world book day is a pointless, costly pain in the arse for working parents?

[LumpenProletariat]

Does it make any difference to reading levels? As a solo working mum, I find it a total pain and costly too.

Not entirely sure it’s worth getting stressed over. Either buy a costume, buy cheap clothes to make a costume that can be reworn or cobble together a costume out of stuff you already have. It’ll take all of 1/2h max.

C’mon it’s called parenting!
If you get your child more interested in books they might just read more and get a better education.

So many parents drop the kids at the school gates and expect the school to do everything!

I was gutted last year when schools went back the week after WBD and son’s school didn’t celebrate it a week later. Gutted this year that they’ve decided to ‘decorate a T shirt’. Not only has this cost me money but we’ve missed out on the excitement of choosing a character and planning how to make the costume together. I guess I’m in the minority though!

*what irks me is that out of classes of 30 kids (primary school i work in) about 3 of them in each class have ever been to a library. nor do they know that it's free to get books.

Where on earth do you live?

I live in a poorish borough, and I am certain every child in his class has been taken to the library, even if the family don't read much or borrow books often.*

i live in the south east. they really have no idea of where the library is, what it does, how much it costs, what you can get, etc etc etc.

Although his school have just done a sponsored readathon which definitely got him reading more. Still cost me money though but it’s for a good cause!

Anything that encourages children to read is a good thing , surely the idea is you spend time together and make a costume rather than buy one , a few years ago I took my daughter to harry Potter and the Cursed child at the theatre on a Saturday she dressed as Ginny Weasley so just wore school uniform cost me nothing unlike the tickets

It's crap but not as crap as xmas jumper day

Anyone remember a few years ago when Mylene Klass sent her own kid dressed up as herself to promote mummys book

@iklboo lol at the invisible man costume that made me laugh so much, my son would love to go in (not go in lol) as that or maybe it could be the Harry Potter invisibility cloak.
I must admit I also find these dress up days a pita and there's always the parents that spend an absolute fortune on fancy expensive costumes trying to out do everyone else it's usually the insta mums who do this.
My ds is not a fan of dressing up but usually does for Halloween so we'll be digging last years Halloween costume out which was a werewolf and he can go as the big bad wolf. And atleast his costume gets another wear.

I run events in schools for World Book Day, you can really achieve amazing things with a little thought and not even that much effort as i provide all the templates and plan. Through things like a book fair, a sponsored read or a community fundraiser we get loads of books into schools for free, and many kids get a book on wbd who say it is the first book they have ever owned. It is an incredible initiative. If anyone wants to run one of these events in your kids school, or you're a teacher, get in touch. It's totally free. Last school I worked with had the event mentioned in the OFSTED report. It really does make a difference especially on reading for pleasure outcomes. If you want more info ping me a message.

You are so right. I found the dress-up aspect a PITA as a SAH mother, then as a working parent. As a secondary school English teacher I’m a fan of promoting reading but this is not the way. In my sons’ primary school the playground was thick with Little Mermaids and Spidermen. Not entirely sure that this was a gift to literacy.

@Macaronichee

You are so right. I found the dress-up aspect a PITA as a SAH mother, then as a working parent. As a secondary school English teacher I’m a fan of promoting reading but this is not the way. In my sons’ primary school the playground was thick with Little Mermaids and Spidermen. Not entirely sure that this was a gift to literacy.

Again with the snobbery.

Little Mermaid is an actual book , translated in hundreds of languages in various versions.

As for Spiderman, there are book schemes like that aimed at reluctant readers. Other superheroes too, even Star Wars. I have a kid with SEN, medical needs and can't read. He loves those spiderman books and even if he won't read much, he leafs through them,tries to copy the drawings,asks questions and loves nothing more than to sit down with me while I read to him. Yes he'll be dressed as SpiderMan. No I don't give a shit, because as long as it holds his interest, he'll get there in the end.

Little Mermaid is an actual book , translated in hundreds of languages in various versions.

They weren't dressing up as The little mermaid because they'd read the book though, were they?

They were dressing up as The Little mermaid because it's an easy costume to get hold of.

It's a nice dress up day, sure. But the link between dressing up as The little mermaid and encouraging a love of reading is ... tenuous at best. If it's supposed to be about driving a love of reading, I'd suggest a rethink.

@Leedsfan247

C’mon it’s called parenting! If you get your child more interested in books they might just read more and get a better education.

So many parents drop the kids at the school gates and expect the school to do everything!

Hmm. Both my kids have been readers, one more so than the other. Neither were inspired to read because they had to dress up at school.

So many other activities the school can do surrounding world book day that would encourage reading that don't actively disadvantage the already disadvantaged child.

