tacoma, Washington school cited liability reasons for the prevailing policy; [...]
[...] On Tuesday, sisters Violet, 11, and Zoe, 9, came home from school with severe sunburns — they were outside for 5 hours for field day and were not allowed to apply sunscreen because of a school policy, their mom posted on her blog. [...]
[...] On Tuesday, sisters Violet, 11, and Zoe, 9, came home from school with severe sunburns — they were outside for 5 hours for field day and were not allowed to apply sunscreen because of a school policy, their mom posted on her blog. [...]
I’m sorry to have to tell you this, but the blame lies solely on you as a parent. You know your daughter has a condition that causes her to burn easily. Frankly, she should be wearing sunscreen every day, not just on Field Day. Every child should wear sunscreen whenever they are outside – cloudy or sunny.
Aside from that, you should have made sure that your children had the appropriate physician authorization to apply sunscreen to themselves. You have mentioned something about a prescription numerous times. I’m not sure where you came up with that one, but it is not the school’s expectation. You simply need a form from your child’s doctor stating that it’s okay for them to apply over-the-counter sunscreen to themselves. This is something that doesn’t even require a doctor’s visit. You can simply go in and have the doctor fill out the form (which is available at your school’s office). Look at that – 5 minutes of your day and all it costs is a few bucks in gas money… not $110 for some unnecessary prescription sunscreen that your “friend” mentioned.
It clearly states in the handbook that any over-the-counter medication must have approval from the child’s doctor. But, the fact that you didn’t even send in any sunscreen with your children makes that point moot. Whether they had a permission slip or not, they had no sunscreen. You simply expected the school to be responsible for protecting your children’s skin while they were outside.
I’d also like to point out that the handbook states that children ARE allowed to wear hats outside. It’s actually #9 under the Dress Code. Did you even send hats to school with your children? Wait. Did you even read the handbook?
It seems to me that you are simply looking for someone to blame for your mistake. I’d be pissed too if my child had a sunburn at all, let alone one that horrible. But, I’d be mad at myself – not everyone else who isn’t responsible for making sure my child is wearing sunscreen. Sunscreen that I didn’t even send with them to school. (Oops!)
You even questioned why the school didn’t call you to have you come in to apply sunscreen to your children. My question for you is – why didn’t you go in on your own and make sure they had it on? My guess is apathy. Laziness, maybe? You’ve made it clear you haven’t read your school’s handbook, you don’t protect your children’s skin – even the child who has a condition making her sensitive to the sun, you haven’t attempted to get a permission slip from their doctor allowing them to apply sunscreen to themselves, and you didn’t bother trying to go to the school to apply it yourself, even though you knew they’d be outside all day. What does that say? There’s a lot lacking on YOUR part. Your part as an adult, and as a parent.
This is not the school’s fault. It’s yours. You have to be responsible and proactive as a parent. Sure, it was the first Field Day. But, was this really the first time your kids were outside playing all afternoon? You should know better.
P.S. Read your handbook and learn a thing or two. Look – it’s online. Google is an amazing tool.
http://www.tacoma.k12.wa.us/sites/schools/PtDefiance/Documents/Student%20handbook-%20point%20d%2011-12.pdf
you should have put sun screen on them prior to being outside for 5 hours rain or shine they can get burnt it is absolutely not ok for the school to put sun screen on them without a doctors note, it is not the schools fault that you chose not to put sun screen on your children prior to leaving.
What a great school! Letting kids burn in the sun. The teachers know of a medical problem that will be affected in the sun and neglect to address “Hey these kids have sunburns maybe we should take them inside or call their mother to put on sunscreen” The fact that the school nurse doesn’t have a supply of sunscreen to give kids who are getting sunburns is stupid. I would recomend telling the teacher “my kids have sensitive skin Here is some sunscreen have them apply it before they go outside.”
Hi, everyone. Thanks for your comments. I’ve done my best to address your questions in a new post. I wish I could sit down and have a conversation with each of you because I truly believe that we all have the kids’ best interests at heart. Thanks for contributing to the dialogue.
http://lifephotographed.com/2012/06/your-questions-about-our-story-answered/
Sometimes the government talks out of both sides of their hat. First the tell you need to apply sunscreen every two hours and then they say teachers can apply it to their students, that is so stupid.
