[Multimedia] MSD students express themselves through varying dress styles (2024)

[Multimedia] MSD students express themselves through varying dress styles (1)

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Students express themselves through clothing. They dress in all kinds of colors and patterns.

After an exhausting year of e-learning throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, an in-person new school year has brought more opportunities for self-expression, mainly through the avenue of fashion choices.

Students once again have the option to choose how they want to be presented in the eyes of their peers, rather than through a computer screen. From vintage to grunge, students can express themselves in various ways.

Some students even create different styles or aesthetics that help them express their authentic selves. A few rare aesthetics students categorize themselves include being furry (wearing animal related clothing), foodie (food related clothing), bubble goth (very pink and purple), and cartooncore (glimmering cartoons and fun).

By dressing uniquely students are able to show the entire school their authentic selves, which can help them find friends that are similar.

Clothing styles can portray a multitude of characteristics about a person at first glance. Just by looking at a person, preconceived opinions form regarding someone’s character. This raises the question of whether or not clothing choices of others affect the opinions of students here at MSD.

Someone’s style can be greatly affected by wealth, especially when wearing clothing from high-end designer stores such as Gucci or Louis Vuitton. When an expensive item is considered “trendy,” less financially stable people could feel as though they are not fitting in enough with the fashion fads.

“I believe that wealth can affect a person’s clothing,” freshman Blake Backman said. “People with more money will buy more expensive items which have a different look to them than to those with cheaper items.

Recent trends surfacing on social media accounts such as TikTok, Instagram and Twitter have shaped teenagers’ ideas of fashion. With recent spikes in Y2K era clothing, like low rise jeans, wide cut jeans and cropped shirts, students are trying to wear the right clothing to match the trend.

Although some fashion standards cannot be met by all students, there are always a few students finding a way to break normal standards and express themselves uniquely.

Marjory Stoneman Douglas sophom*ore Lucia Giraldo expresses herself through preppy trends with a more “naturistic” look, meaning she wears lots of brown and earth green tones.

Many students, like Giraldo, believe that straying away from fashion trends allows them to express individuality. Teens gain inspiration from past fashion trends that have ultimately made a comeback, much like scrunchies, flared pants and mom jeans.

Expressing individuality through clothing can be frequently seen less often as fashion trends storm through social media platforms, and majorly influence what people do or don’t wear.

Fashion trends are constantly flowing, there are always new outfit ideas being made, and always ones becoming old.

Fashion trends have changed significantly over the years. For example, thrifting, an activity previously perceived as “cheap” or “trashy,” is now something most teens partake in. Thrift stores carry unique pieces of clothing typically not found in other stores. Thrifting affects fashion trends by helping people explore past styles. Most of the thrifted clothing items are old and vintage, which can help people find their style.

However, popular stores, like Brandy Melville , limit their demographic through their one-sized marketing model. These clothing items are made without thinking about the guys and girls in the back who may not be able to fit into these items. One-sized stores restrict expression for both males and females with an unrealistic image of what a “perfect” body should look like according to objective beauty standards. The clothing from these stores are very popular and limit fashion trends from growing. Not to mention, clothing pieces from these stores are practically owned by all teens as a way to “fit in,” quite literally.

Many teenagers feel like they always are being judged walking through school each day. They feel like in order to fit in they must look the same and wear what everyone else wears.

“​​Sometimes I get inspiration to change things up but I feel like you get to dress your age and while doing so dress comfortably,” sophom*ore Victoria Wheeler said.

Although most teens depend on what is deemed to be “fashionable” for school, like before, there is always a unique group marching to their own beat.

“Clothing helps students differentiate from their peers through self expression,” sophom*ore Yael Weinfeld said. “Everyone has different personalities, so clothing helps students make their personalities stand out and shine.”

People often dress themselves accordingly to the vision they either see themselves as or how they wish to be portrayed. If one student saw himself or herself as a strong, confident person, they may wear more outgoing clothes to express that. On the other hand, if a student sees himself or herself as more of a timid person, they may wear what you see everyone else wearing around the school.

