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Original poster

To ask what IS the point of dressing up on world book day?

181 replies

malificent7 · 01/03/2018 16:32

Stressful and expensive for parents. Do they actually learn more by dressing up?
Do it make them think about books more or something?
Id much rather they did some book related activities on the day and perhaos a tiny bit of non expensive homework.

After all that stress and expense many schools were shut anyway. At 9 dd just wants to go in jeans and t shirt anyway.pah!

OP posts:
CavoliRiscaldati · 01/03/2018 21:12

do wish people would stop banging on about how you don't need an imagination, just the ability to read.

the point is that you just need to know how to use the internet, and clearly you can! There are countless pinterest posts or blog articles about easy costumes, showing 100s of examples. All you have to do is copy one you like.
I am the least crafty person in the world, but even I can manage with a blank tshirt and a few sharpies or stick-on letters, or order a few cheap accessories from ebay.

Stripy black and orange top, eyeliner to draw a dot on the nose and 3 strikes on each cheek for a moustache, and you have the tiger who came to tea
Strippy green top with a red hat, and you have the very hungry caterpillar.

It's not that hard, and it gets easier as they get older because the characters are human!

PhelanThePain · 01/03/2018 21:20

I am well educated but I don't have the fancy dress gene

Your problem is that you think there is a gene or knack to it! There isn’t. Look at a few books, look at the clothes you have and see what you can cobble together. Like others say there are so many book characters that just wear normal kid clothes. Seriously, it’s not a special skill.

CavoliRiscaldati · 01/03/2018 21:22

I give up!
shame for your kids that you can't be bothered to make an effort, because you just don't want to. I can't comprehend what effort it would really take to find a blue or black or orange tshirt for the day.

Flatwhite32 · 01/03/2018 21:23

Because it's fun! I'm a primary teacher and school is far too serious and pressured these days. Days like today are just a bit of fun. As teachers, we honestly don't care how good the costumes are. One kid in my class came in with just a Where's Wally hat today rather than a full costume, and that's completely fine! I had a lovely day talking about books, doing a few fun bits about Shakespeare and just taking a bit of time out from our very pressured curriculum. We honestly fibre care about the quality of the costumes!

Flatwhite32 · 01/03/2018 21:24

*don't care

RavenWings · 01/03/2018 21:26

It's just a bit of fun. The vast majority of kids at my school adore it, and we make the day into a real celebration of reading.

Costumes for world book day can be as simple as you want them to be, or as complicated as you like. All of us on here have internet access - everyone can google a simple World Book Day costume.

upsideup · 01/03/2018 22:00

I am well educated but I don't have the fancy dress gene.

Theres no gene, all you have to do is look at a few kids books and find a character that wears stuff you already have or just google simple wbd outfits. Lots of kids books are about children who just wear normal clothes.
School uniform + glasses + black pen on forehead = Harry Potter
Dress + Red ribbons + book = Matilda

RavenWings · 01/03/2018 22:17

Exactly.

Normal clothes, a bucket, some dinosaurs - Harry and his bucket full of dinosaurs.

Stuffed toy pig, check shirt, jeans, draw a spider on with eyeliner - Charlotte's Web.

Couple of pairs of tights and you can be a spider from all kinds of books.

Matilda - dress, ribbon in hair (optional), pile of books.

If all else fails, wear regular clothes and be a Muggle.

lifetothefull · 01/03/2018 23:00

kids in school where I taught today did a mixture. Some really had got into details of their chosen character, which I love, especially when it's not a famous one. Some just brought a prop in and wore normal clothes, some didn't bother at all, some had a shop bought costume and some (very few) had home made creations. It really didn't matter. It was great that it got kids talking about books. And I think it does help with that. If a child doesn't want to dress up then fine, but it doesn't take much effort to cobble something together if they do want to.

Goldfishshoals · 01/03/2018 23:05

I am a prolific reader, still including children's books & I have a very active imagination

And yet you've never read a book with a single character who just wears regular clothes? Amazing.

luckylavender · 02/03/2018 06:55

I can't imagine why I ever weighed into this debate but hey ho! If you don't know right from left or are colour blind then I wouldn't mock you or keep saying, it's easy just do this. . I don't have the natural ability to translate all those ideas to a child. For the record, of course I've read books where children wear ordinary clothes, but WBD is about children not parents. And no child wants to wear ordinary clothes. Fortunately I don't have school aged children now & I never allowed them to miss out. I had to buy costumes, stupid waste of money for nothing really, just parents trying to outdo each other and more stress for overstretched teachers. Go & judge someone else.

