World Book Day

[empee47]

AIBU to say that World Book Day is pointless? Its main purpose is to encourage a love of reading - which I can’t argue with at all - but it’s become all about the costume and nothing about the book. It doesn’t appear to encourage reluctant readers at all. The main focus is now the costume - I think we should be moving away from so much focus on appearance. It causes stress and anxiety for parents and children alike and disengagement from the actual purpose of enjoying a book. Particularly interested in teachers’ views.

Mine just went in a football kit with a football book. Easy.

He's grown out of his Spiderman dress up now but for several years, he was always Spiderman.

I just always use what we have so never had to buy anything or feel stressed about it.

It sounds like your school isn’t managing it in a very inclusive way.

I absolutely LOVE World Book Day! I love books, love reading, English Literature degree, 8yr old with a reading age of a teenager, reads all the classics, reads an hour a night.....still managed to dress up as.....the Mandalorian!! Haha! But he chose it, and he's happy and it's fun! So no, you really can't tell which families "read" by the costumes!
Our school has an author visit for the day who has done parent workshops, special assemblies and class visits. It's been wonderful, my little one in reception has been amazed!

I can’t stand it. I love reading, both of my children read for pleasure, we’re a book and story loving house!

It’s not an inclusive thing to do. Many children with additional needs struggle with costumes, and even if not, the change from normal routine that a dress up day brings can be completely deregulating. It’s interesting, attendance figures amongst children with additional needs are unsurprisingly lower on these sorts of dress up days than on normal uniform days. There’s a reason!

Then you get to the children whose families are socially, economically or otherwise disadvantaged. Not so easy to just rustle up a costume for them so they’re not left out, is it?

But it’s all good fun! No, not for everyone.

Oh but they can all just not take part if they don’t want to!! Just come in their normal uniform!

Hmmm. How inclusive. Not.

I wish schools would bin off dress up days altogether. They could do WBD still. Children could bring in their favourite book, comic - whatever - and if there is anyone who doesn’t have access then they could choose one from the school library. There’s a ton of fun activities that could be thought of around children’s favourite books and encouraging reading. Costumes are a completely unnecessary part of it and actually take away from the whole point of the thing!

My kids school has a come in pajamas day instead, with lots of lying around on bean bags being read to. They also ask people to donate outgrown books and set up a free 'book shop' in the Hall for the kids to choose from.

WBD is the only dressing up day my school does. I do think more than one a year is too many. What is the answer for inclusivity though? So many children loved it today. Several SEND children did not. What is the answer there? (And yes we allow own clothes/uniform/pyjamas and try to be as inclusive as we can generally. Children with SEND actively move to our school from others). Do we never dress up at all?

There are baby books woth spiderman in them

Loads of child friendly book with spiderman

In my younger daughters school.

Each class was given a flag and they had to wear colours from that flag- so yellow and red for mine.

Older daughter they have to dress as Mr Men and Little Miss characters.

And lots pf book related activities

Why flags?

Exactly 😂
It's not World Flag Day 🙄

My kids loved it. They made masks out of cereal boxes for their chosen characters (the older one usually refuses craft of any kind) and they were so excited to see all their friends’ costumes at school (we usually get tears at drop off but my youngest skipped in).

I love WBD. I don’t think it necessarily ‘encourages reading’ for all kids, but even if it doesn’t, it is fun for lots of them. Not everything kids do has to have a purpose ‘worthier’ than being fun!

I do get it’s an extra thing for parents to afford or organise - but I actually think it’s one of the easier ones as it’s pretty ‘broad’ and anyway we should be affording and organising things that enhance our kids’ lives. I get that some children don’t like it - but they all like different things, there are loads of different activities that come around over the school year. Do we never do anything fun in case it’s not somebody’s cup of tea?

I loved today as one of my reluctant readers finally found a book she enjoyed today and was going to get her mum to get her a copy after we had a free reading afternoon.

You can always say no and talk about a character from a book he likes?

It's the parents that allow this that make it rubbish.

My favourite was a mother I knew who forgot until the morning of World Book Day.

She hastily cut head and arm holes in a cardboard box, drew doors on the front with a marker pen and her son went as the wardrobe from The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe 😂

Terrible parents, here... We hadn't realised it was World Book Day so the little man went to pre-school in his usual uniform. DH is an English teacher, as well 🤣

That said, we have a mini library in the house (6 or 7 bookcases full, I think) including lots of books for the little man. He gets at least three stories every night before bed, and, if we're with him during the day, we usually read to him then, as well. Library trips are every couple of weeks (usually take 6-10 books).

So, yeah, we're big on books but must have looked like we didn't care about it, when he rocked up at nursery this morning 😬

I love it as a parent and as a teacher! In my school the whole day revolves around fun reading activities and we also have extra reading focused off-timetable things throughout the whole week of World Book Day. Dressing up makes the day itself more of an event and a celebration of reading, the kids come in so excited!

And for all those suggesting ‘just let them come into school in Pyjamas’, I have several children in my class with SEN who would be horrified at wearing pjs to school because ‘Pyjamas are for night time’, so we really can’t win!

At my DCs school world book day seems no different to when I was at school. In fact I’d say the costumes are actually more dialled down overall than when I was at school

I think it’s a bit of fun. It is something for the kids who are creative, who enjoy putting together a fun costume, making props and so on at home.

Sporty kids get constant chances to shine, as do those who are very academic. Kids who like to perform do get a few chances, but what about those whose creativity is more of this visual kind? They don’t get anything much.

My kids both really enjoy WBD - they’re both getting to do it at their secondaries this year. They’re not super arty but DD in particular likes having a vision and making it happen. DS needs a bit of help still but mostly sorted his himself.

I think there should be a rule of no bought costumes, or at least that bought costumes can’t win any kind of competition. And by all means simple outfits should be welcome for those who don’t feel creative - as PPs have said, there are loads of books that involve a child in normal clothes as a character- or often a simple prop makes it a discernible costume.

You think that’s bad at one of our local schools they held a hat day! Every year the children had to make a hat at home to wear the next day. Cue all the parents racing around the street to beg for glue/glitter/coloured card/anything that remotely looked hat shape!

We had a lovely WBD today with nursery. It was bring your favourite book to share with friends and no pressure to dress up. DD had a WBD jumper on that’ll hopefully do her next year as well. I don’t like the hype of it all being about the dress as your fave book character 💖

I got something on Vinted for a couple of quid and made a mask to go with it for Funny Bones
you don’t need to spend £15 on a supermarket costume

That is shocking and there is absolutely no excuse for it. Books are available in charity shops for a few pence. The parents should be thoroughly ashamed.