“I have changed my style many times,” senior Sabrina Acevedo said. “But right now I’m confident and comfortable with how I dress.”

Style changes occur often once clothing no longer suits the person or is claimed as “outdated.” This game however becomes tricky, as popular clothing brands such as Pacsun or Hollister rack up costs. The popularization of clothing items from social media platforms like TikTok or Instagram tend to be more pricey and cost more at the register.

Dress codes at school create limitations to the amount of expression a student is allowed, specifically targeting females. Dress code restricts the amount of skin shown, deeming midriff and shoulders as distracting, which most students feel is untrue and unnecessary.

“Dress code limits and restricts certain clothing we wear and although many people will disagree it is a known fact that it is biased against girls,” sophom*ore Nina Khalouf said.” It’s against the clothes we wear but how they fit to our bodies which are all different.”

Students can express themselves in multiple ways simply by choosing what they wear when they wake up. Overall clothing gives students an opportunity to express their emotions, creativity, and self simply by using fabrics like cloth, silk, and cotton.

[Multimedia] MSD students express themselves through varying dress styles (2024)

FAQs

How can students express themselves through clothes? ›

Students can express themselves in multiple ways simply by choosing what they wear when they wake up. Overall clothing gives students an opportunity to express their emotions, creativity, and self simply by using fabrics like cloth, silk, and cotton.

Why should students be able to express themselves? ›

Sacrificing personal expression in place of conformity is shown to lead to lower self-esteem, depression, and unhappiness in children. By encouraging your kids to express themselves, you can ward off these negative issues and help your kids build self-confidence, independence, creativity, and self-advocacy.

Do people express themselves with clothes? ›

Clothing is not only a great way to express yourself, but researchers suggests the types of clothing we wear can affect our behaviours as well as our confidence. By wearing clothes we love, we feel confident in ourselves and this is particularly important to wellbeing of the elderly.

Should students have the freedom to express themselves through clothing? ›

Allowing children to use the way they dress to display their personality and express themselves is needed as long as it does not distract from the learning environment, or promote/incite violence.

Why is it important for kids to express themselves through clothing? ›

Allowing children to choose their clothes and dress themselves promotes independence in several ways. By letting them decide what they want to wear each day, they're learning to have opinions, and express them, and make decisions, which will help them throughout life.

How do you help a student to express themselves? ›

How to Encourage Self Expression in Students
  1. Arts as a medium for expression. ...
  2. Talk to them about their feelings. ...
  3. Encourage exploration. ...
  4. Offer them choices. ...
  5. Let them develop their own style. ...
  6. Encourage them to write each day. ...
  7. Take them outdoors once in a while. ...
  8. Facilitate sport activities.
Jan 15, 2022

How can educators encourage children to express themselves? ›

Be a role model - Kids learn about feelings and how to express them appropriately by watching others. Show your child how you're feeling about different situations and how you deal with those feelings. Encourage with praise - Praise your child when they talk about their feelings or express them in an appropriate way.

How can people express themselves effectively? ›

This is an intuitive definition—self-expression is, at its core, the action of expressing yourself, and it can take a wide variety of forms. You can use your words, your facial expressions, your body, your movements, clothing, actions, and possessions to express your authentic inner self.

What does it mean to dress to express yourself? ›

Dressing to express makes how you look an extension of how you feel, think, and act, and that's critical to 'strategically positioning yourself' in the right places with the right people.

What does dress to express mean? ›

Dress to Express is a self-help programme for women who want to express who they are on the inside through what they wear on the outside.

Why is self expression important? ›

Self-expression can help you to reflect on your life, actions, decisions, relationships, beliefs, and thoughts — rather than keep them buried deep down. By expressing ourselves thoughtfully, we can better communicate, collaborate and build a community with others.

How does dress code prevent students from expressing themselves? ›

The school dress code not only vilifies self-expression in young people through primarily arbitrary and artificial standards of what is and is not acceptable, thus unjustly imposing those standards onto teenagers who might not agree with said standards, but it also submits to societal pressures of modesty that create a ...

