To say that World Book Day should be about BOOK characters?!

[mrsbn1988]

This is lighthearted .

But AIBU for getting an irrational rage that there are kids dressed up as Elsa or Moana or Marvel someone every WBD?

This stems from the fact that I've just been looking for a WBD costume from a well-known supermarket and spotted a Bluey costume. Now don't get me wrong - I LOVE Bluey, but Bluey was created for TV. Same as Peppa Pig.

I KNOW there are story books around that feature these characters, but they were originally created for TV or film, so they don't count.

And yes, characters like Harry Potter do, because they were originally book characters before the film adaptions.

I'm interested to hear other's opinions. Is World Book Day just becoming an excuse for kids to dress up in their favourite fancy dress outfit without actually thinking about the book element?!

One of the reasons for world book day is to support children to grow a love of reading. Who cares if what they dress up as (if they dress up) is originally from a film or programme. Most of those characters now have books which helps to develop that love of reading. Does it really matter than they haven’t chosen a traditional character? Let them have fun, enjoy and use what they may already have.

as a side note, my son always went in own clothes as that was the kind of books he read

Marvel were comic books long before movies, the snow queen was an old fairy tale yabu

My DD's went as the worst witch most years, dead easy as it's school uniform plus witch hat and stuffed cat toy. One year managed to get permission to go as the kids from a dick king smith book (forgotten which one, not the sheep pig) and they took ddog, whose a sheep dog as trained pat dog

So s rew aspiration? Screw those kids parents who are low income but will Scrabble something together, and get books from thell library or charity shops. Screw those kids who'd be interested but their parents won't do it but there could be a work around. Just work to the lowest common denominator?

Thankfully when our head took over 7 years ago of a failing school in a deprived working class area on a rough estate, her and the SLT had higher ambitions. And she's local, she knows the area, impressive she took it on given I assume it's a fairly built-in low-level racist area. We missed excellent rating for attendance, and we beat a fair chunk of the MC schools. We don't even have a MC contingent to wheel out

Tons of opportunities for parental engagement, tons of opportunities for parents to get into the school and do stuff, all those kids go to the seaside once a year (middle of England and lots had never seen a beach when they started this), as many trips as they can and as subsidised as they can manage, books given out every Xmas, she's on the gate twice a day every day saying hello to every child, chatting to parents, class assemblies every term so the kids get used to speaking in public and again to get parents through the door. They're aware where the parental deficits are and do everything they can to ameliorate them.

Whereas you seem to think cos your MC child gets all that from home, it's better to let the WC kids wallow in their gutter.

Sorry, I should qualify my post @Arthurflecksfacepaint that I don't think wheeling out the nice kids or making stipulations on what's acceptable is ok. I think it needs to be done with sensitivity so they could allocate time in class to making something, have it totally open so anything goes etc. Same with science fair, art comp. Surely the answer is to find an inclusive work around not ban it cos the kids are too common to be able to cope with it.

Nope, that’s not what I think at all.

I just think it’s really bloody unfair on some of the children I see at the school whose parents don’t give a shit. And they are very vocal about not giving a shit.

And no, this school won’t be turned around. There are parents fighting everyday in the playground. It’s a hell hole.

We can’t even have summer/Christmas fairs or any thing with parents on site due to a couple of horrific incidences between parents when they did have them.

I’m glad your school turned around but the problems here run deep.

My kids WBD is a massive headache. Frankly they haven't got any book related costumes and I'm not about to buy one. If I actually remember not to send in school uniform it'll be a miracle. Has nothing to do with the fact that they read about 10 books a week!

Do you not think tho, that as a campaign in its own right, World Book Day is actually a colossal fail?

From a PR perspective, what are the actual campaign objectives about world book day? Because we never actually get told from the school what the year's theme is, or how it's being actually taught/addressed in school. Literally all we get told is, 'its dress up day for WBD, here's your voucher'.

The fact that it's seemingly the one campaign that everyone has a bloody scrap over every single year - wear a costume/don't wear a costume/paint a potato/handmade only costume/be a letter or a word/draw a picture of your favourite character etc - there's literally no possible way to keep anyone happy or remain on topic, without it descending into a bun fight.

The actual campaign itself, and the vouchers, making it accessible for all kids to get a new book is bloody brilliant. But the day seems to have evolved into competitive bullshit - primarily driven by parents, not teachers, who can't seem to accept anyone elses' views other than their own. This thread being an excellent example of that.

Personally, my way of celebrating WBD would be to simply encourage all kids to take in their favourite book/comic/whatever and be able to tell their peers why they like it. Perhaps with a book swap somehow incorporated, so kids can find new books that they may not have discovered anywhere else, that they know their friends have loved. But that's just me.

I just think as a PR campaign, WBD has become overly complex and the core messages are being lost.

yes, something like the science fair was a shit idea.

They should have done it in school time because it was a flop with yet again, only the same children being able to take part for whatever reason.

