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Original poster

World Book Day rules

46 replies

Flutterbyeee · 07/02/2018 23:11

So , my sons have a letter in their book bags (nursery and year 1) asking if children would like to dress up for World Book Day. Of course we cannot wait!!

However, main body of letter says:

None of the following costumes please:
Batman
Spiderman
Superman
Power Rangers
Turtles
Hulk
Iron Man
Captain America
Or similar

"Your child must bringing the book their costume is related to."

What? Why only traditionally "male" costumes. Who has failed to see these characters are comic 'book' heroes?

OP posts:
Ummmmgogo · 07/02/2018 23:15

that is ridiculous. our school allows all of them but only homemade costumes can enter for the best costume prize. dress them as batman to protest this nonsense!

Original poster
Flutterbyeee · 07/02/2018 23:21

I know! Last year they complained there was at least five Batman costumes in each class. So bloody what?!! As long as the children are enjoying it.

I may send them in with handcuffs and a copy of Fifty Shades of Grey Hmm

OP posts:
Fitzsimmons · 07/02/2018 23:22

Ours have decided all the children have to do Harry Potter characters. DS is in reception and most of his classmates have never read the books or watched the films as they are too young. Hmm

LittleLights · 07/02/2018 23:23

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Cheby · 07/02/2018 23:24

Any chance they have given a different note to the girls with female characters on it? Still total bullshit (the gender stereotyping I mean, I’m with the school on the dressing as an actual book character).

NotAnotherEmma · 07/02/2018 23:25

Discrimination against comic book readers knows no bounds, until people are looking for a good movie to watch them suddenly comic book heroes are welcome. Hmm

Original poster
Flutterbyeee · 07/02/2018 23:25

Oh no.. I hate when my thunder has been stolen!! Ha ha

Fitzsimmons -
Primark have reduced all their Harry Potter onesies if that helps.

OP posts:
Dancingfairy · 07/02/2018 23:26

I can see there point. It was "Victorian day" in my dds school and I didn't dress her up as I actually had no idea what to dress her in for it. Well imagine my dds disappointment when she got to school and all the little girls were wearing flaming elsa and Anna dresses like wtf has that got to do with the Victorians! So can see why they put rules. Odd it was just male characters though.

Mookie81 · 07/02/2018 23:27

As a teacher it's very annoying and disappointing to have a class of 30 Disney dresses and superheroes. Our theme this year is animals, which also fits Reception's topic. It is alao supposed to foster some creativity with costumes as opposed to a store bought costume, even if it's as simple as facepaint or fake ears.

I appreciate busy lives though.

TheOriginalFactoryMum · 07/02/2018 23:28

Reminds me of the time my DD went as a home-made cat, think black clothes, paper ears and eyeliner whiskers ... (favourite books were Hairy McClary / Slinky Malinky at the time) and every other girl in the class was in a Disney princess outfit. She still reminds me of it...

The principle behind World Book Day is that kids think about their favourite books, not the films/ tv programmes. Which is why bringing their fave books and not dressing up is a much better idea in my opinion

Original poster
Flutterbyeee · 07/02/2018 23:37

My boys have never got beyond the first five minutes of Superman/Spiderman etc. They know their images. They then have selected their books.

Does that suit appraisal?

OP posts:
BigBaboonBum · 07/02/2018 23:38

I’d buy Batman costumes for the whole class to protest this stupidity

Dontfuckingsaycheese · 07/02/2018 23:43

Made me cross when ds went as the man from 101 Dalmatians. He had the book. They took his Dalmatian off him. So then he was just a man...

IsItSummerYet2018 · 07/02/2018 23:49

I'd send him in what you have. They're not exactly going to send him home because of it.. My son was never into books or anything so always found this hard. He chose one time to be the stig off top gear he was in yr 1. And all he watched was too gear and read the annuals. That was a good as it got.. Oh and a football player from his local teams annual.
As even to this day he's not a book lover of stories. Likes more facts.

