Wellness and warmth
“As the child matures, the body has a finite amount of energy to use for growth, both for the growth of the body as a whole and for the development of the brain and inner organs. Keeping the body warm allows the greatest amount of these energies to be devoted to this task. When the child is not sufficiently warm, these other areas can be short changed because the growth forces are used up just in trying to keep warm.”
Warmth is essential in childhood! A solid rule of thumb recommended for dressing young children (under 10-12 years) is “three on top, two on bottom below 60 degrees.” This may sound like a lot, but when these fabrics are breathable, it can be surprising what a comfortable level of warmth they bring. Many children come to school without wearing base layers, and many wear non-breathable synthetic materials as outer layers, or directly under coats. Too many layers of cotton and non-breathable synthetics trap heat against the skin, and as the children run around it causes them to sweat. When outer layers are then removed, they lose important warmth built up during play and movement that could have been contained with the proper layering. There are some polyester fibers engineered for breathable & warm base or insulating layers; but layering children in natural fibers – such as wool and wool/silk blends – throughout is an ideal option when possible.
City of Fountains is lucky to be provided with discounts from a couple different wool clothing shops, helping these costly fabrics to be a more affordable investment. These layers can also be worn several times before washing, and can be hand washed and hung to dry overnight making them easily available for the next day.
Shop with the code CITYFOUNTS23 for a 30% discount off full-priced items. (This offer excludes Factory Outlet, Sales items and the ManyMonths product line).
Shop with the code COFS15 for a 15% discount off all products.
Current families: please also take this moment to to review our school illness policy. Note especially that children must be fever free for 24 hours without the use of any medications. Fevers are an important tool for strengthening a child’s immune system, and in this article Rahima Dancy suggests other ways to treat a fever in honor of the purpose it serves.
