A school one.

[Inthepurplerain]

I have a son in reception, at what point do you turn your niggles into a complaint?

For example- freezing cold winds today and I hear from my son that he’s been playing outside- with water. When I took off his coat when we got home from school it was absolutely soaking wet. He has been full of cold and poorly a lot since the end of October, with all the viruses spreading recently (i am not referring to coronavirus here) I can’t help but feel that this should be something that can be avoided?

I guess I just feel a bit let down? I try hard to keep my house warm so I’m disappointed that I’m sending him to school to be stood outside in a soaking wet cold when the wind is so cold.

Would you complain about this or just let it go?

He must like the water or he wouldn’t go outside!

My child liked putting mud in his mouth when he was a toddler. Should I have let him do that?

Reception is notorious for catching anything and everything as the kids get together for he first time. Keep well stocked with Calpol and you’ll get him through it.

Can he do his coat up?

Maybe it was done up for lessons but he undid it for playtime?

If he’s I’ll you should keep him home so others don’t catch something, but hey you probably have to work.

Maybe mention how wet he was when he came home,ask if they can are sure he has his coat done up and is wearing a hat when he goes outside.

I've had children try and take their coats off outside today and have had to be firm with them the about keeping them on and done up.

That said, it is difficult to keep sleeves dry and mud free, as aprons don't always fit over the coats if the larger children very well.

YANBU

Being too cold lower your immune system, and you DO catch up more crap.

Was it his coat or his jumper that was soaking wet? I would send him with a waterproof coat (the 3-in-1 are great for that, waterproof layer, fleece inner), and ask the teacher or TA to ensure they are zipped.

As long as you send the kids with the right clothes, they can be outside in any weather.

Let it go and drill it into your son to zip up his coat when he goes outside. My twins are also in reception. The teacher will ask them all to zip up their coats, but it’s up to them to do it. They are expected to by that age. If the teacher had to zip up 30 coats, they’d never make it out!

Also, being cold in itself won’t make him catch a virus. If he was that uncomfortable, he would stop playing with the water himself and warm up.

which is why elderly people for example are given a winter heat allowance- to keep them warm, so they’re less likely to contact an illness.

no, they get it so they don't freeze to death/get hypothermia, virus's can be caught regardless of whether you are hot or cold.

Viruses are less prevalent in the summer because people are in less close contact with each other indoors sharing air/with air conditioning and also indoor heating dries the air and/or nasal passages making it easier for a virus take hold. So you ds was much safer from viruses outside in the fresh, albeit cold, air.

If I kept him home everytime he was ill he wouldn’t ever be at school 🤨

It was the fleece that was wet @JustInCaseCakeHappens and thank you for understanding what I meant in regards to being cold

I would like to bet that he us disobeying instructions if hes ending up soaked. Reception aged kids get help doing up their coats Most have to wear wellies and waterproofs too.

Let it go, you're being a bit PFB.

I’d complain too OP - primary aged DC are kept inside at play and lunch times during school if it’s raining outside - so they don’t get cold and wet. Bang out of order to assume a toddler with a lower immune system should be fine to spend the day cold and wet.

Definitely let this go.

You’re also not being PFB unless pop’s want to accuse someone with 3 kids from 2-10 of being PFB too. I damn well know what makes my kids sick, and how they’re more likely to get ill if they’ve spent the day cold and wet.

Life has honestly been miserable since November- every single bit of time off has been spent with zero energy trying to recover from the latest illness, same with the week off they just had.

I know it’ll ease off when the warmer weather hits but it’s been rough.
It’s hard to know if you’re being precious or not, but it’s not something I would be actively encouraging at home.

Which is why I constructed this post- thanks for both sides of opinion.

I'd ask a TA, if available, if they really were playing with water outside as a scheduled activity tbh. I'd think it more likely he was playing in a puddle. Being cold and wet is not a good combination, you can get chills from it. Try to drill into him that he needs his coat zipped up (good luck with that). TAs will usually help with that in reception if they can get round them all.

I don’t even know what PFB is short for? 😅

And yes, cold weather does not make you Ill, or give you a cold, obviously. But rhinoviruses especially do pass more easily in colder environments/ temperatures. So being cold, can indeed- make it more likely to get a virus.

Prevention is key! (Especially when you have one already and need to fight It off)

primary aged DC are kept inside at play and lunch times during school if it’s raining outside - so they don’t get cold and wet.
Bang out of order to assume a toddler with a lower immune system should be fine to spend the day cold and wet
The OP's child isn't a toddler with a lower immune system.

They're a primary school child who has picked up lots of bugs at the start of term, just like thousands of other children (and staff) in schools up and down the country.

OP It's worth having a conversation with the teacher if you're concerned, but I wouldn't be complaining yet as you haven't a clue what's happened. It could be that they've all been shoved out in torrential downpour, or it could be that during some freeflow time / playtime your DC had chosen to play with water and they've unzipped their coat.

PFB is precious first born. It's that common we need an abbreviation for it. I of course am a superior being with superior abilities to maintain perspective and did not exhibit such things at all ever.

So much medical misinformation. Being cold doesn't 'lower your immune system'. Older people are given support with heating costs so that they don't get hypothermia, not a virus. Viruses are more prevalent in winter partly because we huddle together more and partly because sunlight kills viruses.

There's a middle ground. You don't have to "complain" or "say nothing". This sounds like a one-off activity rather than an everyday one, so that makes a difference too. However if it was a regular activity I might mention something.

ie "I noticed DS got very wet in the playground water activity, and when I took his coat off at home it was soaking and freezing. As he's still trying to shake a virus off, I'm trying to keep him warm and dry outside as much as possible. Are there any plastic tabards available in school for this activity, or could I provide one for him to pop over his coat?"

optical on the contrary, there is definitely evidence to suggest that being cold does lower the immune response and make it harder to fight off germs, so the opportunity for infection increases.

OP i was going to say YABU and very precious, but reading your updates you sound knackered and sick of the constant illness. I hope it gets better soon.

I Do think it's reasonable though for kids to be outside in the cold and getting wet. Like others say, they wouldn't do it if they didn't enjoy it. Let them eat mud, sand etc, that's how our immune systems build.

Ask the teacher to keep him inside doing worksheets until you've had enough time to teach him how to do up his coat.

This used to drive me insane at nursery. DD used to pick up a cold from someone in a one mile radius sneezing (health issues). In the end I had to get the teachers to keep her out of the water which they understood (poor attendance due to hospital visits etc). Its really hard dealing with the endless colds and such. You can either have a word, layer him up like a lasagne or persevere through it all. On the brightside DD has batted off colds much easier now shes older. Good luck!