RowenasDiadem · 07/02/2018 23:49

I'd send my kid in as Harry Potter. At home during the summer holidays. In his muggle clothes and muggle shoes.

Costume required: felt tip lightning mark on forehead. Fuck dressing up days with stupid rules.

Jamiefraserskilt · 07/02/2018 23:51

Mine just went in normal clothes ( hated dressing up) and was either one of the famous five or grabbed a bucket and went as Harry (and his bucket full of dinosaurs) or Billy (Billy's bucket).
Always looked at the plethora of Wallies, mad hatters and Harry Potters with envy.

AlexanderHamilton · 07/02/2018 23:54

DD is 16 now but could write you an essay on Marvel & DC ‘graphic novels’ & all the various incarnations.

I can understand them saying no film or TV characters but those characters named all originated in graphic novels or comics. The cinematic universes came afterwards.

CotswoldStrife · 07/02/2018 23:55

It is trickier to bar Disney princess costumes as they are actually based on books though, unlike the characters in your school's list!

DD's infant school went down the same route of 'bring the book in with you', I think we did Alice in Wonderland that time (which, let's face it, is also a Disney film as well).

I was surprised at the number of David Walliams costumes that I saw in the supermarket this year, although his characters have been very popular from what I've seen in the playground on World Book Day including a Boy in a Dress. So send him in a Disney Princess outfit.

Disneyland Paris are actually having a summer season of the Marvel Superheroes this year ....

AlexanderHamilton · 08/02/2018 00:04

On the contrary, most of the characters in that list originate in books

Batman - First appeared in Detective Comics in 1939
Spider-Man - Firstvappeared in a 1962 anthology.

Etc

BackforGood · 08/02/2018 00:05

What the OriginalFactoryMum said - the point is to encourage reading (what with it being world book day and all), and a bit of creativity, not to put your commercially bought film character kit on, when the dc that are dressing up have not read about them in a book. Yes, many of the characters originally came from comics

Muddlingalongalone · 08/02/2018 00:10

I agree OP it's weird that Elsa & Anna, Moana etc & football kits weren't also included on the list if they are enforcing "rules"
However I also think this is where the mn demographic comes into play. Instead of reading the complete works of Shakespeare at 46.5 months, I read something last year about world book day that said something like 25% 4 year olds/primary school children had never owned a book and that is tragic.
In the past there weren't so many books published linked to tv series/films so actually a frozen book or turtles book might be the only book they've ever had and therefore is an obvious choice for dress up day.
I personally would much rather they were choosing characters from books read/ written before tv and films and would encourage mine to choose someone they've read or just wear uniform if they don't want to take part but I don't really care what everyone else does, although I am always interested in other choices and mn threads for stealing ideas!!
Also classic Disney princesses came from classic fairy tales so where do you draw the line??

CotswoldStrife · 08/02/2018 00:12

Football kits were vetoed for WBD, I do remember that being mentioned. There were some protests about player autobiographies IIRC.

Muddlingalongalone · 08/02/2018 00:20

Just trying to find the stats on book ownership. One of the £1 book token books this year is Marvel the Avengers greatest heroes😂😂😂 Perhaps pass on to your school??

AuditAngel · 08/02/2018 22:06

I wish we could just send them in wearing a costume. DD2 wanted to go as cat in the hat (black leggings, black cardigan, tail made from tights and a top hat I made for her brother about 8 years ago that had already been recovered red and white to be for cat in the hat) instead, we have a stupid design a t-shirt honework courtesy of Pinterest. I would prefer a proper costume, either from recycling something we have, or buying new that can be used again. Instead, we have to supply a t-shirt that will have the cover on the front, setting on the back, dine other rubbish on the sleeves..... And then it will go in the bin.Why?

Because it is the school's 50th birthday this month and they want them to dress up for that.DD1 has to dress 70's style; DD2 80's

Littlebelina · 08/02/2018 22:13

How about sending him in as Bruce Wayne, Clark Kent or Peter Parker?