Pengggwn · 02/03/2018 07:16

God, there are some miserable people on here. Every child I know has dressed up (even in the snow) and has loved it. If it doesn't work for your child, send them in normal clothes, but do stop moaning, eh?

Cadence70 · 02/03/2018 07:30

.

To ask what IS the point of dressing up on world book day?
spiney · 02/03/2018 07:32

, just parents trying to outdo each other

Why do you spout this crap?

Just made my DS a costume. ( our WBD is snow postponed) It Involved a bit of fiddling about ( about an hour ) But I ENJOY that type of thing. And he is DELIGHTED.

I don't give a crap what any other child wears.

My kids have ALWAYS enjoyed dressing up. I have always 'made' them something to wear ( sometimes very very basic ) sometimes a bit more involved. But if I did it's because I was happy to do it and had the time and MY KDS LiKED IT .Not because I was trying to fucking 'outdo' anyone.

The usual reverse snobbery crap.

ItsAllABitStrangeReally · 02/03/2018 07:40

There was a picture in our local paper yesterday of an entire school dressed up and one little boy in his uniform.

His sad little face is etched into my soul :(

george49 · 02/03/2018 07:40

Christ almighty there are some massive chips on shoulders here.

The weather has really brought out the miseries on MN this week

DD went as Tinkerbell. Already had a costume. Couldn't have been easier.

spiney · 02/03/2018 07:47

Misery central indeed.

At DS's primary they do a day of book focused activities. Something different from the usual. DS usually comes home buzzing. And he's had the chance to talk about books he likes.

How is there anything not positive in that?

george49 · 02/03/2018 07:50

spiney apparently they should be focused on the curriculum so that the teachers don't become stressed at having to do something "different" - because they won't have all done it a dozen times already and have a bunch of resources waiting to be used.

Or God forbid the teachers might enjoy a change to the usual routine!!

No - all teachers hate kids and hate teaching so obviously they'd rather drone on about declensions whilst the kids wear sackcloth and ashes.

The parents utterly resent each and every 10p and ten minutes spent helping their kids do something fun. The kids are all tightly wound balls of anxiety who dread things like World Book Day, Christmas and birthday parties....

2cats2many · 02/03/2018 07:50

I think one of the issues with this is schools having a 'best dressed' competition. Well, my children 's primary does anyway. Once the idea that some outfits are better than others creeps in, it all gets silly and stops being fun IMO.

george49 · 02/03/2018 07:51

Oh no! A competition??!!

How very dare they!!

Those bastards.

ferrier · 02/03/2018 07:52

The problem for me was having kids who were into reading, who had definite ideas about which characters they wanted to be and the consequent struggle to meet their requests. And one year I had four to do - Bella from Twilight, Aragorn and Frodo from Lord of the Rings and Romeo!

Sassydoughnut · 02/03/2018 07:57

To have fun!!!! It's annoying and Amazon have had good money off me the last few years 😒 But my son was always so excited about dressing up and loved it when I picked a good outfit. He's 8 now and thinks dressing up is sad and embarrassing. His friends didn't dress up last time either. I can't deny this makes me happy.

2cats2many · 02/03/2018 08:13

What a stupid comment George49.

luckylavender · 02/03/2018 08:46

Every child alive doesn't like dressing up - fact. I have a DS who is Sport mad & so Sports Day was the height of his year, and matches etc. Plenty of children hate Sports Day, that's absolutely normal. And you think I'm spouting crap!!! If you all can't see that this can be the height of competitive parenting then I'll leave you to your rosy little glows. Keep posting your efforts on FB though, we all love them so much. I've never seen a Tinkerbell, a Peter Pan or a Harry Potter before. I wonder how many of these children had read the actual book & not just reached for the remote control.

ferrier · 02/03/2018 09:02

Yep - I had one dc who really didn't like any form of fancy dress. He just went in as Alex Rider or something similar.
Our school also had a rule of no Disney and no film tie-ins unless it was originally a book.

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