Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

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

698 replies

LumpenProletariat · 17/02/2022 09:18

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

OP posts:
Samcro · 17/02/2022 10:44

@shouldistop

And why is it costly specifically for working parents?
this
SmallPrawnEnergy · 17/02/2022 10:44

I find certain families just use it as an excuse to dress up and show off. One a few years ago sent her kid in as Elsa from frozen with a crap 10 page “book”, bullshit. She just wanted to dress as a princess, you’ve pandered to the princess and vaguely covered the “book” aspect. Not really sending the right message about reading is it?

TinselTitsAndGlitteryBits · 17/02/2022 10:44

@Filthyslattern

Anything schools do to bring a bit of joy gets moaned about .
Exactly. God forbid the kids have a bit of fun dressing up.
Ozanj · 17/02/2022 10:44
  • It's a complete waste of time. I've been a teacher for 27 years and a mother for 18 and have yet to meet a child who didn't like reading but changed once they'd dressed as Hagrid.*

My brother was one. Hated reading when he was 6 (he started early at 3 and was really good and I think it’s because he hated standing out) but loved watching a totally age-inappropriate movie that I watched with him because I loved the book. I dressed him up because mum never did. Then that night I saw him reading my copy of the book which was probably ten years too advanced for him & understanding the key themes. WBD pretty much helped him to finally stop being ashamed of his intelligence which was a big turning point in his life.

Iwantthesummersun · 17/02/2022 10:44

As a teacher I hate dress in your pjs for World Book Day. I have no desire to wear pjs to work, nor do I own ones which are suitable. Lots of book and reading activities are great but I’m not a fan of any dressing up. However, every time it’s not done there are always parental complaints.

SarahAndQuack · 17/02/2022 10:46

@Legoisthebest

SarahAndQuack that's true the vouchers could be being used in the supermarket/Waterstones/WHSmith. I often notice in those retailers the books left unclaimed on the WBD stand are the ones for older children/teens. I would love to know why. I often buy the books for myself because I like the authors (ones bought for myself in the past include the Alex Rider one and the Cherub one). I actually bought the Sophie Mackenzie that's out for this year yesterday because I like her teen books. If I was 13 or 14 I would be overjoyed to have got a book by my favourite author for free. Yeah.... something has gone wrong with World Book Day.
It could perfectly well be that a 13/14 year old who enjoys reading has simply already figured out how to get books they want. Which doesn't solve the problem that some children might enjoy reading if they tried, but don't want to try and so don't take the books, I know.
MissMaple82 · 17/02/2022 10:46

That should just read 'for parents'

TheYearOfSmallThings · 17/02/2022 10:47

DS(7) enjoys all these special days, and I'm glad the school does them, because soon enough school and life get serious and dull.

But yes, last week they had "wear purple for mental health" and then "dress as an inspirational person". And next is World book day, and red nose day... None of these things are a problem individually, but I live in fear of the day I drop a plate and we turn up in the playground with DS in uniform when everyone else is dressed as amoebas or Weather.

ThettaReddast · 17/02/2022 10:47

I quite enjoy it, I tend to go with quite simple options like sewing ears and a tail onto a hoodie etc. Our school also has the ‘come in pyjamas option’.

Several people have mentioned binning costumes after which I don’t get, you pass them along surely? Our PTA collect in world book day costumes and offer them out when they do uniform stands (take what you want/need, no cost).

OnceuponaRainbow18 · 17/02/2022 10:48

I’m planning on reusing my sons shepherd outfit I had to get for his nativity play, luckily it was £1.50 from a Charity shop

ghostyslovesheets · 17/02/2022 10:48

It’s a pain but it doesn’t have to cost loads - DD 1 went as Catniss in my leather jacket, black jeans/t shirt and a bow and arrow from Poundland and dd2 did a fab Tardis with a pillowcase from Morrisons and some poster paint!

ldontWanna · 17/02/2022 10:51

@TinselTitsAndGlitteryBits if it's all about fun and joy then why do schools ask for £1 and set specific themes/books?

Legoisthebest · 17/02/2022 10:52

SarahAndQuack what I meant by 'gone wrong' is that WBD has become more about costumes/put your favourite word on a t-shirt/turn a potato into a book character etc rather than actually reading books.
Also by focusing on 'favourite character' it's completely ignoring non fiction books - which many children that say they "hate reading" actually really enjoy.

TinselTitsAndGlitteryBits · 17/02/2022 10:53

@Fluffyhairteddy

Why does the world have to be driven by what’s easiest for working parents, the race to the bare minimum - extend school hours, fewer holidays, no dress up days? Winds me up. I work. I also dress up all my kids for world book day cos they love it and it helps with reading engagement.
This is spot on.

Children enjoy dressing up, it's harmless fun - it gets them talking about their character/story, gets them excited, is something to look forward too...

Not everything in the school day has to be about cramming knowledge down their throats.