Why is dress code important? ›

Dress codes are used to communicate to employees what the organization considers appropriate work attire. A dress code or appearance policy allows an employer to set expectations regarding the image it wants the company to convey. Dress codes can be formal or informal and might include the use of uniforms.

Should there be a dress code to prevent students from wearing revealing clothes? ›

It would help prevent students from feeling insecure about their bodies and clothing because they wouldn't be the only ones not dressed in the latest styles and trends. Mental health issues are common in teenagers, meaning that a great deal should be done to prevent them, which includes dress codes.

What do children learn from dressing themselves? ›

Getting dressed relies on a range of physical skills including fine and gross motor skills, hand-eye coordination, decision making and even organisation. Dressing also helps build language skills, since toddlers learn how to recognise and name different items of clothing, their colours and where they go on the body.

How do you encourage people to express themselves? ›

Emotions at work: Empowering others to express themselves
  1. Make space for team reflection. ...
  2. Optimise for clarity, not just decisions. ...
  3. Encourage colleagues to describe feelings instead of opinions. ...
  4. Invite a mediator or facilitator into your conversations. ...
  5. Share moments of joy.
Feb 5, 2020

How do creative activities allow children to express themselves? ›

Painting, coloring, writing, making music, and making crafts are all creative activities. Creative expression helps children articulate their feelings and thoughts. They think critically about their world and practice visual communication. Young children learn colors, shapes, and sounds during creative play.

How do children learn and express themselves? ›

One of the best ways that kids express themselves is through artistic means. Painting, finger-painting, drawing, sketching, coloring, and writing all have been proven to provide a solid outlet for many of the strong emotions that children deal with.

Why is it important to encourage children to express their feelings? ›

A key part in supporting children's development is encouraging them to recognise, understand, and express their feelings and emotions. This can have a positive impact on their mental health, behaviour, academic success, and motivation to learn throughout their life.

How can you support children to learn how to self regulate and express their feelings and emotions appropriately? ›

You can help your child regulate their emotions by coaching them to slow down and calmly respond to situations rather than being impulsive. Patience and positive feedback from the parent are important. With support and guidance, the child will gradually learn to handle challenges on their own.

What is communication through dress called? ›

Clothing is one of the most common forms of non-verbal communication. The study of clothing and other objects as a means of non-verbal communication is known as artifactics or objectics.

What can you express through fashion? ›

Fashion is a way to communicate a thought, feeling or a mood to the world without having to open your mouth or answer anyone's questions. Whether you think you have an interest in fashion or not, it's one of the easiest ways you can visually express statements about your identity.

How does clothing express identity? ›

Fashion is a non-verbal communication that can represent one's political and religious beliefs, gender identity, occupation, and essence. Whether intentional or not, the way that you dress can send a message to others about how you view yourself and how you want to be seen.

What is the key to self-expression? ›

Understanding your own beliefs and values, saying no and setting boundaries that align with your beliefs, values and needs are key to authentic living and self-expression. Perhaps this is worth thinking about if you are looking for positive healthier relationships with yourself and with others.

Why is it important to protect your own self-expression? ›

Self-expression allows us to feel and communicate our emotions in healthy ways. When we suppress our emotions, entire parts of who we are, we cause ourselves more sadness and despair. We might build up frustration, bitterness and resentment at not being able to be vocal about our pain.

Which is the most significant skill of self-expression? ›

#1 Expressive writing

Words are the most powerful way to express who you are, which is why you can easily express in writing everything you can't say out loud. Words leave a significant mark, especially when it represents your thoughts, emotions, and beliefs.

How does dress code affect students learning? ›

“Students' [clothing] will only affect learning if they are dressed in an extreme way,” senior Alyse Madsen said. “Strict dress codes infringe on a students self-expression and make for a dull environment with little creativity.”

