WMS DRESS CODE IS REVISED...IS CLEAR!
Got a dollar bill? It's easy to tell if your shorts are too short to wear to school. That fingertip rule never worked, and teachers waste so much teaching time when they have to send students to the office because they have decided break the school's dress code.
So, how do you check the lengths of those short shorts and short skirts? Just take a dollar bill and place it length-wise (long side) just above the knee. When the student is standing, make sure the bottom hem of the shorts can touch the top edge of the dollar bill. The nice thing about this method is that you can check the lengths of garments before you leave your home or whenever you are out shopping for something new. This new measure is becoming a national trend, and we are going to try it here at WMS in hope that fewer people will be distracted by shorts and skirts that are too short.
If you find yourself up in arms about tops that are too adult for school, remember the two-fingers and three-fingers rule for shoulders does not always work. The good rule of thumb is that shoulders are covered so that no undergarment straps are visible--ever. The finger rule only worked if the shoulder straps were in the same areas as the undergarments. It's distracting to see how many colors of straps a person can wear under a tank top! Frankly nobody needs to know colors or quantity! Now that straps are covered, let's talk about necklines. If you take a yard stick and hold it so its edge is even with both armpits when arms are down at your sides, do you see any skin below the yardstick? Is that a yes? Well, that's the top that should probably be kept at home for evenings or weekends. This is not a school rule, but it's a guideline that many schools adopted last year with huge success.
Everyone wants to be successful at school--get good grades and be liked by teachers and peers. However, middle school students need structure and strong advice sometimes. They need help finding wisdom and recognizing that some limits are a good thing. We don't have school uniforms, and when our students do come to school with outfit disasters of many natures, faculty and administrators are very kind and discreet about helping young people solve those clothing problems. In my class, I will be kind to people who need wardrobe assistance.
One more bit of sound advice for a successful start at school. If you tend to get cold in air conditioned rooms, you need to wear more clothes, not less! Some classrooms are too warm and some are like walk-in refrigerators that you find in restaurant kitchens! There is no happy medium. If your feet get cold, don't wear sandals or flip flops. If your legs get cold, wear longer shorts or trousers. If your arms get cold, don't go sleeveless. Sometimes you will go from Mrs. P's bat cave (stays average of 78 degrees all year) to a room that's growing icicles at 62 degrees. You might want to bring a cardigan or zip-up hoodie that you can leave in your locker. After a week, you will know where you need more clothing! Remember, your blankets must stay at home and never come to school!
Please don't go to the office and complain about this wardrobe/dress code blog. I just remember that I always felt bad about being firm with my own daughters when they were in middle school. There were the rules of the school and then the rules of the girls and boys who made the fashion rules. If we all work together, the school rules will rule. And since your child's personality cannot be found in the back pocket of designer jeans or the cell phone slot in that giant designer purse that can carry an average sized terrier in style, you might appreciate my honesty. After all, it's money you get to keep in the bank--without guilt.
So, how do you check the lengths of those short shorts and short skirts? Just take a dollar bill and place it length-wise (long side) just above the knee. When the student is standing, make sure the bottom hem of the shorts can touch the top edge of the dollar bill. The nice thing about this method is that you can check the lengths of garments before you leave your home or whenever you are out shopping for something new. This new measure is becoming a national trend, and we are going to try it here at WMS in hope that fewer people will be distracted by shorts and skirts that are too short.
If you find yourself up in arms about tops that are too adult for school, remember the two-fingers and three-fingers rule for shoulders does not always work. The good rule of thumb is that shoulders are covered so that no undergarment straps are visible--ever. The finger rule only worked if the shoulder straps were in the same areas as the undergarments. It's distracting to see how many colors of straps a person can wear under a tank top! Frankly nobody needs to know colors or quantity! Now that straps are covered, let's talk about necklines. If you take a yard stick and hold it so its edge is even with both armpits when arms are down at your sides, do you see any skin below the yardstick? Is that a yes? Well, that's the top that should probably be kept at home for evenings or weekends. This is not a school rule, but it's a guideline that many schools adopted last year with huge success.
Everyone wants to be successful at school--get good grades and be liked by teachers and peers. However, middle school students need structure and strong advice sometimes. They need help finding wisdom and recognizing that some limits are a good thing. We don't have school uniforms, and when our students do come to school with outfit disasters of many natures, faculty and administrators are very kind and discreet about helping young people solve those clothing problems. In my class, I will be kind to people who need wardrobe assistance.
One more bit of sound advice for a successful start at school. If you tend to get cold in air conditioned rooms, you need to wear more clothes, not less! Some classrooms are too warm and some are like walk-in refrigerators that you find in restaurant kitchens! There is no happy medium. If your feet get cold, don't wear sandals or flip flops. If your legs get cold, wear longer shorts or trousers. If your arms get cold, don't go sleeveless. Sometimes you will go from Mrs. P's bat cave (stays average of 78 degrees all year) to a room that's growing icicles at 62 degrees. You might want to bring a cardigan or zip-up hoodie that you can leave in your locker. After a week, you will know where you need more clothing! Remember, your blankets must stay at home and never come to school!
Please don't go to the office and complain about this wardrobe/dress code blog. I just remember that I always felt bad about being firm with my own daughters when they were in middle school. There were the rules of the school and then the rules of the girls and boys who made the fashion rules. If we all work together, the school rules will rule. And since your child's personality cannot be found in the back pocket of designer jeans or the cell phone slot in that giant designer purse that can carry an average sized terrier in style, you might appreciate my honesty. After all, it's money you get to keep in the bank--without guilt.
dress_code_for_wallace_middle_school.pdf | |
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