Children wearing jogging bottoms to school ...

[LittleMissUnreasonable]

Aibu to find it irritating seeing more and more primary school ages children walking to school in branded jogging bottoms and trainers. I think it looks really scruffy and it's just a case of laziness.

A pair of school trousers costs about £3 from supermarkets. Shoes from primark about £8. It's not a case of not being able to afford a proper uniform as some of these branded joggers cost about £20+ quid!

My children's school have a strict dress code and it teaches them they have to abide by rules in life, all this giving children too much freedom is a nonsense! How will they function in the real world when they grow up if they just do what they want?

OK.
Discipline teaches them to abide by rules in life. No need for arbitrary rules such as a strict dress code.
Then, why a certain code? Why "smart" that many adults don't use, or have the need for?

Having a relaxed dress code is not the same a "giving children too much freedom". Why can't children have a say on what they wear in a similar way that an adult has? It's good practice to learn how to make decisions instead of "following rules" blindly, or becoming a sheep.

Finally, most of us adults have to follow certain rules, but, for the most part, we do quite a lot of what we want. We choose our clothes, within some limits. We choose our jobs, where to live, who to marry, how many children to have, what to watch on tv, what to read. We are more free in general than bound by strict rules.
Some adults choose to be their own bosses so that they can actually do what they want, just as long as it doesn't harm anyone, which is what laws are for.

What you are defending is more appropriate to North Korea than current day UK.

And yes, some opinions are worth more than others. Opinions based on logic and facts are definitely worth more than "because it's my opinion".

I don't think they look particularly smart. But who cares? Kids don't need to be smart. They should be out running around or covered in paint and mud. If uniform is absolutely necessary, joggers seem way more appropriate than the usual dress or trousers.

I often see the "poor kids get picked on" argument for uniforms but as a former poor kid, and one who was significantly above average height I got picked on for my very obviously second hand and too short uniform in primary. When I went to a non-uniform secondary it was bliss - some children had all the best designer labels but plenty of is didn't and the joy of no uniform meant that there was no direct comparison between the scruffy too small uniform and the smart, brand new uniform. My clothes were a bit eccentric but I could make that my style because I wasn't being told what to wear.
Never wore joggers tho, couldn't find any to fit.....

My ds had trainers on two days this week as he came back from his dad's without his school shoes, I wasn't going to buy him new school shoes for 2 days until I got his returned just because people like the OP find it irritating.

DSs uniform was jogging trousers and a badged sweatshirt when he was in nursery and reception. They cost a bloody fortune stupid school uniform policy and impossible to match elsewhere colour.

School trousers are horrible when they are tiny. Not as easy as joggers for the loo. If they wet themselves, the trousers absorb nothing so it all ends up soaking into shoes. Not as warm and comfy either. They are so tiny when they start school, it seems strange to make things needlessly harder for them.

Nearby Catholic school has compulsory joggers. Looks hideous but that's because of the colour, which clashes with the even more horrible odd shade of polo shirt. At least the kids are comfy.

My kids have a genius for wearing smart items yet still looking scruffy as hell by the time they arrive at school.

Never fails to amuse me how people are so upset by other peoples methods. Especially when it doesn't directly affect them.

My children's school have a strict dress code and it teaches them they have to abide by rules in life, all this giving children too much freedom is a nonsense! How will they function in the real world when they grow up if they just do what they want?

My DS wore jogging bottoms in primary school, (there was no uniform) he was warm and comfortable, could run about at play time without his movement being restricted. He is also dyslexic and found zips belts etc a struggle when he was small.

However he managed to grow up into a responsible adult, get good qualifictaions and he now works teaching children with special needs. He wears a suit and tie to work now - by some miracle wearing jogging trousers when he was 7 didn't send him completely off the rails and into a life of crime and anarchy.

But maybe he is an exception, someone needs to do a study finding out how many children who wore joggers turned out baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaad. With graphs and charts and shit.