This is a old family cure that I learned from my grandma, use vinegar on your skin when you have a burn (unless of course it’s a 2nd or 3rd degree burn). The vinegar is soothing, you may smell like a pickle, but it takes the sting away. In the morning take a coolish shower apply a good body cream and you will feel so much better. Tylenol helps also.
It makes me sick to think that teachers do NOT have the child’s best interest. My daughter also was on a 504 plan (I know home educate). I can not believe the indifference that teachers now show. They don’t care. It’s all about having summer vacations. (Ok maybe not for all, but I’m venting). Anyhow, I’m sorry your girls were burnt at school. That is something that should never happen and I do not put any blame on you because even if you did put the sunscreen on them – it will have to be reapplied by the time Field Day would have started. Shame on teachers nowadays! This is the main reason I know home educate.
First I’ll say that I’m sorry your kiddos are burnt. It stinks that that happened. However, as a teacher, after reading comments from other readers, I had to put in my 2 cents. It seems as though some of the commenters feel that “all” teachers lack common sense. I think that is extremely offensive, to say the least. Yes, I know that there are some teachers that are not good at what they do. Yes, I know that our country’s education system is very broken. But you know what? There are a lot of teachers out there that would go to the ends of the earth for their students. I know that I would give my own life for mine. In the short amount of time that I’ve been in the schools, I have seen beautiful and amazing things happen. I have seen a little boy who struggled with math finally count by tens to 100. I’ve never seen bigger smile then the one he left with that day. I’ve seen a little girl who came to this country speaking NO English whatsoever learn to carry on a fluent conversation in a matter of months. And you know what I’ve seen the most? Caring, compassionate teachers that truly love children. To make a blanket statement, saying that “all” teachers are “uncaring” or lack common sense, is extremely unfair.
Just writing to backup @Rhea’s comments. I too live in Australia and schools here are strictly ‘no hat, no play’ and there is always sunscreen available for the kids.
BTW sunscreen is only effective for a limited period of time so to those people blaming the parent I’d suggest you need to reread his post. He states that it was raining in the morning and that the kids weren’t outside until lunchtime. Even if he’d loaded them up with sunscreen when he dropped them at school it would still have been ineffective by lunchtime. Is he supposed to return to the school every three hours to reapply or does the school have a duty of care to his children when they’re onsite?
Get a prescription? How about get some common sense.
You should go to attorney and sue the teacher!!!!!!!!!!!!
Right now!!!
We have had a similary problem with our school. Ever since the year my fair skinned, blue eyed son came home sunburned from field day, he has been mysteriously sick on that day and any others when they planned extended outdoor activities. Administrators don’t seem to be able to get it through their heads that the ozone layer isn’t what it used to be. They utterly fail to comprehend the danger.
That is just plan dumb not letting them have some sunscreen.
I am an elementary teacher and my school also conducts an annual field day. Each year, parents are asked, via students’ homework sheets, to send in a bottle of sunscreen, a bottle of water, and a hat (the hat is optional). The students are instructed to apply their own sunscreen. I have NEVER had a student fail to bring in sunscreen and none of my students have ever developed a sunburn during the field days. Have you sent your school’s nurse a container of sunscreen for your daughters? If not, I strongly suggest you do, in case something like this happens again, so that your children can be protected from the sun.
I completely empathize. Schools are only about liability now, but it is very obvious that they should have been pulled from the sun at the very least.
In Australia you are required to bring a hat. In both primary school (grades 1-7) and high school (8-12) you are not allowed out onto the playgrounds or fields without one. Some schools even require ‘sun-smart’ hats that have flaps to cover your ears and the back of your neck. And every primary school I ever went to had a bottle of sunscreen by the front door of every class. Like someone mentioned in an earlier comment this should be about the likely hood of danger. Is a kid more likely to have an allergic reaction to sunscreen that had never previously been noticed, or fry in the sun and get serious burns? Come on people, it’s common sense.
Did you not see that it was sunny outside? Did you not know that your children were outside for field day?? It is very easy to blame teachers and the school but it seems as though you need to take a little bit of responsibility for yourself! I am so disgusted with parents constantly blaming the school for their own negligence…
My question is why didn’t YOU apply the sunscreen your your own child? Do you actually think teachers have time to apply sunscreen to 30+ kids? Just wondering.
The only place where no blame should rest is on the kids. A child should not be left to try to oppose or inform school authorities on a matter like this.
That being said, the school already knew about the condition of the child with the medical issue. The 504 Plan should preempt the prescription requirement.
