To think that infant school pupils don't need special cover up knickers?

[DrSeuss]

A local FB seller is flogging gingham over knickers to wear with school summer dresses. Just in case a child of five should do a cartwheel and someone should see her underwear for a brief moment, presumably? My daughter is five. While I would not wish her to run around showing her Frozen themed undies to the world all day, I have no wish to teach her that she must cover herself at all times. Having taught as a peripatetic in primary schools, I always walked a fine line between wishing they could sit on a carpet without flashing me their pants and thinking that their innocence and lack of inhibitions were to be held onto as long as possible since they would be sexualised soon enough.
Would any of you want to buy the chequered modesty preservers?

I never went to school without bike shorts or boxers under my uniform.

You could always send her to school in a skort? They were huge when I was growing up and I loved them.

I think gingham knickers is a bit ludicrous because they're so decorative. However, because girl underwear looks nothing like boy underwear, I do tell my kids they probably want to wear skorts/cycle shorts/short cut off leggings if they're going to spend all playtime hanging upside down from a rope bridge and doing cartwheels (and they are, and they do). The reason is that the difference in girls' knickers is something small boys notice and talk about. They see each other in swimsuits and I don't think this is about sexualising small children, it's just about feeling comfortable doing everything they want to do, being completely active, without worrying about idiot kids pointing at their knickers.

My old primary school's uniform policy has changed- girls can now wear polo shirts and shorts in the summer like the boys do. We all wore the gingham/stripy dresses when I was there. I don't remember anyone doing cartwheels or anything when I was there. I don't know if anyone wore shorts underneath either. I do like wearing cycling shorts underneath dresses/skirts but that's mainly due to thigh chafing.
I don't really have a firm opinion on the whole uniform debate though. I can see the pros and cons of both.

When I was at school we wore these dresses and we weren't allowed to do cartwheels and hand stands because our knickers would show.. or unfortunately for the girl who's parent forgot to put her knickers on...

So I would have loved these. Just because it should be fine to show them doesn't mean kids are comfortable doing so. I wasn't.

or unfortunately for the girl who's parent forgot to put her knickers on...

Once they're at school don't they put their own knickers on?

I helped DD get dressed in reception/yr1 - she hated changing them or taking them off. Little girl in dds school hated wearing knickers and would take them off when mother wasn't looking and went commando to school a couple of times.

That little girl was me . It was in year 2 I think. I think what had happened is my mum just forgot to give them to me to put on one morning so I thought nothing of it and didn't mention it. What did happen was she came into school looking very flustered and took me into the toilets to put them on, but by that point I'd already shown half the class my bits.

So basically you cover up a pair of knickers with another pair of... Well... Knickers only they match the dress.

What a waste of time. Girls will be embarrassed soon enough to flash their knickers during cartwheels why speed that up? It's only is dirty minded adults who seem to think seeing knickers is such a bad thing and that message hasn't crossed to 30something males who still wear their trousers at half mast

I have to put a vote I'm for the m&s seam.free girls shorts. pants that actually do their job and are comfy.

of course dd still prefers to have shorts on top but I really rate those as a comfy functional set of pants

We were in the play park the other day. A little girl of about 6 was climbing a wall in a summery skirt. I heard her dad say 'you need to get down, you're not dressed appropriately for that, everyone will see your knickers.' Made me really sad and I felt for the girl, she was with a younger brother and couldn't do what he was doing as dad said it was inappropriate.

GreysAnalogy- same thing happened to me age 4ish. Forgot my knickers went to school without- mortified.

My daughter spends a lot of breaktime upside down, at one point the school made her wear her PE skort as her knickers were constantly visible. I think they then realised this was only drawing attention to Phee being upside down and she's something if an exhibitionist anyway. She now has the choice to skort or not to skort. She chooses not.

Disagree with the poster upthread about girls boxers- awful things. Rub in all the wrong places.

You could use girl pants as strainer, whilst camping under boy pants.

exactly

I bought DD a pack of 3 m&s seam free shorts before school changed the policy from just shorts under dresses to cycling shorts so DD will be wearing the buggers. The uniform gets more proscriptive each yr at dds school grrrr.

I can't believe this is a thing. How very very sad!

Primary school age children should not be encouraged to protect their modesty! In a safe environment (e.g. school, with friends etc) they should be able to run around however they like. To me it's a really sad sign of the sexualisation of children way to early.
Shame on anyone who encourage it! Girls have nothing to be ashamed of if they innocently show their pants while wearing a dress. IMO. Don't encourage them to cover up because boys (peers) might see!
Shame on who turns a blind eye to any firm of bullying/ being picked on for showing their pants when doing handstands! Tackle the problem of the boys picking on them instead!

Now that you mention it- my daughter couldn't give a stuff who sees her knickers. Her twin brother, who now only wears boxers, will refuse to dress if given pants, would die of shame if they were seen. It can't only be girls that care about it...

HT at DDs school has asked the girls to wear their PE shorts underneath dresses if doing cartwheels at play time. Saves any embarrassment I suppose

My DD is 7 and does not want to show her knickers to all and sundry. She wasn't bother in reception but she's almost 8 and developing, so we found M&S playsuits in the same material as the school dresses. Problem solved! Our school allows all children to wear school shorts too, so there's really not an issue (not that there would be if they showed their knickers, but once they become self conscious (can't be avoided due to peer pressure and body awareness)

Not even 8 and 'developing'? Does that happen often?

Just throw this cat amongst the pigeons but Uniform at Primary School is not compulsory as much as the schools would like us to think it is.

Oh I know that Hairy which is why I'm fucking seething as DD has told me she will get told off for not wearing the right kit.

I find it really depressing. I think it does two overtly negative things - it both sexualises little girls (and their underwear is already covering them up) and it restricts them, or rather makes them conscious of their need to be 'modest'. I don't remember being traumatised by handstands and so on in primary school and no one ever thought about wearing shorts under them. And the name 'modesty shorts' is positively Puritan. We'll be making them wear leggings all the time next. And will girls be back to full length Victorian bathing suits, just so, you know, they stay in their proper modest place?

We had to wear huge thick school uniform knickers at my (private) primary school they were horribly hot and uncomfortable

I like the idea of play suits /culottes / shorts for girls so they just don't have to worry about it. double underwear sounds horribly hot and uncomfortable

Not leggings, too tight.

Bloomers.

I imagine DD wouldn't be allowed the playsuit and I'm not keen as she always does a wee last minute. as shirts have to be knee length at dds school. This is a village primary btw.

Shorts. Bloody autocorrect.