to think it is far too cold to have children going to school with bare legs?

[MollyRoger]

I have noticed 3 or 4 children (boys and girls) at ds's primary school with bare legs this week.
I have been through the stages of children demanding to wear superman outfits at nativity plays and wearing wellies in heatwaves in August, so i know sometimes you have to pick your battles but, FFS!
Last week, it was minus 7 and 8, and these children were wearing tiny pinafore dresses, and bare legs and wellies. The snow was actually deeper than any children's wellies.
2 boys had shorts on. We walk a mile home and my ds was complaining his legs (which had thermals under his trousers) were cold so god knows how these children were feeling.
Just

I've just asked DS what he's wearing to school tomorrow:

• my uniform - derr, mum
• ok, but do you want to wear jogging bottoms instead of shorts (we don't possess school trousers)
• whaddya think?
• er, I don't know, that's why I'm asking you, you can wear the jogging bottoms if you want since it's a bit cold
• shorts, derr mum.

So when I get the evil eye tomorrow at the school gate (cos I will be wrapped up warm and will not be wearing shorts) this is why.

We have done a lot of long walks recently (after the first snow but not the second lot) and I insisted on shorts for those, as walking in wet muddy trousers is so manky, so he's used to it).

god help anyone who sends their child to school in shorts at my daughters school. I sent her in uniform (skirt, tights, shirt and sweatshirt) with a fleecey jumper AND a mac styly fleece lined coat. The teacher came out at the end of the day in front of all the parents waiting and said daughters name has come in inappropriate clothing today as she was complaining of being cold could you see that she is appropriatly dressed tomorrow. If someone turned up in shorts Im sure she would have social services out before the end of the day.

is it obvious I dont really like the teacher much anymore?
This was before all the snow etc as well!.

I am a bit at this. Growing up in Sweden I am used to long cold winters and dressing up warm. You'd never see a Scandinavian child walk down the street in shorts. Of course you don't get a cold just because you freeze, but you are more susceptible to all the viruses doing the rounds. Letting your child decide what to wear in sub-zero temperatures I think is very odd. Sometimes we have to be the adult don't we?
My children don't walk in wet muddy trousers either, they have proper watertight outdoor trousers we buy in outdoor shops like Cotswolds.

Are you going to get her a liberty bodice, Fernie? Not sure what else you can put on her!

aren't waterproof trousers sweaty? The ones I've had are always a bit yuk for proper walking. Things may have moved on though.

FairyMum, my DS will be in shorts as usual but given that the outdoor bits of his day tomorrow will be the few minutes in the playground before school starts and breaktime, I don't think he'll freeze. It might be different if he were going to walk to school, had to wait for hours at a busstop or was outside all day but like many other children that isn't how his day actually works out.

If a child is wearing normal clothes including a warm coat, possibly a hat and gloves, warm socks and appropriate footwear they are not going to freeze because their knees are showing. This is England, not Sweden. If my DS was cold he would tell me, or more likely just put some more clothes on.

Well, my children spend a lot of time outside so I am not just talking about a 5 minute walk to school. People who like the outdoors and spend a lot of time outside probably does have proper clothes for their children. The children I see with very little clothes on are never the ones who look healthy outdoorsy kids to be honest. I suppose its a money-issue too. If you don't have much money you cannot afford proper winter clothes because it costs money and you have to settle for cheaper fabrics.

hMM. I know about not having money, believe me. I'd settle for goosegrease and newspaper before i'd let a 6-yr-old of mine run about in minus temperatures on a daily basis.

"Brettgirl I know kids used to go bare foot, but i raher think things have moved on a little.
Perhaps they should be cleaning out a few chimneys on the way home to keep warm?"

Possibly, or maybe they should just keep warm by getting picked up outside their centrally heated school in the people carrier?

Let's just keep a bit of perspective eh?

I wouldn't argue with a kid of 7/8 about wearing tights, at the end of the day they know if they are too cold. Personally when I was that age I'd rather put up with cold for 5 minutes than put up with the itching on the back of my legs against the chair. Maybe tights have moved on too?

id not send my kids to a school where they made boys where shorts
tis all pretentiosu wankage

have three of them and have had ONE pair of ripped trousers in 7 years of sch

I'm going to call social services

my little boys are in shorts and knee socks
vest shirt sweatshirt coat hat mittens scarf wellies

I agree with Fairymum.
I lot of people don't seem to realise that being cold is actually VERY BAD for our bodies - it does "toughen up" children - it makes them more likely to get ill.
I get really angry when I see children inappropriately dressed for this weather. It seems to be a very British thing that it's ok to be cold.

DS1 went through two years of refusing to wear anything but shorts, even in freezing cold weather, he was no more ill than before or since.
Of course, if we lived in the Arctic circle, I think I would insist on trousers

this school isn't private, shorts are an option for the SUMMER uniform, as are ankle socks.

Ah well, it's character-building, innit!

Ds's school uniform is shorts and long socks. On cold days they wear their tracksuit bottoms over their shorts. I will fight to get ds to do this tomorrow and probably fail.

DS is never cold though, he never says he is cold when asked and his skin is never cold to the touch, always warm. He is like a mini furnace. He is currently in bed in shorts and t-shirt and will have kicked off his doona and be a bit sweaty when I go to check on him.

He does however feel the heat quite a lot, anything over say 25 and he is dehydrating quickly and getting sweaty and has passed out before. It is bizarre for an Australian kid. Have no idea what I am going to do with him when we move home this year.

YABU. And a bit judgey.

My DS is 7.6 and he wears bermuda type shorts, that are just above his knees, with socks that come just above the ankle. He is one of only two children in his class who wear shorts in winter, but he prefers them. He insists he isn't cold on his legs, and I do have trousers for him if he wants them (3 pairs still with the tags on). He never gets ill, and has never had a day off school.

He wears a vest, polo shirt, sweatshirt, coat, hat and gloves and he wears wellies to school. He has three pairs of clean socks in his school bag every day, so he can change them after every playtime if they get wet. He travels to school by car-share. The school is (too) hot inside so if he was layered up in leggings and trousers he would overheat.

Would I let him walk the mile and half to school like this? No, because I know his legs would get too cold.

Would I let him if the snow was over welly-height? No, because I know the school would probably stop him from playing outside.

When we go sledging or building a snowman, he is fully layered up in long joggers and waterproof trousers.

His needs and comfort have been comprehensively considered and provided for.

Neglect? For fucks sake!

er, where did I say neglect?

Quite right, MollyRoger. It was another poster who used the word neglect. Didn't mean to imply that you'd said it - I was kind of directing my reply in general, but realise it didn't look like that. Apologies.

But YA still BU

dear prudence phew!

prudence are oyu in shorts?
fuck me some folk are dumb