School shoes with flashing lights!

[Nonky]

Hello my son is desperate for school shoes with flashing lights. Normally I would say no and get him some that without as they would probably be cheaper but it is his first year at school and I'm trying to make it as positive experience as I can (for us all!). I find clarkes shoes poor quality and can't seem to find any flashing shoes by other brands. Does anyone have any links to some please? Many thanks!

On behalf of the rest of the teaching profession, can I please say dear god, please no!

I am the teaching profession. I have been a primary school teacher for 10 years as is my husband and most of our friends

I hate the bloody things! They're almost as much of a pain as those shoes with the integrated wheels. I'm hoping that trend will pass asap! I don't know, each to their own, maybe my tolerance for distraction-inducing footwear is lower as I'm secondary where they seem to latch on to anything (the rain, an insect in the classroom, someone's new hairband etc) as an excuse to not do anything remotely connected with actual learning

Start rite do some in the girls range but the lights HAVE to be turned off at the dc school. I never allowed my two to have them

They aren't suitable for school imo - too distracting at carpet time etc.

Even if they can be turned off, you couldn't trust the average 4 year old not to fiddle with the on/off button. AND I once had to return a pair of flashing Start Rites because the 'off' button stopped working . (I only bought them because they were the only pair left in the shop that fitted at the end of August, would never buy another pair, for school anyway.)

Thank you for your advice. I almost forgot that going to school was meant to be fun. I am obviously in the wrong profession

I think that flashing lights is harmless in reception. Some people get far to up their own arses. Reception is very different to secondary school or even the rest of primary.

DD is supposed to have black school shoes for state school nursery. Unfortunately she has size 6 feet and I cannot find any to fit her. She is going to school in pink trainers that have flashing lights. Schools for toddlers are very expensive and I would rather dd outgrows her shoes before they are replaced. Thankfully our head teacher has small children and is sympathetic.

Nonky I would love dd to have you as a teacher.

I'm sure you're right really - primary/reception very different. School is meant to be fun, but I guess in secondary learning always comes first. Different perspectives and I will be the first to hold my hand up and say I couldn't do primary for all the money in the world, give me 30 marauding teenagers any day of the week, flashing shoes or not

loads of kids where these in primary school, its not an issue i dont think. ds3 has some trainers with lights, they are sketchers, we got them in brantano i think for a reasonable price, he loves them. he will get shoes for school but will wear the flashing light trainers for pe. i have never heard of a school objecting to shoes with flashing lights.

i dont really like them and this is the first pair any of mine have ever had, but they seem good quality nad ds3 loves them :)

But fun can be had without flashing footwear

I would have thought that leaning to pay attention (when necessary) would be easier without distractions such as electronic devices on your feet, but I guess teachers will have differing opinions on stuff like this, as evidenced by this thread! I suppose it's not a big deal in the grand scheme of things.

I remember the flashing shoes being very big in the 90's. DD has a pair of flashing black school shoes from Clarks. I hate them but she loves them.

Reception/ nursery is a gentle introduction to school. These children are only four years old. There is no formal learning in reception as everything is play based. A typical reception class is more like a playgroup than a secondary school.

In a reception classroom children are doing far more fundermental learning than secondary school. There is a lot of truth in the experession that secondary school teachers teach a subject, but primary schools teachers teach children. Reception teachers teach children the routines of school and social skills.

My son's primary school becomes a lot stricter about uniform when children enter key stage 2. At secondary school level, it is quite right that teachers don't give teenagers an inch.

They sell them in Clarks and if your son is really lucky they may also have them with a toy hidden under the insole, this is what my sons look out for :)