I hear so many friends talking about how their children’s 504 plans are ignored by teachers. I sometimes think schools do these as a formality to get the federal money for the number of ‘special needs’ kids they have in their school. This is a legal document…teachers don’t have the option to disregard the 504.
At the same time, if I knew my child would be outside all afternoon on a summer day, I would talk to the school about a hat and sunscreen and if the school wouldn’t allow those things, I’d keep my child home and dare them to penalize my child for missing that day. The bottom line is, while the school is responsible, no one else will care for your child the way you will because no one else loves your child like you do.
As a fairskinned blond myself, I can say that this is very severe and I’ve had 2nd degree burns from sunburn. I am 55 years old and now am paying for my sunburns as a teen. I have had blisters on my shoulders, passed out from too much sun and even thrown up from heat stroke. Shame on that teacher! She should know better!
I have had moles and sun damaged skin removed and lucky one was only precancerous. I’ve had a friend who died very young from skin cancer.
Back then in the 70′s, we had the ozone, and we still burned. That [ozone] is now gone and any sunburn no matter how light or severe is dangerous. I hope your daughters heal soon and in their future have no problems from todays field day.
Well just wanted to speak my peace about that teacher, she has no excuse!!! None!
Thanks for listening,
Donna
Your babies made the Yahoo-Shine News articles this afternoon—I just want to send you, Violet and Zoe my thoughts and positive vibes as they recover from the burns.
Just saw your story on Yahoo and I am outraged! The rules in schools nowadays are getting ridiculous.
Balme school, blame teacher, blame principle and take NO responsibily as a parent. Sorry, you are at fault. If your kids burn, send them to school in clothing that provides sun protection. PARENT FAIL!!!
my beautiful daughter is “Zoe” too!! a strawberry blonde ……..
I am so sorry to see your babies burned. My kids are so pale they are transparent, thanks to genes and my insistence on sunscreen. Up till this year field day included a bottle of sunscreen with their name on it. This year I received a nicely worded letter stating that since the bottle said “keep out of reach of children” it was no longer allowed to be brought to school. Keep in mind my four kids (17,14,8,6) KNOW how to throughly and safely apply sunscreen. We go through bottles a week this time of year. I had to apply it at 7am and leave work early to REAPPLY at lunch. The kids still came home with pink cheeks and shoulders. I say use the school nurse and line up the kids! 30 seconds per kids with a supervised helper is INCREASING their chances of not getting skin cancer down the road. I was so glad to hear your story. Maybe now “gvmt” won’t put their sticky hands in parents choices….i wish.
Best of luck to your beautiful kids! Keep slathering it on!
Veronica Reed
I have a question/ concern here. Did the poor things go back to that same school? Did you actually ALLOW the gilrs to go back to a place that you declared was unfit “…teachers are not able to make good decisions about kids safety,” is exactly what YOU said.
If you really feel this way but continue to send your children to a place where you knows they don’t “make good decisions about kids safety”, you should be charged with child neglect for allowing them to be under the care of adults who don’t “make goos decisions about kids safety.”
Responsible people here are right. The mother here knew about her daughter’s condition and sent her unprotected anyway? This girl couldn’t go to the bathroom and take her purse that would have had some lotion (just in case-I mean if she has a condition, most parents would prepare for the emergencies)
I understand an accident but you knew. Parents like this just remind me of people who want to just argue and stir up drama trying to blame other adults for the lack of upbringing of their child.
I don’t mean to sound harsh but maybe we as parents need to step up our responsibilities here instead of tossing them off to someone else.
why wouldn’t you have put sunscreen on them even if it was going to stay cloudy all day? It’s been common knowledge for years that the sun doesn’t have to be out to get burned- even in Tacoma.I would think with a child with Albinism you would ALWAYS err on the side of caution rather than put her health and safety in the hands of someone else. Was she dressed in long sleeves? Did you send along a hat? It seems too easy to blame the school staff for something that was really your responsibility. If they got run over in a crosswalk, it wouldn’t matter much that they had the right of way. Keeping them safe in the first place should be the priority. Intuitive or not, if getting a “prescription” for sunscreen is what it takes for the school to apply it then that’s what you do. Ask for it at the regular pediatrician’s visit if a special trip is too expensive. And how could that possibly not be addressed in the 504 plan? That’s like an asthmatic child’s plan not including discussion of an inhaler. I think the “collective awareness of student safety” starts with you, who cares about them more than you do? I hope they heal quickly and you can all put this painful experience behind you.
