Our children are very young and impressionable. They can easily be frightened by masks or costumes that are scary – especially when they are realistic – so please do not send any gory, ‘bloody’ or frightening costumes to school. Large rubber masks that obscure vision are particularly inappropriate and hazardous. If students wear masks or make up that make others feel uncomfortable, the masks will be put aside. In some cases, parents/guardians may be called to bring a different costume or change a child’s make up.
We also ask you do not send weapons as part of your child’s costume. We are committed to keeping this special event as fun and safe as possible for our students. We promote peace at ÉJSMS, so weapons are not welcome, and children will be asked to put aside weapons if they bring them as part of their costumes.
Also, we love it when parents join in the fun by dressing up, but please remember the age of our children when you choose a costume. Our little people can frighten easily.
Sometimes the school staff has to make a call on costumes that are ‘borderline’, in which case it will depend on how the other students are handling it. When children can identify who the classmate is, the costume is usually okay.
As well, there is a difference in expectations at various grade levels. What might be okay within the grade three classroom might be frightening to younger students during the costume parade. In such a situation, a student might be asked to remove part of a costume just for that event.
