4 year old freezing cold at school

[Owlsoutsidethewindow]

Just wondering if anyone would say something to school.
Temperatures are currently around -2c on average where I live. Yesterday DS (4, reception) came out of school looking upset. I asked what was wrong and she said she was cold. She had literally just walked out of a heated classroom.

As the hour went on, what had transpired is that she asked to go indoors or home at lunch time because she was freezing. She was wearing a vest, uniform, jumper, thick parka, earmuffs and gloves. The teacher was dismissive.
She doesn't generally run around when it is that cold because she knows the ground will be icy.

She then said she was cold all afternoon. She was physically cold to the touch when I felt her. No fever etc.
She didn't warm up until she had a bath, then she went to bed with fleecy PJs and a hot water bottle because she felt miserable.

Should I ask the school to make a warm area available for her to go to in these sorts of temperatures? It wouldn't surprise me at all if she was ill today when she woke up.
She probably also has the onset of a cold because 4 people in her class have been off this week, so playing out in freezing temperatures probably isn't ideal.

She isn't a child that ways stays inside generally, we have a dog and she comes on dog walks, we spend quite a but of time out and about in the woods, this time of year she is head to toe in waterproofs jumping in puddles with our dog. Not in minus degrees though because my arthritis says nope.

Try to start a craze for skipping? Do the school have skipping ropes or hula hoops the kids can use?

I would be asking if she could wear her winter boots at school (even just at lunch time in the playground) when the temperature is 0 or negative. And she needs a woolly hat and a neckwarmer/butf (scarf but just a fairly form fitting loop of fleece or similar so it’s not a strangulation hazard). There’s no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothes! Or something. Anyway I’d push for the school to relax uniform requirements during cold weather rather than push for inside space. It’s really important for the kids to get some light and air and exercise.
She probably is coming down with something as that’s why she got cold yesterday.

I work in schools and it's true that the children will usually go outside even if it's very cold. Some children ask to go inside, but we can't let them because there is no supervision. Most of the teaching assistants are outside as well and hate it. Most of the children are totally fine.

I would definitely send her in boots. I've never worked in a school that would actually care despite what the policy said especially in cold weather.

She is in a thermal vest. Problem is if I layer her up too much then she'll be boiling all morning and afternoon outside of lunch breaks.

But you’re complaining that she was cold all afternoon and still cold when you collected her. If you’d put another layer on her, she wouldn’t have got cold and this wouldn’t have happened. She can take her cardigan/jumper off if she’s too hot in class.

Fleecy thick hats and scarves are much warmer than ear muffs as well.

As a TA I hated being outside in freezing weather, would much rather be inside, unfortunately schools don't have the staffing levels to accommodate this and I understand that outdoor play is really important. I would always encourage children stood looking cold to get moving though, even if that meant skipping around the playground with them myself. I would also suggest putting a layer of thermals under her uniform.

I think hats, scarves and gloves make a big difference - but can get lost quite frequently and are faffy to put on for younger children. My daughter always seems to replacing them for her children.

My grandma was always saying same as pp above - no such thing as bad weather just bad clothes. Also, we're not made of sugar, when we didn't want to go out in the rain.

My granddaughter has ASD and is allowed to go to a staffed room called 'The Hive' at break times (she has no friends). She's allowed to take someone with her but no one is interested in fine weather. You'd be surprised how many children want to go with her when the weather is bad.

Omg. Is this real?

If she coming down with something being outside it the best thing fresh clean air.

Those people who say they won't go out on this weather are crazy. Fresh clean air is so invigorating, gives up energy, heats you up.

Just look at Scandinavian countries and Canadians

Look how healthy they are

How about those disposable hand warmers? Can you put a couple in her coat for her to use at break and lunch?

Children living in cold countries of op’s Dd age are likely to be putting on winter boots, lined snow trousers and hats to go outside.
But schools in this country are unlikely to have space to store.

I would say keeping feet, head, wrists and waist warm is key. Once your feet get cold or wet it’s hard to warm up, however many layers you are wearing.

Lined boots with a thick sole are best. An aluminium foil insole makes things even better.
And knee socks under trousers are almost as good as tights under, and much more comfy.
Always wear a hat, always zip up your coat. Make sure your vest is long enough and tucked in at the waist.
Make sure coats and jumpers are big enough, sleeves that are a bit short and expose the wrists will make you much colder.

HAhahaha going in and complaining will make you look like ‘that parent’ and your child a bit of a drippy drawers.
If she doesn’t want to run around she can do star jumps, skipping rope, run on the spot - slinking back inside (probably to technology) is not an option.

It’s tricky OP and the weather has been especially cold lately! I don’t think it’s unreasonable to expect an indoors space to kids to spend their breaks/lunch. DS’s school lets them stay indoors when it rains and they have their break in their classroom unless they want to go out.

I also remember always having access to spaces indoors when I was in primary and secondary school so it’s definitely not just the school DS attends!

How about those reusable hand warmers in her coat pockets, the ones that you click a bit of metal in the middle and they go solid and warm up, then you heat in water on the stove to reset? They tend to last 3-4 hours IIRC so she could pop them in her trouser pockets/tuck then in her waistband discretely if still cold after lunch break.

