The number of student holidays is insane.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I just up the student holidays. Ridiculous! Sorry, but we don’t need off for every religious holiday. Give them a fall break, winter break, February break and spring break, like other secular countries. And, let them out two weeks earlier in June. It has to be impossible to teach with all the sporadic days off.

ITA and also, let's make it easier on teachers and students and make sure the breaks are aligned to the end of the quarter like they are in more secular countries - e.g., winter break comes at the end of January, not December, and spring break comes at the end of Q3, rather than being tied to Easter. This year, high school students are going to have exams either the week before spring break in which case they come back after spring break and do nothing for a week, OR they're going to go on spring break and have to come back to exams. Either one is a ridiculous scenario.

I’ve taught high school for over 20 years and read your post multiple times. I don’t understand your reasoning at all. Why are they doing nothing? If there is an exam, they start new material after. It doesn’t matter if that falls the week before or after a break. No one says there is one week until break so let’s sit here and do nothing.

That’s just the story all these parents tell them selves to justify harassing and demeaning teachers

I am not harassing or demeaning teachers, I am just saying that the schedule is stupid. Stop taking offense to everything.

There are multiple posts that are insulting teachers. It may not be you but they definitely exist.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:Kids love these days off..they break up the monotony of a long school year. Teachers generally don't mind them because days off here and there really aren't that disruptive to learning. The only ones who really care are...parents.

Not sure why we want kids to experience the same 9-5, 5 day a week grind of so many of their parents.

Because many of us parents have to work and we need our kids in school while we work!

No matter how much you want it to be true, school is not daycare. Teachers are not daycare providers. You chose to have kids. You choose to work. It is 100% on you to figure this out.

Aaaaaand that’s why I send my kids to private school. Teachers like this.

I’m not a teacher. I’m a parent who accepts responsibility for my kids. I’ve never considered the school a daycare center.

Fine, if you say so. I used to teach in a public school. Watching teachers spin this kind of garbage is why my kids will never see the inside of a public school.

I’m sure the schools are happy that you and your kids are gone. You sound like an entitled jerk.

I do feel entitled to a functional school schedule, yes. And of COURSE it's child care. The people who deny it are making asses of themselves.

You’re getting the state required instructional days/hours. That is all you are entitled to.

Actually, we're not getting the required hours of INSTRUCTION b/c FCPS is fudging the numbers by counting 100 mins of "walk to the bus" and "walk to the classroom from the bus"-time as "instructional time" --- when we all know that it is NOT instructional time. You might think that is no big deal, but that 100 min of lost instructional time per week adds up to another week and a half of school lost b/c FCPS is being dishonest. Lunch and recess don't count as "instructional" time. Walking to the classroom from the bus or walking to the bus from the classroom are not legitimate instructional time.

Your math makes no sense at all. If my daughter is in school from 9:20 to 4:20, that is 7 hours. If I remove an hour for lunch and recess that is 6 hours. 6 hours x 180 days is 1080 hours, more than the requirement. No one is counting “walking to the bus” time. That happens prior to 9:20 and after 4:20. Please stop buying into every rumor you hear.

^^ Sorry, just double checked the times. They go until 4:05pm. So 5 hours and 45 minutes x 180 = 1035. Still more than 990.

Minor point: you didn't count the 5 early release days as "half days" (which gets you to the 990).

More important point: FCPS gives us "just enough" scheduled time to meet the requirements.... but have you ever considered what happens when there are snow days (i.e. no school), early release for weather, or 2 hr delays for weather --- WHEN THERE ARE NO MAKE UP DAYS?

If you only have 990 hours scheduled, and you tell people that they never have to make up snow days because the snow days are "built in" -- something is fishy! If there are NO snow days/late arrivals/early releases (for weather), THEN your kid gets the required minimum. If there are ANY snow days, delays, early releases throughout the year, your kid is simply getting gipped out of their required educational time. Welcome to FCPS.

5 early release days (10 hours) gets you to 1025, not 990. That is still 35 hours extra which equals 6 days of snow.
When it’s all said and done, it’s probably pretty close to 990.

