Are you allowed to wear capris???

[hawaii]

WOW! Move to Hawaii! My son goes to a Hawaiian language charter school and NO ONE wears shoes inside the classrooms- most of the kids and teachers wear slippers and only put them on to go outside.

In my class I almost always wear slippers- nicer ones- but my kids and I tend to go barefoot in the class- we just line the slippers up at the door. I guess that this is cultural- since no one wears shoes inside homes and we want our classrooms to feel like home. I don't think my daughter even owns a pair of shoes that have a back to them.

As for clothes- some teachers wear t-shirts and shorts all the time. Jeans are no big deal. capris are very popular among the teachers. I think the only things we can't wear are shirts with the tiny straps, and anything that shows your belly.

My husband keeps talking of moving to the mainland- but listening to all the crazy dress codes over there scare me- I would have to get a whole new wardrobe and would still buy all the wrong things!

 

[TexTeacher]

Well I am not surprised that I have the strictest dress code on the board. We are not allowed to wear any denim. No capris or crop pants. No cordoroy or flip flops. According to our administration, we are lucky they are not requiring us to wear hose and closed toe shoes.

We even had following the dress code on our fieldtrip. We went to the local gardens with four teachers all in skirts. On field day they did let us wear carpri pants, but they couldn't be denim!

Our kids wear uniforms. It would be nice to be able to dress down on the few days where they let the kids have a jeans day though.

 

[marisa]

Ok, so everyone keeps mentioning capris and nice pants, sandals and tennis shoes. I know what is appriopriate to wear. Don't look sloppy and don't look provacative. But even in black or khaki pants with a turtleneck sweater, I still feel that other teachers, especially older ones, are giving me the evil eye because of my curves. I give up! No matter what I wear, it always seems "inappropriate" in some way. I wear the same things as every other teacher, but it just all seems to look different on me. I am also young, so I want to dress professional, but I feel like if I wear a knee length skirt, button up shirt and jacket (which is normal), I will still feel uncomfortable. I usually dress casually, but if I don't wear suits, I will look 23 (most middle schoolers are taller than me). I am having a teacher fashion dilemma. I want to look stylish (I remember swearing when I was younger that I would never dress like some of the teachers I had), but I want to be professional and comfortable.

 

[fun_friend]

marisa...

If you are wearing clothes that fit you appropriately and are acceptably modest, then you are fine! Enjoy looking attractive; it won't ruin you teaching effectiveness to look attractive. Kids will likely respond positively to an attractive young teacher. Tough luck if the older less cute teachers are jealous. You just wear your cute outfits and be the best teacher you can be. You will earn the respect you deserve by your effectiveness as a teacher.

My rule of thumb for modesty is sleeves not sleeveless, and covering up my collar bones. I like my skirts to be at least finger-tip length or longer, and I would want a slit in my skirt to not be so high that everyone is hoping to get a glimpse of something when I am moving around. Make sure that your midriff doesn't peak out when you are walking around the halls.

Enjoy your youth and beauty and take pictures now while you have it!

 

[Miss Melissa]

In my home district where I am subbing, teachers can wear capris and jeans on Fridays. At the private school I am working at in the fall, you can't wear either of these things.

 

[mrs_b_from_nc]

Capris weren't the problem for us...

This was our first year with school uniforms. Since students couldn't wear jeans anymore, our principals (long story) said teachers & staff couldn't either (not even on field trips to the farm!) So some of the staff began wearing these TRASHY, wouldn't-be-caught-dead-at-the-gym, track suits! Tell me how these nasty track suits (and other assorted non-denim-just-got-out-of-bed) clothes are MORE PROFESSIONAL than a pair of nice jeans and a nice shirt?!?!?! This was pointed out to the principals on more than 1 occaision. Finally some daring person (not me I swear!) posted some pictures on the bulletin board in the workroom. No faces of culprits... then the principals said, "Oh! Would y'all like to wear jeans for March of Dimes?!?!" So most folks' track suits disappeared and we could wear jeans on Fridays. (Principals said it helped teacher morale too! Well, duh?)
Anyway, lots of folks lived in capris instead of jeans. Saw some really cute capris too!