Knowing your daughter has a form of albinism it is your responsibility to make sure she wears appropriate sunblock. In my opinion she should be made to wear sunblock every single day.
Very disapointing that the school does not assume responsibility and send them in. I remember when I was 10 I was being treated with chemotherapy and we had sports and where outside for maybe an hour, my mum told the teacher that I wasn’t allowed outside in the direct sun (shade was fine) however I was still allowed out, I had big blisters on my shoulders and now 14 years later they are brown specks of freckles all over. If I do end up with skin cancer I know who to blame in the end
I feel for the girls I know your pain, I am fair skinned too (irish & norwegian) so I burn easy. I learned a trick a couple of years ago when I had sunburn, I pass this on to all my fair skin friends. Witchhazel works wonders!!!! I apply it whenever I get sunburned, it takes the sting away & helps reduce the redness. You can apply straight on the skin or use paper towel. I usually keep applying for about an hour straight for real bad sunburn. I have gone to bed looking like a lobster & wake up with a tan. I also use Palmers Coco Butter lotion too after I am done with witchhazel. I have discovered less blisters & peeling using this treatment. I hope the girls feel better.
With your daughter having an issue with albinism, the teachers should already be aware that TOO much sun would not be good for your daughter.. they should have KNOWN to sit her out in the shade more, or bring her into the school, but 5 HOURS? she could have gotten sun stroke, or sun poisoning ..
It’s funny how the “LAW” says that the school is not allowed to apply sunscreen yet SUNBURN and too much sun can lead to Cancer? where is the balance in that? They are trying to protect the kids from harmful allergies yet getting TOASTED in the sun is OK?
Being in the sun is too much for ANYONE more than 2 hours nevermind 5 hours.. that is INSANE.. shame on the school system
It amazes me that we are lagging so far behind other countries in terms of sun protection policies in schools. In Australia and some South African schools sun hats are compulsory.
I can understand why a kid would need special arrangements to take cough syrup etc to school…but sunscreen? Is the world going nuts?
When we sent our child to school with a hat (in Florida were it should be mandatory) she was teased mercilessly.
Somewhere along the way laws have overcome common sense.
Here in New Zealand – at most pre-schools and primary schools hats outside are required during summer – part of the uniform, if the school has a uniform, otherwise have to meet shade specification (shade face and back of neck) and sun-screen is applied to kids if they will be out in the sun for more than about 20 minutes.
You have to get an exemption if you’re allergic to sunscreen, and will be required to wear hat and long sleeves in that case.
We are really aware of the risk of skin cancer from sunburn – the earlier you get burned, the greater your lifelong risk is. [This is medical fact, not popular perception] And melanoma is a significant killer here in the southern hemisphere.
As someone from Australia said, we have the “slip, slop, slap, wrap” message drummed into us [Slip on a shirt, slop on sunscreen, slap on a hat, wrap on some sunglasses]
I have to say, that regardless of the sunscreen issues, if adults at the school *noticed* and *commented* on the sunburn, then they were negligent in not sending the kids out of the sun (if there were no sun-protection measures that they were permitted to take)
I hope a Lawyer gets in touch with you and you sue the hell out of the Principle in question. That’s the only way this madness will ever cease.
Sunhats are prohibited? And a prescription required for sunscreen? What kind of madness is this?! Perhaps a doctor could “prescribe” a sunhat and a long-sleeved shirt for a hot and sunny day…
The Australians know all about the sun – slip, slop, slap (slip on a shirt, slop on the sunscreen, slap on a hat … or risk skin cancer in later life). When they were younger, my children’s schools (in the UK) *required* sunhats in the summer.
Several adults commented on their burns and did nothing about it? At the very least, someone could have the basic common sense to put the poor children in the shade when they noticed that they were suffering.
@Daniel, did you not read the post? The school does not allow students to carry and apply sunscreen for themselves. Hats are not allowed at school, even on field day. Your statements of blame are wrong and insensitive.
Regardless of whether the parent forgot to put sunscreen on their kiddo, the school has a responsibility to watch out for the kids too. If they saw that a child was getting burnt, some action needed to be taken. In this case, their fear of liability and being sued, could actually open them up to an even bigger case- at the very least the school should be responsible for drs bills. Or allowing students to apply sunscreen. Seems simple enough to me.
I’m sorry that happened to your kids! That seems just ridiculous to me!