I know you don't want to believe it, but it's true. The way they worked out the "built in" snow days was to find a way to count non-instructional time as "instructional" time so that they "magically" found 10 "built in" snow days without actually adding 10 days to the calendar. That is the fact. I assure you FCPS is not scheduling one hour more than 990 in their planned calendar. And when snow days come, or delays or wind or rain days... the way they get around making them up is by fudging the way they count the hours.

Be smart: Don't you think FCPS would be trying to shorten the year if they had -- let's say--- 3 snow days in a given year (less than the supposed 10 that are "built in")? If they actually met the 990 hours earlier in June, don't you think they'd shorten the year and let kids out early? They don't do that b/c there aren't really 10 snow days built into the calendar. There are no actual snow days built in.... just faux "instructional hours." They get around making up snow days (or other missed days) by padding the number of scheduled instructional hours with 100 min. per week of walking time to and from the classroom as being "instructional hours." You and I know that that activity is NOT "instruction." To count it as "instruction" to meet the 990 means that they are giving less than the 990 ACTUAL instructional hours when there are any snow days (or weather delays) per year.

It's a slight of hand. Those who were around 10 years ago when this "creative accounting" was conceived know the truth. It hasn't changed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I just up the student holidays. Ridiculous! Sorry, but we don’t need off for every religious holiday. Give them a fall break, winter break, February break and spring break, like other secular countries. And, let them out two weeks earlier in June. It has to be impossible to teach with all the sporadic days off.

ITA and also, let's make it easier on teachers and students and make sure the breaks are aligned to the end of the quarter like they are in more secular countries - e.g., winter break comes at the end of January, not December, and spring break comes at the end of Q3, rather than being tied to Easter. This year, high school students are going to have exams either the week before spring break in which case they come back after spring break and do nothing for a week, OR they're going to go on spring break and have to come back to exams. Either one is a ridiculous scenario.

I’ve taught high school for over 20 years and read your post multiple times. I don’t understand your reasoning at all. Why are they doing nothing? If there is an exam, they start new material after. It doesn’t matter if that falls the week before or after a break. No one says there is one week until break so let’s sit here and do nothing.

That’s just the story all these parents tell them selves to justify harassing and demeaning teachers

I am not harassing or demeaning teachers, I am just saying that the schedule is stupid. Stop taking offense to everything.

There are multiple posts that are insulting teachers. It may not be you but they definitely exist.

Okay well then start your own thread about harassing teachers and stop derailing other people's threads/comments.

[Anonymous]

OP this is actually one instance in which you can't blame the school board. Surrounding counties are forcing FCPS to do it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Let's get down to specifics. Review the holiday list here. Which dates would you get rid of and why?

https://www.fcps.edu/calendars/standard-school-year-calendar

Get rid of:
- 26 Sep (Rosh Hashanah) -- not needed as holiday
- 5 Oct (Yom Kippur) -- not needed as holiday
- 10 Oct (Indigenous Peoples') -- not needed as holiday
- 24 Oct (Diwali) -- not needed as holiday
- 31 Oct (Halloween) -- not needed as holiday
- 11 Nov (Veterans) -- not needed as holiday
- 3 Mar -- not needed as holiday
- 14 Apr (Orthodox Good Friday) -- not needed as holiday (they should time spring break to be at the end of the quarter and include a teacher workday on the Friday before or Monday after)
- 21 Apr (Eid) -- not needed as holiday


Add in:
- Week long "fall break" at the middle or end of Oct (best to be timed at the end of the quarter)


Keep:
- 4-day Labor Day break
- Election Day
- The 2 week winter break
- The 3-day Thanksgiving break
- The holiday for MLK
- The 4-day holiday at the semester's end in January
- The holiday for President's Day
- Spring break (best to be timed at the end of the quarter and move the end-of-quarter teacher workday to the Friday before Spring Break or the Monday after)
- Memorial Day

I would be very happy with that. Now we are going to see a ton of posts on why we are culturally insensitive and why every group needs it's special day off.