Mine wears black leather Chelsea boots to school. Sheepskin insoles in sized up boots work well.

Children in cold countries don’t just stay indoors all the time.

True, but the standard UK school uniform, ordinary school shoes plus a coat and ear muffs would not be considered weather appropriate. I live in Germany, which is not even that cold, but they do have a more "cold country type" approach to winter clothing than the UK, and we currently have sub-zero temperatures. I've had to learn an entire different language of clothes! For example, when I send my 5yo to Kindergarten with a short-sleeved t-shirt, they don't let him take his jumper off (indoors, where it's heated). Toddlers typically wear vests which button over the nappy until they are about 2-3, often long-sleeved, and tights, which are not seen as girls' clothing but as gender-neutral sensible warm weather wear. (There are a variety of "boyish" designs available, and several thicknesses). We had to start sending him in a long-sleeved top underneath the short sleeved t-shirt because they were unhappy. They have preferences about the thickness of trousers. They also would ABSOLUTELY not accept ordinary shoes in this weather - they are expected to come throughout the winter, but most definitely when it is cold, rainy, snowy or icy, with winter footwear, the like of which I have never seen a child wear in the UK and quite baffled me before I came here. They have expressed distaste at the fact that my 5yo's rain trousers (which he never wears anyway because he can't stand that layers-on-layers feeling) are not lined with fleece. I sent my 2yo in what I considered a winter coat, and they complained about this because it was not wintery enough. I did not realise that there were different levels of coat above the level of coat that he had (Luckily we had lots of hand me downs and I found something suitable in a cupboard).

They are expected to wear hat and scarf (young children have scarves which pull over their head like a snood) and gloves on top of all these other layers. I am not surprised your 4yo is cold. I would be freezing in just normal trousers and normal shoes, short sleeves (even with jumper on top) I used to hate breaktimes when I was at school as I feel the cold very easily. I feel like in the UK we have this strange idea that there are four possible layers of clothing: top, jumper, coat, vest. A coat is a coat, yes you might have a lighter raincoat and a "big coat" for winter, but this should be enough and it is not possible to be cold if you have all these layers on. Which is just bonkers XD

Picture examples included of the "Winterschuhe" and the unacceptable "Regenjacke" (which, to me, would be a winter coat - what they wanted was more of a padded skiing coat, with a waistband).

And yes, like a pp said, a proper hat, not earmuffs.

She does have a hat with her but she hates wearing it so she has the ear muffs too, as I'd rather she wore those than nothing. She does wear a scarf in, I forgot to mention that. Even though we've had to replace it 4 times because the same boy keeps putting holes in them (confirmed by teachers, somehow the mother is never informed though).

The handwarmers are a good idea, I will get some. She quite likes them actually as we took them on a chilly holiday last year, it hadn't crossed my mind to put them in her school bag.

HAhahaha going in and complaining will make you look like ‘that parent’ and your child a bit of a drippy drawers.
If she doesn’t want to run around she can do star jumps, skipping rope, run on the spot - slinking back inside (probably to technology) is not an option.

It is really strange that a grown adult would refer to a cold 4 year old as a drippy drawers. They're little kids? And why would they be going in to technology at school? The only tech they have in their classroom is a smart board that the teacher uses for lessons.

My daughter’s school must be the opposite as she’s always coming out with her jumper off!

TBF you're not getting vitamin d at all in winter!

In what world does a school send children out for an hour. It's usually 15 mins morning and afternoon with a longer lunch break that includes eating lunch.

Children have lots of energy to burn off, that's why they go out three times a day.

Oh Op I have a child in reception and I have the same gripe atm.

My son went to school on Tuesday with the start of a cold, he wanted to go in, I explained at drop off that he wasn’t feeling well but wanted to come in. I picked him up at home time and he was grey, cold to touch and immediately cried as soon as he saw me. He told me he felt so poorly and cold. He’d asked to go in at lunchtime but was told no. He was the same he couldn’t get warm and was layered up to the max for the evening and overnight. I kept him home in the warm Wednesday. He went back Thursday because he felt well enough.

M&S do really good thermal layers, long sleeved tops/leggings, or you could do two pairs of tights/socks. Like others are saying tho, she’s maybe also got something working on her.

Warm boots and double socks. I'm sending my daughter into school in fur lined ankle boots- I don't want her paralysed by cold in school. I checked the school uniform rules, and black boots are fine. But even if they weren't....

I’d be more concerned that a 4 year old isn’t keen to run about because she “knows it will be icy”, where has she got this fear from?

As others have said, long sleeved thermal under top, not just a vest, thermal tights, socks and boots. If her feet are cold, then the rest of her will be cold. I’m long enough in the tooth that I wouldn’t be asking school if she can wear weather appropriate footwear, she’d be wearing it, and school would be getting TOLD if they raise an issue…she doesn’t like hats? She’s not too young to learn about consequences…yes earmuffs are better than nothing, but here’s your hat, and if you din’t wear it, then don’t complain about being cold