Does dress code improve student behavior? ›

Promoting Positive Behavior

Research shows that when schools implement a uniform policy, it improves grades, while it reduces tardiness, skipped classes and suspensions. One study showed that 70% of principals believed that mandated school uniforms reduced disciplinary problems at their schools.

How does dress code affect students positively? ›

Implementing a dress code serves a safe and welcoming educational environment for students. Dress code makes the students get dressed in almost the same manner, making it easier to recognize them and identify who is the real students, and who are not.

Does dress code affect student performance? ›

There is little evidence that school uniforms remedy behavior problems or boost academic performance. And while uniform policies might have a slight, positive impact on school attendance, we need to consider the downside: For some kids, uniforms may have a negative effect on well-being.

Why is it important to change dress code? ›

Dress codes should be changed for the way they influence discrimination and prevent expression. People who are affected by it should have an input in the rules.

How does dressing well make a difference? ›

Dressing well and staying well-groomed conveys more than just power, authority, and confidence. It shows that you have self-respect. The way you decide to present yourself to the world is how they'll take you.

What are some reasons schools should not have dress code? ›

There are three big reasons why. Dress codes cause families to waste additional money buying extra clothes. Dress codes can make kids late for school and hurt their grades. Lastly, uniforms can be uncomfortable and make it so students cannot focus.

How does dress code affect behavior? ›

Studies have found that people tend to be less open and find it more difficult to relax when they wear formal clothes. On the other hand, a casual and relaxed dress code at work helps us become more friendly and creative.

How do people express themselves through their body? ›

This is an intuitive definition—self-expression is, at its core, the action of expressing yourself, and it can take a wide variety of forms. You can use your words, your facial expressions, your body, your movements, clothing, actions, and possessions to express your authentic inner self.

How can you boost your self confidence through your clothes? ›

High-quality, well-tailored clothing can help you feel more confident and powerful, allowing you to take on challenges at work and in your personal life. Research has shown that wearing formal clothing can change the way you view and approach situations.

What are the ways that children can express themselves? ›

Kids can express their feelings through facial expressions, through their body, their behaviour and play. Sometimes they may act out their feelings in physical, inappropriate or problematic ways.

How do uniforms affect students self image? ›

School uniforms have a positive impact on students' mental health. Studies show that uniforms reduce anxiety about appearance and promote self-confidence through a feeling of belonging. These findings are noteworthy in this day and age of social media, when children are constantly comparing themselves to others.

Why do uniforms not let students to express themselves? ›

Wearing a Uniform Limits Self-Expression

Kids and teens use they way they dress to express themselves and to identify with certain social groups. Many students who are against school uniforms argue that they lose their self-identity when they lose their right to express themselves through fashion.

What is an example of fashion as self expression? ›

For example, when you're shopping with your friends you see something and you say, “This looks like something you would wear” and this is because their style has become part of their personality.

Why is self expression appearance important? ›

Expressing yourself is an essential part of forming and displaying your identity to the world. Plus, the way you look can influence the way you feel and empower you to be the best version of yourself. Your image talks to your family, friends, co-workers, and strangers, without you needing to utter a word.

How do you feel confident in a dress? ›

10 Ways To Feel Confident In Your Clothes
  1. Be confident with your body.
  2. Know yourself, flaunt your best assets.
  3. Wear clothes that make you feel comfortable.
  4. Choose the colors and fabrics that you love.
  5. Walk with confidence and your head held high.
  6. Wear what you love, not what someone tells you is fashionable.
Nov 5, 2019

How do clothes affect your confidence and personality? ›

Wearing something we perceive as sexy can make us feel more self assured, more powerful and more confident. To improve self image, even copying someone's style may be a good idea. Research shows that when we emulate the dress code of people we consider smart and powerful, we feel infused with these qualities as well.

How do you encourage self expression? ›

Identifying and discussing emotions can really help your kids gain some self-awareness into the way they are feeling and encourages healthy self-expression. Encourage them to think about why they are feeling that way – it will help them to realise the external factors that make them feel good or bad.

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