That is outrageous, bordering on criminal. I have had a 2nd degree sunburn and they are pure agony. I am so sorry your kids have to go through it.
I believe if I were you, I would take the pictures of your kids and the doctor’s reports to the school board and make a complaint. I’d probably offer to sue if they felt that would help them reach a sensible conclusion – not that I would sue, but that s-word sure makes people sit up and take notice. Their current policy is painfully, obviously broken.
Best wishes to your family for speedy recovery and satisfactory conclusion.
We had a similar incident at my son’s school, except the activity was a Talent Show. I (and other parents) assumed it would be held in the gym. Instead it was held outdoors during a sunny afternoon in Southern California.
My son is also fair and always uses sunscreen and wears a hat outdoors. Not just to avoid the pain of a sunburn but to prevent skin cancer. My husband has had numerous basal cell carcinomas removed. My father-in-law has had both basal cell and squamous cell cancers removed, one of which required a skin graft. And my father is currently battling metastatic melanoma.
The Skin Cancer Foundation states that “one or more blistering sunburns in childhood or adolescence more than double a person’s chances of developing melanoma later in life” and “a person’s risk for melanoma doubles if he or she has had more than five sunburns at any age” (http://www.skincancer.org/skin-cancer-information/skin-cancer-facts)
It infuriates me that the school would rather put the entire school body at a real, documented increased risk for future, potentially deadly melanoma skin cancer than take an infinitely small chance that a kid *might* have an allergy they don’t know about. (Kristie, I understand your situation is different, and agree that adults need to respect when kids say they have an allergy. Allowing kids to participate in protecting themselves helps everyone!)
Another Lenore Skenazy FreeRange Kids poster here.
Shame on those of you blaming the mother. That is what is wrong with society, people blaming parents for everything. It seems more “hip” to say that what’s wrong with our society is parents not doing their job. No, parents have always done their job much the same, warts & all–the difference is people have become judgmental & nasty towards parents who dare to be imperfect for 1 millisecond.
I didn’t even have to read this (but I did) before it occurred to me–had the parent applied the sunscreen ahead of time, it would’ve worn off by the time of the trip anyway. As for alternative clothing, what if the child lost it? Or, even more likely, what if she had put it on? You know what would’ve happened? Some of you meddling goody-two-shoes types would’ve been screaming “look at that poor child, it’s 95′F out here and her stupid mother made her wear that hot shirt! Poor child is probably burning up in that thing.”
She’s darned if she does one thing, and darned still if she does the other one–thanks to goody-two-shoes such as those of you criticizing her and standing up for stupid insurance company butt-kissing policies. Screw the stupid policies. A policy that says you can’t apply sunscreen to a child is stupid–and yes, I’m including the possibility allergies could exist. Anybody with a brain bigger than a pellet knows that life is about choices and odds, nothing is 100% and so you go with the most likely scenario. In the absence of knowing the specifics of a particular child, which is more likely in this case–that they will get an allergic reaction to sunscreen, or that they’ll burn without it? Obviously, #2, so put the sunscreen on.
And quit blaming parents for being, at worst, human. You could’ve easily done the same thing yourself, and if you say otherwise, you’re a liar.
LRH
Sorry this happened. However, does the 504 plan state special accommodations regarding sun or prolonged exposure? Most doctor offices would accept a phone call to obtain a form granting permission for sunblock to be applied. This woud help those that are concerned about the cost of visiting the doctor. If a child has albinism, I am certain the doctor would even fax a form to the school granting permission! I do not feel the school entirely to blame here. Even on an overcast day, people can still be sunburned and I would imagine a child with albinism would be even more sensitive. Imagine the reaction if a teacher would apply sunblock to a child without permission! Not to mtnion, what if the child had an allergic reaction to it. Then it would be a totally different scenerio here-it wouldn’t be about the burn anymore. As a parent myself, I feel WE need to take necessary precautions when we are very aware of our child’s needs and sensitivities. We need to stop passing blame. Were you not aware that it was field day and your child would be exposed to the sun or outdoors for a prolonged period of time? Had you talked with principal and nurse to grant special accomodations for child to perhaps wear a hat when outdoors? No disrespect here but these frivilous “lawsuits” are sickening.
