Kid's Windbreakers (Outerwear)

Blocks wind with a paper-thin woven shell that folds into its own pocket.

Also called: Wind shell, Wind jacket, Packable jacket, Coach's jacket

Kid's Windbreakers

At a glance
Product type	Kid's Outerwear
Category	Kids & Baby
Synonyms	Wind shell, Wind jacket, Packable jacket, Coach's jacket

Watch out

Thin shells tear instead of wearing out. Snag one on a fence and you get a rip across the whole panel rather than a scuff, and light nylon rarely repairs invisibly.

The basics

What to know about Kid's Windbreakers (Outerwear)

Nothing in a windbreaker keeps a child warm. It is a thin, tightly woven nylon or polyester shell with no fill. It works by stopping moving air from stripping the warm layer off the skin, which is where most of the chill on a breezy day comes from. Hand one to a child on a spring afternoon and the difference is out of all proportion to the weight.

Construction is deliberately minimal: unlined or mesh-lined, elastic at cuffs and hem to seal the edges, stitched seams with no tape over them, and usually a water-repellent finish that makes drops bead and roll away. Most fold into their own pocket or hood. This is the point for a child who takes a jacket off the moment they warm up and then has to carry it. That finish holds off a shower for a few minutes and then wets through, and there is no fix for that without adding weight.

A raincoat looks similar and is not the same thing: its fabric is coated and its seams are taped. It survives an hour of rain that would soak a windbreaker in ten minutes. Fleece is the opposite garment, warmth with no wind resistance, and the pair together covers most of fall. A puffer or parka replaces both once the temperature drops, because a windbreaker over a t-shirt does nothing below about 50F.

Spring and fall, sports sidelines, travel where a jacket must live rolled in a backpack, and children who lose things all point here, since replacing one costs little enough to bear. Team and school jackets use this construction for the same reason. It is not rain protection and it is not a winter coat, and over a school uniform in January it adds almost nothing.

Stretch the cuff and hem elastic and let it go. Slack elastic lets air in at both ends and turns the jacket into a wind tunnel. Children's outerwear in US sizes 2T through 12 should carry no drawstrings at the neck or hood, because a cord catches on playground equipment, so cut out any cord you find on a hand-me-down. Wash on cool, then give it fifteen minutes in a low dryer. Gentle heat wakes the water-repellent finish back up once rain has stopped beading.

Best for

When to choose this style

Spring and fall bring wind rather than deep cold, and blocking wind is all this does.
Sports bags and travel packs take it easily, since it folds into its own pocket.
Layering over fleece works, because each supplies exactly what the other lacks.
Children who lose jackets cost you less, as replacing one is a fraction of a coat.

Style comparison