WEAR UNIFORM, DON’T THINK UNIFORM

This year, back to school shouldn’t be back to normal.

After the last two school years, if there’s one thing our kids – and frankly, all of us - deserve, it’s something new, something better.

We think it’s time to rip up the rule book and start over.

Let’s make this year’s back to school one to remember.

Let’s start with what kids wear.

While most kids (in the U.K.) wear uniform, looking the same shouldn’t be about THINKING the same: it shouldn’t be about BEING the same.

Too many uniforms reflect the narrow, straight-jacketed, old-fashioned learning we’ve now got to ditch – and fast.

Take traditional school shoes: stiff, narrow, rigid. They restrict movement and prevent kids’ feet from growing naturally strong and healthy at a time when even getting enough movement is a challenge; playtime is being cut from the school day and, according to the WHO, 81% of the world’s teenagers aren’t getting the recommended 1 hour of physical activity per day.

 VivoKids barefoot footwear for school is THIN, WIDE and BENDY so feet can move and feel with space to grow strong and healthy. Our bare-footwear is created not to interfere with natural movement, agility and flexibility – starting with feet, but also for bodies and minds.

So while our VivoKids School range meets uniform regulations – it breaks with uniform thinking.

After all, physical and mental strength and agility are intricately linked. There is a wealth of evidence showing how increased physical activity leads to better academic performance, concentration, processing speed and - most importantly, we think - happiness. So what is on their feet really matters: a long-term study from Bournemouth University even found that removing shoes in the classroom resulted in calmer kids who do better at school.

So if your kids need to look uniform, help them move, think, feel and speak for themselves - wild and free, just as kids are supposed to be.

The last thing the planet needs right now is another generation of uniform thinkers. School should be about fostering and nurturing free-thinkers, movers, makers and feelers. Let’s start with their feet. Let’s start with making Back to School a VivoKids barefoot Back to School with free feet, bodies and brains.

Now, isn’t this the kind of Back to School we can all get excited about?

P.S. We know school shoes are a big investment. That’s why VivoKids footwear is also built durable to go the distance from classroom to playground and even for sports. As an independent, family-run business we think it’s important to highlight our commitment to working towards being a regenerative company, where everything we make and do is a net positive for feet, people and planet. For example, our barefoot school range is made using only Wild Hide leather, carefully-sourced from the cage-free cattle of small-scale, independent farmers. This is why our prices might seem comparably high, but, we believe, a worthwhile investment. Our award-winning Re-Commerce site ReVivo.com also provides purchase options at lower prices and, for U.K. customers, repairs to keep our footwear on feet and off landfill longer.