Most children love dressing up. Many will have a dressing up box, filled with costumes and accessories and will enjoy spending many hours living out scenarios in imaginative games of make believe. Little boys will enjoy the opportunity and freedom to express themselves and what little girl wouldn't love pretending to be a Pirate Princess in this great
girl’s fancy dress outfit from Asda! (Unless of course they would prefer to be a soldier or a Power Ranger...anything goes when playing dressing up!)
While it’s a great game to encourage self expression and practice role play, dressing up is even better when there’s a reason for it. Take World Book Day, for
example. Children nationwide will be able to participate in this global
celebration of the written word, with many schools asking for the pupils to
turn up to class wearing a fancy dress costume of some description, to
commemorate their favourite book or comic. This fantastic annual event that has
operated since 2007 continues to help promote reading and literature, and the
importance of these elements in day to day life.
If your children need a costume for World Book Day, there are plenty of places to look for inspiration. If you’re feeling
particularly crafty, you may have time to conjure one up with the magic of a
sewing machine, or you could rummage through what they already have for a
makeshift outfit. Alternatively, you could take a look at the options that are
available in the shops – many of which are superb value, so you don’t have to
worry about your purse. Here are some ideas:
Superheroes
If your children love comic
books, use this as inspiration for a costume. It’s easy to find an outfit that
matches your child's favourite superheroes – Batman, Superman, Spiderman, Thor – you
name it, there’ll be a costume to suit. Many superhero costumes can be found in George at a reasonable price. For example, this Thor outfit complete with hammer is just £12.50.
Princesses
Does your little girl love to read about her favourite
fairytale princess? Perhaps she’s a fan of Disney movies and the princesses have inspired her to read about the original characters? Whether it’s
Rapunzel, Snow White or Cinderella, princess outfits are an easy choice for
girls who love a happy ending.
Wizards
'You’re a wizard, Harry!' You may have introduced the Harry
Potter books to your children because you have read them yourself, or your
child may have found them on their own, but dressing up as their favourite
wizard is a great way for them to give a tip of their wizard hat to the ‘the
boy who lived’. Just add a zig zag scar with face paint and they'll be ready for a day at Hogwart's!
I'm heading to Asda at the weekend, to buy a fancy dress costume for Freddy on his first World Book Day at school. I'll have the camera ready to capture the moment!
On World Book Day, every youngster who is in full time
education is given a £1 voucher that can either be used to buy a World Book Day
book or used as money off a standard book that the child would like. Take
advantage of the opportunity and spend some quality time reading with your
child – in full dress up, of course!