How do I address this without causing waves? Sorry, long.

My daughter is in K and before school my husband and I tried hard to create a balance when it comes to candy. I don't want her to feel deprived but I also don't want her to be eating junk all the time and addicted to sugar. We are very focused on health in my house.

I think we did a good job because she was not obsessed with candy and people often made comments about how she didn't care so much about candy and would rather have little toys. We also bought candy that didn't have artificial dyes, etc.

Now that she is in K, the teachers give her candy frequently as a reward for good bahavior and I am not happy about it. I have never heard of schools giving so much candy as a reward before and have spoken with friends that say this is not done in their school.

They receive a sticker at the end of the day if they are good and at the end of the week if they get a certain number of stickers they can choose a little toy or candy as a reward. I would rather they not have candy rewards but once a week isn't so bad but it's not just this. They give her candy at other times for good behavior. Friday they gave her a lollipop in music class because she was good, then she had twizzlers in class after they made shapes with them and then she picked a candy at the end of the day for her good behavior during the week.

She is now asking me for candy
constantly and acts like a little drug addict if I say no, crying and flipping out.

I really don't want them giving her all this crap in school but how do I address this with the teacher without making waves? I like the teacher and don't want her to feel insulted. I also don't want my daughter to feel left out if all the other kids are eating candy and she isn't.

Message edited 10/22/2016 11:57:55 AM.

How do I address this without causing waves? Sorry, long.

They should not be giving candy as a reward, period (except if you are in a special ed class - maybe). Tell your teacher that you would prefer no food treats are given as rewards. If she does not comply then contact the principal. If that does not work then check if your district has a wellness committee and they will put a stop to that immediately.


I have no problem with treats at parties because that is exactly what it is, a treat but to get it constantly throughout the week is no ok. The teachers can purchase a whole box of "crap" from Oriental Trading to give out as prizes if they so choose. Our district gives out golden tickets to the kids or kindness links if they do something reward worthy and it goes on the bulletin boards in the hallways. For the behavior rewards they give them fake money and at the end of the week they "purchase" a prize, never food.

How do I address this without causing waves? Sorry, long.

I don't have advice on how to approach the teacher, but I agree that candy shouldn't be given as a reward. DS' teacher does the same as pp - they get tickets for good behavior, doing homework, etc, and at the end of the week they can trade it in for a cheap toy (or a homework pass).

DS has food allergies so I have an "easy out" for complaining about it to the teacher, but giving candy is not a way to promote healthy living and it has to start in the schools when they're young.

Re: How do I address this without causing waves? Sorry, long.

Wow. I have never heard of giving candy as a reward in school. My kids get stickers and after 10 they can pick a prize. They are in k too. My son came home with a mini slinky Friday and it was like he won the damn lottery. Lol. He was sooo happy and so proud he earned it.

I would just be honest with the teacher, not in a nasty way or anything. I would just say she is asking for a lot of candy at home now, is there a way we can switch the reward to stickers or a small toy?

How do I address this without causing waves? Sorry, long.

I'm actually surprised this happens as schools are so concerned with allergies, etc. I would definitely mention it to the teacher in a friendly way and see how that can help.

Re: How do I address this without causing waves? Sorry, long.

Surprised they are giving candy as a reward to K students. I would speak to the teacher and maybe even principal.

How do I address this without causing waves? Sorry, long.

My DS is in K. His teacher has a treasure chest they can pick from at the end of every day if they stay on a "green light" on the behavior chart. It is mostly tattoos, stickers, dollar store pencils, erasers, typical kid junk lol. But she does also put dum dum lollipops in there. My son doesn't like lollipops so he never chooses those, but we were at a birthday party today and a mom was complaining that her daughter comes home with a lollipop every day. I am surprised that teachers do this, especially teachers of the little ones in Pre-k & K. I would say something to the teacher. That sounds like a lot of junk food. My house is far from 100% organic, and my kids do get treats, but we are trying to promote overall healthy eating, and I would not be happy with what you are describing.

How do I address this without causing waves? Sorry, long.

I would reach out to her and let her know that your really appreciate the positive reinforcement at school. If I had some extra stickers, goody bag type cheapo toys I would ask her if I could donate them to give out as treats too. Maybe mention how your "teacher friend" does this and it was super helpful to her and your really not a candy family.

I'm really surprised that they even allow the teachers to do this. We have a strict no food/candy policy.

Re: How do I address this without causing waves? Sorry, long.

I am incredibly surprised to read this. I know it would be really frowned upon in my school district. I would reach out to the teacher to ask about the candy. Then I would bring it up to the principal as our district has a policy against these things. I would not be surprised if your district had a similar policy in place.