As an aside to that, when some of the children were carrying their project in through the playground that morning, they had other parents mocking them, shouting insults and being called “fucking swots.”

By parents. Not the other children. Just as an example of what I’m saying about what the school has to deal with from some of the parents.

But it isn't improving their tastes, it's adjusting th to what YOU think is superior.

Dav Pilkey is Def NOT on your approved list but he's adored by the kids he understands. He struggled at school with ADHD, he wrote the books he wanted to read, and some days i rather hate his prolific talent but there no denying he writes books that build a love of reading and imagination.

I'll take that over a kid plodding their way through Lord of the Rings because My thinks it's what they ought to read.

Happy to disagree with anyone looking down their nose at a CV young child for having their own opinion and values thanks

@Needmorelego I’ve read two of those graphic novels. They are decent books. Not everyone can or wants to read highbrow literature written in English, but WBD costumes based on comic books or Dis**y aren’t appropriate. It needs to be about more conventional children’s literature. Britain has a strong tendency toward tall poppy syndrome that needs to be stopped.

@thebellagio that's down to the school tho. Ours is no theme beyond what you want to dress up as our not (how do you dress up as a character without having fancy dress like some schools demand??) and then reading time at the start / end of school with parents (which would no doubt set off it's own thread about parents who work). Simple. They'll do lots of book stuff all day, maybe make a bookmark or similar. DS loves it so I'm biased. Give me a few years when I'm expected to make three outfits...

Yes yes yes to book snobbery.

For all those concerned by book snobbery, just yesterday, Matt Haig published a comment on Instagram about what causes boys (in particular) to stop reading

www.instagram.com/p/Co7i9sns13u/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

He makes a compelling point, that reading is no longer about being FUN. It's about being preached to. And having to learn something.

When I read authors like Marian Keyes, Carole Matthews, Monica McInerney, I'm not reading them to be taught a moral lesson. I read them for entertainment and for pleasure. To be immersed in someone elses' world.

THATS what WBD should be encouraging.

It's what JKR managed so phenomenally with the Harry Potter world.

But it isn't. You literally couldn't be more wrong on this. This year it falls on 2nd March 2023 and he theme for this World Book Day follows the message “You Are a Reader,” and there will be a focus on reaching children from disadvantaged backgrounds
You don't reach children who aren't huge readers by telling them everything they DO love isn't good enough. You build on the foundations of their interests.

You want to start your own day and only allow children to read high brow literature? Awesome, we love a good excuse for a free book and a dress up!

@Ericaequites I'm confused. You said schools should be encouraging children to 'better' their reading.
The child is repeatedly told "comics don't count" or "Spiderman isn't a book character" could turn away from their comic books and graphic novels and give up their joy of reading forever simply because they struggle with 'proper' books. The book world will have lost them forever by the time they are old enough to read Maus and they will claim to "hate reading".

Good to know DSs literary future 😂

Dav Pilkey’s work does not model good spelling, punctuation, or grammar. It doesn’t help young people to develop good taste or prosocial behavior. IHis books are not a good choice for children working on developing strong language skills.
I will desist now. My opinions are not welcome. There are well written books that are interesting to young readers. Ite media via.

Haha I suspect we'll end up that one, the pigeon one, and the brain one. DS is on a mission to end up with as many of them as possible normally

I tried everything I could think of to get DS to go as a ‘book’ character. In the end we’ve gone for a generic ninja costume as it bridges Lego and books like “There’s a Ninja in my Book”. We are passionate readers in our house and my mum always made a big effort for WBD when I was a child but frankly I’d rather DS went to school feeling good about his costume than creating stress about something that’s essentially fun.

@SleepingStandingUp The Beano is the best.
My daughter dressed as Minnie The Minx for WBD in Year 2. All the teachers thought it was a fantastic costume 🙂

@SleepingStandingUp my (now 14) year old probably won't be interested in this year's £1 books so maybe I will use her voucher for You Choose for nostalgia's sake.
We used to love it 🤣

I don’t think it matters if the book came first before tv/film or the other way around - but there needs to be a book.

Do you understand that some children and adults read for pure, unadulterated pleasure? Not as a form of education? Because he has that at school, his school reading scheme books, thel library books he gets from school etc. But because it's a crazy fantasy world where you can make buildings come alive and eat people!!

I'm more concerned about the Keeping Them In Their Place culture.

I read constantly as a child. I'd do a school reading book a night and then go on to any other books I could lay my hands on - newspapers, the dictionary, the Bible, the London A-Z, my mother's nursing medical encyclopaedia, my brother's reference books about films and music, Haynes Manuals, Greek Mythology - if it existed, I'd read it.

But what made my heart soar with the possibilities, the morality, the Hero's Journey, was the drama of Comic Books and films. They are what moved me and spurred me on when my everyday life was deeply unpleasant.

You look down on that - but that idea, to keep going when all seemed lost, that doing what was right and that, with great power came great responsibility - that was what comforted and encouraged me.

But they're just not 'proper literature', right?