AIBU that world book day doesn’t support reading, but instead supports the buying of crappy costumes on amazon?

[Midlifeargh]

I really am starting to hate world book day.

Sure, it comes from a great place.

But sick of making costumes because I’m too cheap to buy them (also don’t like throw away fashion).

Also sick of it always being MY problem because I’m the freaking woman.

Am I being unreasonable that world book day does more to support amazon.com’s costume department than actual reading?

(I sort of want to be unreasonable in thinking that, to be honest!)

You see what you have at home and then find a book that matches it.
There plenty of books that basically involve children wearing normal clothes.
No one should be buying costumes unless they want to.

Our school has asked the kids to dress up as an adjective....

One of mine will have butterfly wings made from an old scarf of mine and be "fluttery", I'm a out to sew some fake flowers in to a sash for the other one to go as "flowery"..... They want to make sentences using the adjectives!

I've hated world book day for the last 8 or 9 years. It doesnt help anyone. My child hates reading, always has, always will. Spent every night trying to encourage reading this week and it's like pushing a cart uphill backwards. World book day does not help, one iota.

I'm dressing my 3 in clothes they already have. 2 of them are wearing costumes from our dressing up box and the other one is going as a character who wears a blue t-shirt and black trousers so he is wearing his school trousers and a t-shirt he already has.

WBD is bad enough without the school narrowing it down with a theme.

Mine are going as Muggles and we'll do some extra reading after school.

I really like the idea of taking an object related to your favourite book into school to discuss, like a show & tell. It's more creative, promotes thoughtfulness and helps cut down on the silly competitiveness of dressing up.

I'm staff and being made to dress up . I'm secondary. Many of us have pointed out that going as our actual favourite book characters (African slaves, actual witch doctors, a demon in a horror novel etc.) wouldn't go down particularly well. So now we have been asked to dress up in departments... as what I can only describe as children's book characters, so it's not like we're going to be ripped to shreds by year 11 tomorrow

As far as I can see it's just a massive fund raising exercise. We're being encouraged to but cakes (all proceeds to charity) and swap books (but you have to pay to swap - again for charity). Tbh, I'm ignoring it all. I assume the kids will be doing something nice in school on the day - think they're writing nonsense poems - other than that, I'm not getting involved.

Abso bloody lutely, op. We are a house of readers. Books and kindles all over the shop. Hate effing world book day.

It's as easy or hard as you want to make it though

If you have a child who hates dressing up, it's always hard.

The way many parents engage with world book day is vulgar.

Just had this exact convo! IMO world book day is exactly about crap costumes and obligatory school donations. Don’t support it at all. I’d fully support a “bring your favourite book to school” day or something along those lines though, or even another book fair day etc.

We didn't do WBD this year, it's Engineers week in Ireland so we had engineers in doing workshops with the kids today. Tomorrow we are doing a buddy reading day with the local preschool. Lovely wouldn't you think?
Nope lots of snotty comments from parents the kids were looking forward to dressing up.

I’ve always made ours but school is full of kids wearing crappy polyester costumes.
I saw a school where they all decorated a potato and had a competition for the best. It looked much more fun and imaginative.

Anyone else's kids having to go dressed as a 'word'?

So. Freakin. ANNOYING.

The change of theme makes it even more likely you'll have to make/buy something, either way incurring costs. I've spent 20 quid buying bits & spent time making something, to then throw it away after one day because when will he ever again be seen dead in a sweatshirt covered in bubbles and sticky letters saying EFFERVESCENT?! It'll be on a clothing heap in Africa within the year. Throwaway fashion or what?!

Today we also got told that we will be paying for the privilege of sending the kids in in sportswear next Thursday, but of course mine hates sports but doesn't want to be the only one in his PE kit so I've just dropped another £30 on a football kit for a team he's never heard of.

So no, I will not be making cakes for next week's bake sale. They can sod right off.

I don’t know why they keep doing it - I don’t know anyone who likes it, everyone moans about it. Why can’t they just take their favourite book into school?

Yep more consumerist nonsense. And cynical people on my local FB group are selling bundles of shit books like Peppa Pig. As in-books that were a TV programme first🙄

Totally agree. Getting dressed up does nothing to promote reading at all. Also schools know that the majority of parents are going to feel bullied into buying a cheap plastic costume from the supermarket or Amazon - totally in contrary to the policies most schools have about being eco-friendly.

Our school has in the past done the whole dressing up thing and has knocked it on the head completely this year. They had an author visit before Christmas and other reading-focused events throughout the year. This week it's all Fairtrade stuff, not world book day.

World Book Day falls to me at our school... we’re special needs. I went and exchanged the coupons for books of their choice, and they’ve been given to them in their English lessons. The kids are very happy, they get a new book, I think that’s the point really. I know many of the families in my school would struggle to find the time or extra funds to provide a costume.

A-FUCKING-MEN!!!

I hate world book day with a burning passion in my stomach. I love reading, we have books all over this house but I hate that it’s about dressing up more than it is reading.

Our school has an interesting take on world book day every year. We’ve had decorate a potato as one of your favourite characters, dress up as a superhero and make a themed hat.

I love reading to my kids and I’m fairly artistic, but it’s seriously beginning to test my patience. And I’ve 3 kids, so whatever I do it’s x3.

Our school used it as an opportunity to sell over-priced books to the kids...every day is a retail day!

No one has to buy anything. Ironic that books are about inspiring the imagination

I thought this was just for the infants, but my ds in year 4 has just announced that he needs a costume for tomorrow