Iamtheweedonkey · 17/02/2022 10:54

Hate wbd, would always do homemade outfits for the kids, the kids who won the best dressed prizes wore shop bought outfits. I hate it as a teacher, normally told about a week before, at most, that this is happening, has to be a theme of a whole year group dress up, usually on an obscure book the classes are reading. Luckily I'm now a cover teacher throughout whole school, so won't really get involved. However, I am very much an advocate for reading and the encouragement of reading different media, will encourage children to read comics, magazines and so on as well as books.

angstridden2 · 17/02/2022 10:55

The school I taught always did WBD in various forms each year including bring your Teddy to read to and wear your pjs.I loathe dressing up but it was great to suspend the curriculum for the day and for the children to be excited about books and the activities around them. Having a real live author to visit or a storyteller was a highlight.

There should be fun in school, it doesn’t need to cost much and as people say on this thread why must it be a race to the bottom. Yes, some families will find it a challenge for financial reasons (although as has been said most of us can cobble something together with a bit of imagination and tv or internet inspiration) but most won’t. Children take effort, most people can manage it even if at times it’s a bit of a pain. Why suck the joy out of childhood? Lord knows, the rigidity of today’s curriculum and timetables does that quite effectively already.

Bunnyfuller · 17/02/2022 10:57

Hated this when mine were at these ages. Utterly devoid of imagination, book day, superhero day, Harry Potter day…they were endless, crap for the environment and a ridiculous waste of money. People saying ‘but just send them in….’ have obviously either not had kids or not had their kids kicking off because everyone else will be in a ‘real’ costume.

Don’t blame the events, blame the schools for making it dress up day. There’s nothing that says that’s how it should be done. A Bring your Favourite book day would make it actually worthwhile.

Can’t believe they’re still peddling this rubbish.

Bookworm20 · 17/02/2022 10:57

YANBU

I took the op's comment about being a solo working mum as simply you have very little time anyway and sorting a costume is just faff you could do without. Obviously just as frustrating for SAHM parents but generally you'd have more time to put to it.

First couple of years it was fun, now and 5 dc in its a total PITA. And yes it IS costly. And no they don't go in as their favourite book character, they go in as whatever costume I've managed to fling together.

It goes a bit like this
Me: You have a spiderman costume! Hooray, you can go as spiderman. We have a book here with spiderman in it too!
DC6: But that isn't my favourite book
Me: Today it is
DC6: But I haven't even read it

What would be far far more useful if the DC took in their actual favourite book, not one that just happened to have a character in we had a costime for, and perhaps explained to the class why its their favourite and read a bit from it? I thought that was the point. But does seem the dressing up bit has totally taken over.

And some of the costumes of the other dc! But the school has encouraged it because there is a prize for the best costume. And EVERY year the prize goes to a dc who is wearing a very expensive looking store bought costume. EVERY year.

MonkeyPuddle · 17/02/2022 10:57

@Ozanj stick cotton wool balls to him?

Usernumber5253747293 · 17/02/2022 10:57

I have one child that won't even dress up 😅

Buy Dd loves it.

I agree it can be costly. I have world book day and some history dress up day in the same week.

Many parents see fab at making stuff out of what they have or can get cheap. I am not! I am the least creative person you can find it. So I buy something on Amazon that they wear once.

Saying that, I don't mind world book day too much as Dd is likely to wear the costume again. It's the Viking, Roman, Greek days I can't stand as the costumes get worn once 😅

Lovemusic33 · 17/02/2022 10:59

I’m not a fan of any dress up days.

I agree with you OP, I do think it’s costly and more so for working parents who may not have the time to make a costume so have to resort to buying a outfit online. I dread getting the text from school about book day or any other dress up day, luckily my dd is now older and refuses to dress up anyway, she just goes in non uniform and takes a book with her.

TinselTitsAndGlitteryBits · 17/02/2022 11:01

[quote ldontWanna]@TinselTitsAndGlitteryBits if it's all about fun and joy then why do schools ask for £1 and set specific themes/books?[/quote]
No idea why certain schools do that.

The schools around here don't charge £1, nor do they set themes.
They encourage creativity and genuinely just want the kids to have a good time.

shouldistop · 17/02/2022 11:01

@Exhausteddog

My kids seemed to have Greek and roman day in mid winter. Come dressed in a toga. There would be an earnest message in the email - please don't feel you have to buy a costume - an old sheet is fine

.. but I've got no idea how to make an old sheet into a wearable toga for an 8 year old suitable for temperatures of less than 10°. Confused
Needless to say just about no one was wearing an old sheet!

Would you not just put it over their clothes? Confused
BertieBotts · 17/02/2022 11:02

If I've cut up clothing or drawn on it with Sharpies etc to make a costume then I have binned stuff later because you can't really hand on something crappy like that which will fall apart in the first wash.

If I bought a real costume then I'd sell it or pass it on to a friend.

ThePlantsitter · 17/02/2022 11:02

@sarahandquack there is an established link between reading for pleasure and academic success (moreso even than socioeconomic status). It's not a moral judgement.