 

[stephanie]

Yes...

we are allowed to wear capris. We also have 2 days a week on which we are allowed to wear jeans. I work at a very laid back up-scale school (if you can imagine). Our aprents actually go to bat for us. They say that they want the teachers to be comfortable so that they can easily work with the students. We are not allowed to wear flip-flops. That is our only restriction.

 

[mfelic]

you think that's bad?

Our principal is generally very uptight with our attire, but has been coming around slowly over the past few years. 10 years ago we had to wear hose, closed toe shoes, and dresses. 5 years ago he finally said we could wear pants (including capris) as long as we wore panyhose (and yes we could wear open toed shoes at this point). Can you imagine wearing capris with pantyhose? With open sandals?!? I was so emarassed if I had to run by the store after work looking like a big dork in my hose and capris!! By the way I'm in Louisiana and it is HOT! 2 years ago he did away with the pantyhose rule (talk about liberation!). Now his big thing is no sandals that go anywhere in between your toes. I think he has a fear we'd all show up in plastic flip flops. It's almost impossible to find cute sandals these days that don't wrap around a toe somewhere. At least we've made progress!

 

[JJ1]

capris

We are allowed to wear capris. We're allowed to wear jeans. We even wear denim capris! Isn't it silly how administrators and some staff get caught up in something like how long your pants are, rather than more important stuff? I love capris!

 

[rdgirl]

capri malfunction

A wise principal once said about capris to the faculty---"If you war this outfit to weed your garden or scrub your floors, chances are it is not appropriate for wearing in a professional environment...." In other words, she trusted us to be professional enough to determine which capris hanging in our closet were school-appropriate, and which are est worn aroudn the house....Unfortunately, with this freedom, some teachers abused the privilege (Our princ. had overriden (sp?) a district directive...) and the privilege was lost by the entire campus because of a few teachers who may have benefitted from being on the show WHAT NOT TO WEAR!!!!!

Just like with our students, if you are in an environment where you are trusted to be and dress professionally without directives, don't ruin it for yourself and everyone else by wearing the wrong thing. We all know when we walk out our doors the answer to the question--Does this make me look like I am going to spend the day pulling weeds????

I have invested in a nice pair of khaki, black, and denim capris, and alternate nice tops with them.....I also am always on the look-out for fun capri outfits which look professional--My fav or my black sil capris with fuschia flamingos from Stein Mart.....Worn with a fuschia top and sandals, I can feel OK at school, and at a wedding shower in this attire. On the other hand, I have some capris from the Dollar Store I lounge around the house or run errands in...

Regarding flip flops, I have never understood why this is in question...But there are THONGS that look like you are wearing shower shoes, and there are flip-flops from Whole Earth and Target and PayLess that look coordinated with an outfit....

I have a professional dress buddy who is a good friend teaching next door to me...When in doubt, we check in with each other regarding professional dress. One day we were having an important parent conference, and she forgot and wore jeans and tennis shoes....She found a teacher who lives close to the campus, and ran over to her house to borrow an outfit more appropriate for greeting the general public.

 

[woodsie79]

We are also in a non-airconditioned school w/a very accomodating principal. We are allowed to wear shorts and capris but no jeans unless it is a jean day for the kids (private school with uniforms). I wear capris, crop pants, and shorts nearly every day during the warmer months as well as sleeveless tops (no spaghetti straps) and flip flops.

We all make sure we look professional and the principal has never commented on anyones dress.

 

[Lottalove]

Yes

I am in MO. We are allowed to wear capris. We can also wear jeans on some Fridays and what we call "Dollar Days." On those days, we pay $1 and it goes to different causes each week (alternates between Relay for Life, Student Council, MS Walk for Life and Dolly Parton Imagination Library fund).

We can wear flip flops but I try to make sure mine are a little dressier and sandal-like than the basic rubber ones. Like fun friend posted, I am also tall and big and it is hard to find long pants that fit well.

Most days, regardless of slacks v. jeans or short v. full length, I wear a top or shell with a button-up shirt over it (unbuttoned, jacket-style). My mom teasingly calls that look my "teacher uniform."