Writing on Uniform?

[Guest]

Lots of them added mobile/home phone numbers and email addresses next to their signatures/messages on my daughter's shirt as well.

[guest11]

i am 35 and i can remember writing on shirts in my day! i sadly no longer have anything to remember my schools friends by as my mum threw everything out! and i was so cross with her, so please don't throw your childs memories away, my son is going to be split up with lots of his friends in july, and i know promises are made about keeping in touch ,but rarely is the case, and i think it is great that teachers join in with this tradition, what a wonderful way to remember your school friends, don't forget if like my son, some of your childrens friends will have been part of thier lives since playschool days.

[Year 6 Mum]

Writing on shirts I can deal with, did it at senior school, still had autograph book in my day at primary(showing my age now). It's the rest of it I have a problem with (financially and getting my head around it all at age 11) -
prom at local hotel (limo to prom, new dress, shoes, etc etc), day out at theme park, leavers performance at school etc etc That's before you even get started on new uniform....

[solimum]

Certainly a full "prom" at age 11 complete with limo seems over the top - my daughter (now year had a "leavers party" in the junior school hall where the girls dressed up (high street dresses, quite nice really given that most of the girls live in jeans out of school the rest of the time!) and the boys wore shirts and ties. They each decorated their own tables and the teachers were the waiters/waitresses. Shirt signing again - if you're worried about the signed shirt being smelly they can wear it loose over a plain t-shirt. Residential activity week - brilliant - always a shame that one or two children were unable to go because they (or their parents...) couldn't face being away from home. As for the leavers perfomance (complete with the obligatory "impressions of teachers" ) - barely a dry eye in the house. It is quite an emotional time - and don't forget that as mothers in particular, if you are used to meeting children at the local school and chatting in the playground the change to the more independent, distant secondary school can be a major "trauma" when the last child moves up (sob!)

[another year 6 mum]

It is also 'the done thing' in my daughter's primary school. My son, who has asperger's syndrome and is a strict rule follower rather than a custom follower, even joined in last year. My daughter has worn a summer dress all term but as her school colour is yellow, and yellow school dresses are like gold dust, she will be wearing her old winter uniform on the last day and the precious summer dresses will be sold on ebay.

[ANDREW THE POET]

My son's school actually provides ONE 'shirt' for everyone to sign. This is then printed-out x number of times so everyone can have a copy. No idea how this works in practice, but I guess it gets over having 60 demob-happy Year 6 children running around the school with its nice white walls armed with LARGE permanent markers!
(It probably makes the school a few quid too!)

[Kent Mum]

My daughter has the shirt in her wardrobe which everyone signed on the last day of Primary (she's year 9 now). I sent her in a cheap £1.99 white polo t-shirt from QS, as white polos were part of the uniform.
They all got given lovely leavers' books as well, and also got teachers & others to sign those- but the t-shirt thing seems to be something of a Badge of Honour!
I know a couple of kids in her class just took in a spare t-shirt to get signed, not the ones they were wearing.

[ex y6 teacher]

It really is the done thing, although as an ex Y6 teacher I do remember worrying about the less popular children, who had fewer 'autographs' from their peers.

My colleagues and I always made a beeline for these shirts, encouraging children to follow our example and sign alongside. Following this strategy meant that even the most unpopular child shared the illusion of having lots of friends who would miss them and left Y6 walking tall.

I'm sure you'll agree this is a really good reason for teachers to sign shirts - apart from the fact that we genuinely enjoy sending our best wishes to children many of us had seen 'grow up' from Reception.

[Sally-Anne]

Hi ex yr6 teacher

That is a lovely post - thank you! I wish you weren't an EX year 6 teacher!

My son's school did the same ritual, and in fact the teacher took a photo of the class and had it printed on to white t-shirts, all of which she paid for herself, as she was leaving the school that term as well. They were her leaving gift to the children.

It was a very touching gesture, and the t-shirt is still hung up in my son's bedroom, just as any other souvenir or memento would be proudly displayed.

Sally-Anne