To wonder if all teenagers are like this?

[MrsCardone]

DS15 had sport today so was required to wear his gym kit to school. This consists of shorts, short sleeve aertex shirt and a waterproof sports jacket, all school issue.

He came downstairs with just shorts and shirt, no jacket. He opened the door to leave and it was chucking it down. He said, "ah dammit!". I thought he had gone to pick up his jacket. Then he came back downstairs, explained that he "forgot his headphones" and wandered out into the pouring rain, no jacket, but with this headphones in, without a care in the world.

Is it just my teen, or are they all like this?

The "no coat" years are common, though not universal. :)

How cool is the coat. I bet it's an uncool coat.

Yes, the 'no coat' years are a 'thing' for many teens.
Not all of course, and yes, they do come out the other side.

It's a sports jacket, which matches the shorts.

Think DS only wears his waterproof coat when he is doing DofE walks!

Yes, DS17, wears shorts regardless of weather. Huge reluctance to ever wearing a coat, regardless of weather. Regularly comes home soaked through. Have given up fighting about it as clearly pointless.
Oh, but on alternative days (generally sunny/warmer) will choose jeans, boots, big hooded top

My teenagers never went to school on a sunday

I don’t know any 15 year olds who say “dammit” 😃

I realised I’d got old when I asked a shivering girl where her coat was - she was in a short black tight party dress at the bus stop in November.

I used to run to the SU in the snow in just a boob tube and trousers to avoid having a coat.

My son never wears a coat, scarf, hat, gloves usually, but I bought him a Superdry coat in the sale recently and it’s “cool” so he’s wearing it everywhere at the moment

@Antiqueanniesmagiclanternshow We're overseas and it is Monday here.

@HeddaGarbled yeah, I'm not sure where he got "dammit" from, but he is saying it all the time at the moment .

DS 14 never wears a coat, but that's because he has to lug it all around school with him. He takes a brolly.

@toomuchlaundry I would love to know how you got your DS to do DoE. One of the reasons we chose the school we did was because they offered it, but DS is just not interested.

Why don’t teens like or wear coats? I have tried in desperation to find out what kind of coat might be acceptable only to be told there are none.

My DS is now 16, and has refused to wear a coat since he was about 13. Sometimes I can push him into wearing a hoodie on icy days, but getting wet doesn't bother him at all. He never seems to get cold, either! He hates the warm weather and is always saying he wants to move to the antarctic

@TheLovelinessOfDemons

DS 14 never wears a coat, but that's because he has to lug it all around school with him. He takes a brolly.

I had to show mine how to open an umbrella the other day. He’s 17!

@HeddaGarbled

I don’t know any 15 year olds who say “dammit” 😃

My almost 15yo DD does

I think younger people (generally, not all) genuinely don't feel the cold so much, and we forget that as we get older.
Though my DD did learn to appreciate a coat - she had to wait at bus stops, and in yr 8 (about a decade ago) there was a really cold winter which caused buses to break down and not turn up.

I coach teenagers in a couple of sports and am constantly baffled/infuriated by their inability and/or refusal to wear the right kit.

Some of it I have to put down to 'teenage brain', but there are other points on which I have to put my foot down quite strongly.

You get over the huffing, and I hope they will ultimately be grateful to me when they have a complete set of front teeth, functional spine etc in their 20s and beyond.

Choose the hill you wish to die on.

@LadyJaye do you judge the parents when your students turn up in the wrong kit? This is what I worry about. I am afraid DS's teachers will think, "Oh, that poor boy. Why don't his parents buy him a jacket?"

I would love to know how you got your DS to do DoE

I didn't have to "get" my dc to do DofE - they wanted to. Nothing worse than dc who have been forced by their parents or when it is made compulsory by the school. They get nothing out of it and it just becomes a pain.

[quote MrsCardone]@LadyJaye do you judge the parents when your students turn up in the wrong kit? This is what I worry about. I am afraid DS's teachers will think, "Oh, that poor boy. Why don't his parents buy him a jacket?"[/quote]
Oh gosh, no - there's a very specific difference between the 'no, but yeah, but no', and those who have different needs (for want of a better term).

For example, one of the sports I coach is rugby: we are very keen that it is accessible, so coaches, mentors and support staff are trained to look out for families who may require a little additional support and approach them sensitively, if need be, because it would be terrible for somebody to miss out.

My club has has both a 'stock kit' of boots, guards etc to help out on a short-term basis, and a longer-term support fund that helps kids and parents fund kit and travel and so on, as discretely as possible.

Absolutely no, I would never, EVER judge any kid (or their parents) for turning up in the 'wrong' kit, but you do get to learn the difference between 'can't' and 'won't' (I am less sympathetic to 'won't', assuming no SEN etc).

I should add I am a volunteer coach, so if I'm giving up my time for free, I do kind of expect a certain kind of reciprocity, even if it's just in terms of attitude.

[quote MrsCardone]@LadyJaye do you judge the parents when your students turn up in the wrong kit? This is what I worry about. I am afraid DS's teachers will think, "Oh, that poor boy. Why don't his parents buy him a jacket?"[/quote]
Blimey, I'm sorry, I totally misread your question!

Anyway, my previous answer stands, I reckon - I think most people who work with young people in whatever category, be they professional or volunteer, recognise the difference between can't and won't, so I very much doubt you're being judged personally as a parent.