Schools are beyond crazy with their stupid rules! I know this isn’t the same, but this Spring my 4 year old had chapped lips, so I sent him to pre-school with chapstick on and then put the chapstick in his cubby and instructed him to reapply every time he washed his hands (figured that would keep his lips moist all day). The teachers took the CHAPSTICK away! They said it is considered medicine and so they would have to dispense it to him, but first they would need a doctor’s note! I repeat…my 4 year old would need a doctor’s note for applying chapstick to his chapped lips.
They do however apply sunscreen (they spend a lot of time outside). Each child has to send in a bottle with their name on it, and they know to only use that bottle. I figured it was a money issue, but maybe it was to protect kids from allergies, etc. But the sunscreen did not require a doctor’s note.
This is absolutely horrendous. I’m so sorry. Thank you for making such an articulate case for common sense and a re-examination of where our liability and fear culture has gotten us. Lenore Skenazy posted this on her blog Free-Range kids (that’s how I found it). I hope it gets some attention. It’s just gotten so warped. I can’t even fathom watching children get burned like that and feeling that it was too “dangerous” (from a legal standpoint) to apply sunscreen, or, like you say, at least get them out of the sun.
I don’t agree with those who would blame you. This is ridiculous. (I had wondered about this b/c I sent sunscreen in with my son in the beginning of the year, to put in his cubby. It got sent home, and occasionally we’re told to apply it at home. I guess this is all consistent with the new policy. Outrageous.)
I am so appalled by the inability of anyone at that school to use common sense or compassion when faced with ANYTHING having to do with children. It really is a willful decision to ignore the facts in front of them and “follow orders.” We’ve seen where this can lead! I’m going to post about this too (at freerangekids.com). Just infuriating. L.
I have had the opposite problem. I have had to provide notes so that my child did not have sunscreen applied by well meaning adults that didn’t believe her when she told them about her allergy. She has a severe reaction to sunscreen.
I am fair skinned & have had blistering sunburns. I am sorry your children know this pain too. : (
Although I’m not a lawyer, “liability release” forms do not have much value in an actual court case, because generally speaking, you can’t sign away your right to sue. If that were the case, you’d be signing several every day, and there wouldn’t be any lawsuits. The only value they might have is proof that you knew that your child would be participating in some activity, so you couldn’t say later that you didn’t know the class would be on a field trip.
Your results may vary
Did you know it was field day and are you aware of school policies? If so, you should have at least called the school and requested your children be kept out of the sun or gone to the school and applied the sunscreen yourself. Stop blaming the school in a blanket manner – the school has to follow the policies of the district. As a parent you have some responsibility to know what the rules/policies are and how to protect your children especially so in the light of the albinoism diagnosis.
Policies are usually developed by the school committee and that committe is an ELECTED body.
If a teacher had applied sunscreen to your child and they had an allergic reaction – how would you feel then??
I am very sorry that your kids got very bad sun burns yesterday. However, I find it interesting that YOU and ZOE are aware of her skin condition, yet, knowing that she was going on a field trip you neglected to apply any sunscreen, and you have failed to in the past get the doctors note for the prescription (I do understand the costs associated with this) so that Zoe can apply sunscreen herself at school. My best friend growing up had the same skin condition, and his mom applied sunscreen to him every morning, and he had a doctors note so that he could apply it at school. Not to mention he always had a hat, long sleeve shirt (if not wearing one) and long pants(if he was wearing shorts)in his locker or backpack in case he forgot his sunscreen. While those sunburns look very bad, they were also preventative by you as the parent(no hat, and tank top burns in the pictures you posted). While I agree the policy needs to be changed/updated, don’t go blaming the school district for YOUR lack of preparedness (prescription for sunscreen) and lack of action(apply sunscreen in the AM, and give her a hat, and a shirt that will cover her shoulders) for Zoe’s sunburns.
I am so, so sorry about this!
My younger son got a bad sunburn as an infant, which I guess is why I’m always compelled to comment on sunburn posts! We were up at Mt.Rainier, and foolishly forgot about the thin air. It was overcast, and we were more worried about keeping him warm than anything else. I still feel bad about it.
I had to sign a liability release for field day this year, which I thought was sort of funny-in a sad way. What I don’t understand is why any of the adults didn’t call you, or at least insist your children get out of the sun. Please do post if there is any more follow up on this.
Hugs (Very gentle, virtual ones) to your kiddos.
Interesting that the rationale for all this stupidity is a concern for liability. Sending an entire school of sunburned children home to irate parents doesn’t sound like a safer plan to me, particularly if you prioritize legal exposure over the safety of little human beings.