I think it depends how it is done . Complete wade of time and money when kids come in dressed in Disney princess dresses or football kits . My sons primary picked a book each year and everyone came as the same character, eg Wheres Wally or Harry Potter . Tne school charged £3 and provided ir made a basic costume . We got plenty of notice of what the kids might need like a red or a white t shirt so could beg or borrow if needed and it didn’t have to be perfect . The teachers all dressed up and each classroom was decorated with a different activity for the day Tne kids went round the different rooms witching their year group .
Did it help their reading age - no
Did they discover a new book - probably not
Did they have a blast absolutely!

WBD is just a day for some parents to show off and others to feel like loosers. It should just be replaced with PJs or mufti.
I was so pleased last year that they didn't have it. Only 2 more years and then all my kids in secondary school and I don't have to buy/cobble together an outfit again.

I was a single parent with a full-on stressful job, but remember fondly the successful costumes I made - all nighters on two occasions - for school and for dance shows. Mind you, book day dressing up only happened once, I think I might have objected had it been every year.

I can cobble an outfit together but I don't agree with the book business that comes to school and the children are encouraged to buy from.
We have a house full of books and yet I am badgered so they don't feel left out.

@Theskullcupofdoom

My DS won best costume the year I sent him in wearing his own clothes with a pokemon toy and his pokemon handbook. He was a pokemon trainer. . I think he won because he was the only kid who wasn't dressed in an Avengers costume from Asda.

The expensive I get but it's not difficult or time comsuming to order a costume off Amazon these days.

I am stealing this suggestion for this year, amazing!

Agreed! Take your favorite book in but this dressing up with an outfit that will never be worn again is a total waste of money!

I like it, my kids love it! I'm a working mum and make them costumes out of what we have at home and sometimes buying a few second hand things to cobble together costumes. Doing it that way makes it fun for all of us, and I usually then pass the costumes on so my youngest will wear ones the eldest has worn in previous years and then we'll give them to younger children at the school after that. At our school costumes are swapped for free and some kids go in home made some go in bought, there's no judgement, it's just for fun. There are loads of easy costumes kids can wear as well which are essentuallu just their own clothes. The thing I don't understand is the insistence that the costume (if you've bought one) must be 'binned' once WBD has happened. Surely you could sell it or give it to someone else?

I deliberately chose mine's Junior School because they didn't dress up for every single thing in the calendar. People called me miserable but I was fed up with WBD, Comic Relief, Green Day (sadly not the band), Children in Need, Royal Wedding (mine went as Zombie Royalty), odd socks, jeans etc. We barely had a week free at Infants. I don't mind WBD but I like kids bringing in their favourite book, or being given a headband to decorate. Once we get into costumes, it really shows who has Amazon Prime, who is great in charity shops and whose parents really don't have money and/or time for these things. The sad child in uniform just shouldn't be a thing. And the other knock-on effect is that kids in costume get driven to school. The roads suddenly become filled with more cars and the areas around schools are full of parents dropping off kids in flamboyant impractical clothes. Someone's costume always gets damaged and there are always tears. Said Junior School had one dress up day a year as part of that year's themes. You got a whole year's notice of the date and you are expected to just use what you have. Bought costumes are almost frowned on. Vikings were trousers and a t-shirt with a belt or a shirt and belt. Nothing fancier.

My kid's school are rather wonderfully doing a 'come in clothes you would snuggle up in a book with in' day. Pyjamas, onesie, dressing gown, slippers. I'm so pleased they are trying to be inclusive with this.

Oh...and MA with a family of ASD 😊 Don't get me started on the low educational value and how much it affects those who need routine or have SPD. That's why we liked the one day event in your own clothes thing as you could plan for it months in advance. I used to work in primary and have to dress up. I've come up with characters that wear jeans and a stripey top with trainers or shoes: Mariella Mystery, anyone in Where's Wally, Charlie, James or Danny or any other Roald Dahl character one of the Famous Five/Five Find-outers (also good for skirt and blouse), Billionaire Boy could even wear school uniform 😂.

YANBU. World Book Day has nothing to do with reading and everything to do with supermarkets selling random dress up outfits that often have pretty spurious connections to books. Younger children don't make the connection to reading - they just think it's dressing up day. Also you can't inspire a love of reading by doing something once a year.
So glad my DC are at secondary now.

Fortunately I’m not in the boat but I do feel desperately sorry for all the parents who just haven’t got £10-15 per child (imagine having 3) for costumes. I always purchased my sisters children’s costumes, accessories and whatever else was needed- my sister just couldn’t afford it. But not everyone had that. I feel for the children, I can remember a kid in our class never did dress down day never dressed up never took part. I’ve always been a compassionate person and used to cry after school because he was left out.
If I was a teacher I would honestly have costumes to loan or ban it all together and promote and encourage reading in a million other ways.