Kate Silverton Instagram – World book day ! A wonderful way for our children to celebrate the characters they love and have a fun day out of uniform – playing dress up !
BUT
For some children – the pressure to ‘perform’, to ‘be something else’, to be stared at, potentially laughed at ( the child’s fear ). For children whose parents do not have the means to buy ‘fancy’ costumes, or the time to create an elaborate outfit, the uniform pressure to ‘dress up’ can create unnecessary anxiety – and for parents who already have enough to juggle admin wise !
So what’s the answer ? We all want to promote the power of the word – and encourage children to read
And as a child therapist I always advocate for play – but play should not be conditional, and it should not be ‘for show’ …
Giving children the choice, allowing WBD to be something that is child-led … is key … I’d like to see those children for whom dressing up is fun have the choice to do so, and those who wish to ‘come as they are’, to come as themselves, or to wear pjs or comfy clothes to denote how lovely it is to snuggle up with a book … to feel comfortable to do the same
Thanks to @thejuggle for promoting the debate and do let me know your thoughts in the poll below
Should we encourage active choice for children on #worldbookday with an emphasis on creating homemade outfits that don’t take huge time to create, and on choice to wear comfy clothes and ‘come as we are’ but bringing a drawing of our favourite book with us too
#parenting #world #worldbookday #schools
World book day – should children have the choice to come as they wish ? | Posted on 06/Mar/2024 17:51:50
