School is driving me absolutely batshit with lack of comms - what can I do.

[Queijo]

Yes this is about world book day 😂 but also they are notoriously horrible at communication and it’s sending me slightly mad.

It really is a lovely school, but we got an email last week on Friday saying all costumes needed to be non-fiction. V annoying as most had already purchased something considering it’s this week. I emailed, nicely, to say please could we have more time to organise things is money is involved? Teacher agreed yes, and that children can wear what they like.

Cue today with kids pouring out of class crying because a TA has said NO THEY MUST NOT WEAR such and such because it has to be NF. Obviously they hadn’t been informed of wear whatever dialogue.

This is not the only time, we’ve had school trip money requests 12 hours before it happens, 3 days notice of Halloween requirements, having to pay for someone to come into to school to talk about something with half a days notice.

I know they’re busy, but this is ongoing and annoying so many parents I know. What’s the best way to handle?

Most costumes will be for non fictional characters won't they?

Assuming it's a primary school then just send your kids in whatever they want to wear which has some kind of book connection. Life is too short to agonise about the finer details of a World Book Day costume.

Half of the time most people don't know who everyone is actually supposed to be anyway.

Write to the headteacher and list all the occasions the lack of communication has been a problem for you. Acknowledge you realise everyone is busy but that you're a busy person too and you need more notice for events and requests for money. Say that you know other parents who feel the same but you understand that you can't complain on their behalf. Keep it light and friendly but make your point.

What non fiction characters do they expect. I thought the point of WBD is that it’s a fictional character from a classic book, like Roald Dahl or whatever.

Our school was the same so a few mums got together and organised a PTA after realising the staff just didn't have the time to sort these things and everything was rushed.
It's much better now they take care of all the nice things, parties etc and help the school with plans for trips and themed days

You could go as pretty much anything except specific Disney princess type characters, Roald Dahl etc.

E.g. footballer, astronaut, scientist, vet, a magician, an animal, a country flag etc etc.

This isn’t the job of a PTFA.

OP communication is a two way process. Talk to them or email them politely and firmly to say how you feel.

You send your kid wearing whatever they want and forget stressing about the instructions and the comms.

This isn’t the job of a PTFA.

No, it isn't, it's more about fundraising. But the head always attended our primary PTA and the head of one secondary; the other it was the deputy. In all cases along with other teachers and we did raise such issues under AOB, or nabbed them on the way out. A decent head will be happy to 'take the temperature', as long as it's a general consensus and not just one parent having a moan.

Definitely write to the head setting out the examples you’ve given (dates and evidence) as calmly as possible. Request that a certain number of days notice is given. It’s a completely reasonable request so ask reasonably, not angrily, anf you’ll probably get somewhere.

i don’t understand the non fiction thing at all. That’s just weird!

I think if it really is as bad as you portray, then complain to the school, and give practical reasons why it is unacceptable. School trip money is hard for some parents to find and they are not likely to be forthcoming about financial matters, so as much notice as possible is important, for example.

Why would they be? They aren’t really even ‘characters’ if they are non-fiction. They’re just…people. Mostly I see fictional characters like Harry Potter etc.
I think WBD dressing up is a load of bollocks anyway (English teacher).

Maybe someone got it wrong and meant fiction?

Very bizarre request! Just nuts.

Surely the majority of popular children's books are fiction?!

Are you sure there isn’t an app you can sign up to?
Theu message quite a lot on there or have a Facebook page.

This has always been a problem but is worse since school staff are so stretched.

Do you have class reps? They can help share info.

I never knew what was going on and I was a teacher in the same school as my primary child! Poor kid.
Schools TRY, honestly, they do. Someone will have said in a meeting last week,
‘Isn’t it awful that supermarkets profit from world book day. How can we link it better to our curriculum?’
Someone else ‘We could say they all have to be non-fiction, then nobody has to spend anything, and the kids that want to wear their football kit can (as they will anyway).’
‘Great idea’
Usually, but not that day, someone will say,
’We can’t change it for this year, but let’s do that next year’.

World Book Day is really such a very small part of running a school, although a big worry for lots of children and families.

How do any of these represent world book day. Surely all the characters will be fictional characters as they have come out of a book, like Oliver Twist or Harry Potter or whoever.

It'll be easy enough to cite a book about a footballer, astronaut or whatever.

Find out who the parent governors are and raise the issue of communications with them.

Ours is the same, we usually get a text 2-3 days before a dressing up/charity day if we're lucky. This year they started inviting parents in on occasions for things like Mothers Day which is something they've never done before - we got a text last night inviting us in Friday morning.

They're generally just not a great school for communication - no app, no Twitter accounts, no pictures sent home, very limited opportunities to actually go into the school. We've only just got a PTA for the first time.

It's frustrating because mine were previously at a school which set a calendar for the year in September. They'd issue it then to cover all events. If a change needed to be made closer to the time then it was fine, because at least we had advance notice about "something" happening soon!

The non-fiction thing is ridiculous. If your child is going as Harry Potter, just say he is going as a book about HP.

Most costumes will be for non fictional characters won't they?

Eh? Have you got it the wrong way round?

I'm so glad our school doesn't do any of this shite. It's costly and stressful for parents. Ours says "come as a character, or come as yourself in cosy clothes that you would read in" cheap, free, no twatting about.

Totally the wrong way around!!!

What non fiction books come instantly into the head about footballers or astronauts???

I cant even think of one.

Unless all the kids turn up as David Beckham or something, has he had a book written about him at some point?