And I think parents should PARENT and insist their child wear a coat when it's 12 degrees outside. And, no, yesterday and Monday they wouldn't have "cooked" at receess time given it got up to a spanking 20 degrees by mid day. (also, you're lucky if your kids go out for 30 minutes for recess every day - most don't get it on cold days)

Yes, on a 40 degree day it's fine to be without a coat. On an 18 degree day it's not.

So you can make a rule (and you can PARENT and insist they wear it even if they tantrum, turn red in the face, scream, throw themselves on the floor, and end up sweating in said coat) that if it's less than 32 degrees (as read by an impartial thermometer posted outside the window in a shady area of the house) then they must wear a coat and hat - mittens/gloves optional. Period.

My mother did that when i wanted to wear my poncho (oh, how I date myself) - I wanted to wear my poncho when it was 5 degrees outside because it was so lovely, and had pom poms on the end of the tassels.... and swirled when I twirled.... she said you can wear it any morning when it's 50 degrees or higher outside. I learned to read a thermometer very well that very day. I would check, and either wear it or not. Ah.... I loved my poncho! And I was in 1st grade - this rule continued through 4th grade when I outgrew my yearly new knitted poncho from the neighbor.

I've been fighting with my DS about wearing a thicker coat. He only wants to wear his underarmour sweatshirt, even when it was 12 degrees outside.

Ask the kid - aren't you cold? If they say yes, then ask "do you have a thicker jacket?" I don't think that's offensive.

I think it's a stretch to assume the kids don't have coats. A lot of kids hate wearing heavy coats.

My kids are refusing to wear their coats to the bus stop. My older two (in middle school) wear lined hoodies which aren't great choices but will do the job for 10 minutes. My third-grader is in love with a basic thin hoodie. I tried to put a coat on him yesterday but he only wants the hoodie. I could have forced him but it's only for 5 minutes at the bus stop and I knew they wouldn't have outdoor recess. Today, he was outside for recess but he swears the hoodie is fine so I'll let it go.

Bottom line: The kids probably have coats but won't wear them.

Some people are also just warmer than others. DH is from up north and never wore pants until he started working. He was in shorts going to school in the snow (and it snows Thanksgiving-March there). He obviously owned pants.

Give them a coat, tell them its one your child outgrew and do they want to borrow it while the weather is so cold. I've done this too. I don't care if the parent is offended, I care about the health and safety of the small child.

My kids would refuse to wear their coats in the morning because, if they brought coats to school, the teachers/playground supervisors would make them wear their coats out to recess at lunchtime, and then they'd cook.

Are you sure they don't have a coat? Kids are weird about temperature. My 1st grader constantly refuses her coat, even in this weather, and we have 5 of them. I drop her off at school (coat-less), but then hand the coat to her teacher in case DD changes her mind.

A kindergartener? Yes, I would buy the kid a coat and just say, "here, put this on. You can keep it."

I wouldn't worry about offending the family honestly. Preventing frostbite or serious illness is enough of an incentive for me to overstep in this way. I did it last year for a stranger child waiting at the bus stop half a block from my house. I pulled out one of DD's old coats and just handed it to the father and asked please take it to keep her from hypothermia. It was one of those 6 degree freak days last February.

If you have an extra coat that one of your children has outgrown, just take it to the bus stop and give it to one of the children. If you buy like you want to, say you got a good deal and give it to the child. Don't specify if it is permanent even though you want to gift it. In case the parents ask you what's up, you can say you just lent it until they pulled their own winter things out of storage or something such other.

I would just ask him "do you have a coat?"

Can you ask the kid if they forgot their coat? If the mom isn't awake there's a good chance the kid just forgot it. Are they poor?

Tough age. If the kid were a bit older I might suspect the kid refuses to wear it.

Are they poor?

MYOB

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/parenting/wp/2015/01/12/the-long-and-shorts-of-it-whats-up-with-boys-and-shorts-in-the-middle-of-winter/

There's a kindergartner at my kids' bus stop who has shown up the last few mornings wearing only a thin hoodie. His older brother was wearing a North Face-type fleece. I've never seen either in coats. The fleece jacket is probably serviceable but the little one was clearly shivering in his hoodie. We're friendly with the family so DH thinks we should buy a coat from Target, claim our son has outgrown it and offer it to her. I'm not sure if the kid doesn't have a coat or if he just isn't wearing it. I know she's not usually awake when the kids leave in the morning so maybe she doesn't know he's not wearing it. DH casually said something about the little one in a hoodie to the mom yesterday but clearly it didn't have the desired effect.

WWYD? Maybe we just need to mind our own business?