Wish DS could wear joggers for school. His legs are already getting chapped and dry from the cold as school trouser material is thin and if he wore thermals underneath he'd probably be too hot in the boiling hot classroom.

My DD is 4 and wears leggings for school.

Sometimes she'll wear a skirt or dress with tights - but most days it's leggings.

She has accidents during the day still so it's much easier for her to wear them. They dry quickly so I can wash them when she's home from school and they'll be dry by morning.

I asked her teacher if it was okay, and she said it was absolutely fine and she understands how much easier it is with washing etc. She wears black leggings, but the rest of her uniform is right.

Who cares? Both DS's go to a school (private) that has no uniform or rules on clothing (as long as they're not revealing or inappropriate)
Some days they wear joggers, some days jeans or chinos. They're comfortable, warm and it has no bearing on their ability to learn whatsoever - which is after all the point of school.

Wow Get a hobby or a life and keep your judgemental beak out of other people's business. clearly hit a nerve AuntLydia

Didn't ask to be slagged off personally for daring to share my opinion on an Am I Being Unreasonable thread....heaven forbid we don't agree on something. Doesn't make me a bad or judgemental person. Jeeeeze

YANBU, I am very unMN-like in that I think there's a lot of value in encouraging children to dress smartly and having a strict uniform policy.

Sensory/LD issues aside, I'm not convinced that making children wear school trousers distracts them from learning. My DD's school has a strict uniform policy, a lot of it doesn't look entirely comfortable and they all manage perfectly well!

heaven forbid we don't agree on something. Doesn't make me a bad or judgemental person.

This does:
(Aibu to find it irritating seeing more and more primary school ages children walking to school in branded jogging bottoms and trainers.) I think it looks really scruffy and it's just a case of laziness.

I'm not convinced that making children wear school trousers distracts them from learning

It doesn't. Nobody said it did.
But neither does wearing any other sort of bottom covers.
They could all be wearing skirts that it wouldn't distract from learning.

Well if you see my son on a Tuesday, and Thursday, he'll be going to school in jogging bottoms and black trainers. He does PE on those days. That is his inform.

*uniform

I wore a restrictive uniform all though school.
I have absolutely no respect for authority or petty rules.
Make of that what you will.

At my children's primary school in sunny Spain, the boys wear woolly tights under their trousers to keep warm in winter. Some of them keep it up to y8/y9.

Misses point

You'd love DD1. She is most put out that the sixth form rules now say no joggers...

...so she slouches in wearing vast baggy trousers from the charity shop with a vast sweatshirt on top. Essentially she's wearing pyjamas.

BUT SHE'S NOT WEARING JOGGERS! So that makes it OK.

(She looks terrific, by the way. Sometimes she varies it with a tiny stretchy skirt with thick black tights and a sweatshirt. BUT SHE'S NOT WEARING LEGGINGS!)

"I'm not convinced that making children wear school trousers distracts them from learning".

Depends on what the trousers are made of. If I could buy 100% cotton or 100% viscose school trousers, there would be no issue. As it is, ds is covered in red scratch marks down the waistline from Monday to Friday from wearing the "itchy" trousers (tried three different brands with the same outcome). It DOES distract him from learning

TheFirstMrsDV me too! We even had school uniform knickers and royal blue socks only available from the one official uniform shop, and only the school coat was allowed - meant most fifth formers year 11s still trying to squeeze into coats bought for them in theories first year-- year 7 ...

Obviously after the initial obedient first year or two the entire point of uniform becomes seeing how far you can subvert it.

I'm very anti uniform. A former classmate is always on Facebook complaining that as we had to suffer the youth of today should be punished severely for uniform infringements - I've never understood that logic at all.

What you are defending is more appropriate to North Korea than current day UK.

Well that escalated quickly!! I simply gave my opinion regarding my dislike of jogging bottoms and now I am being compared to having repressive views like North Korea? Twisted out of context completely. Get over yourself Lweji you are speaking out your arse!!!