I don't want a two week winter break. I want breaks that align to the end of the quarter. The only reason that break is when it is is because of YOUR RELIGIOUS HOLIDAY THAT I DON'T CELEBRATE AND DON'T PLAN MY LIFE AROUND. Life is not about Christianity. GET OVER IT YOU PSYCHOS.

The majority of parents in FCPS do want a 2-week winter break. I would love to have winter break align with the end of the semester though! Unfortunately, I think you are stuck with winter break encompassing Christmas and New Years. Next year, how about we start the school year a week earlier in August and then have our winter break from the 23rd of Dec through the 7th of Jan?

I would much rather end school a week earlier in June than off the extra week at winter break this year -- they have ELEVEN days off, it's absurd. The week before christmas is totally unnecessary. Where I grew up, it was just the week between christmas and new years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Let's get down to specifics. Review the holiday list here. Which dates would you get rid of and why?

https://www.fcps.edu/calendars/standard-school-year-calendar

Get rid of:
- 26 Sep (Rosh Hashanah) -- not needed as holiday
- 5 Oct (Yom Kippur) -- not needed as holiday
- 10 Oct (Indigenous Peoples') -- not needed as holiday
- 24 Oct (Diwali) -- not needed as holiday
- 31 Oct (Halloween) -- not needed as holiday
- 11 Nov (Veterans) -- not needed as holiday
- 3 Mar -- not needed as holiday
- 14 Apr (Orthodox Good Friday) -- not needed as holiday (they should time spring break to be at the end of the quarter and include a teacher workday on the Friday before or Monday after)
- 21 Apr (Eid) -- not needed as holiday


Add in:
- Week long "fall break" at the middle or end of Oct (best to be timed at the end of the quarter)


Keep:
- 4-day Labor Day break
- Election Day
- The 2 week winter break
- The 3-day Thanksgiving break
- The holiday for MLK
- The 4-day holiday at the semester's end in January
- The holiday for President's Day
- Spring break (best to be timed at the end of the quarter and move the end-of-quarter teacher workday to the Friday before Spring Break or the Monday after)
- Memorial Day

I would be very happy with that. Now we are going to see a ton of posts on why we are culturally insensitive and why every group needs it's special day off.

I don't want a two week winter break. I want breaks that align to the end of the quarter. The only reason that break is when it is is because of YOUR RELIGIOUS HOLIDAY THAT I DON'T CELEBRATE AND DON'T PLAN MY LIFE AROUND. Life is not about Christianity. GET OVER IT YOU PSYCHOS.

The majority of parents in FCPS do want a 2-week winter break. I would love to have winter break align with the end of the semester though! Unfortunately, I think you are stuck with winter break encompassing Christmas and New Years. Next year, how about we start the school year a week earlier in August and then have our winter break from the 23rd of Dec through the 7th of Jan?

I would much rather end school a week earlier in June than off the extra week at winter break this year -- they have ELEVEN days off, it's absurd. The week before christmas is totally unnecessary. Where I grew up, it was just the week between christmas and new years.

Yes, you think it is absurd. We get it. But, unfortunately for you, the majority does not agree with you. Two weeks it is.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Let's get down to specifics. Review the holiday list here. Which dates would you get rid of and why?

https://www.fcps.edu/calendars/standard-school-year-calendar

Get rid of:
- 26 Sep (Rosh Hashanah) -- not needed as holiday
- 5 Oct (Yom Kippur) -- not needed as holiday
- 10 Oct (Indigenous Peoples') -- not needed as holiday
- 24 Oct (Diwali) -- not needed as holiday
- 31 Oct (Halloween) -- not needed as holiday
- 11 Nov (Veterans) -- not needed as holiday
- 3 Mar -- not needed as holiday
- 14 Apr (Orthodox Good Friday) -- not needed as holiday (they should time spring break to be at the end of the quarter and include a teacher workday on the Friday before or Monday after)
- 21 Apr (Eid) -- not needed as holiday


Add in:
- Week long "fall break" at the middle or end of Oct (best to be timed at the end of the quarter)


Keep:
- 4-day Labor Day break
- Election Day
- The 2 week winter break
- The 3-day Thanksgiving break
- The holiday for MLK
- The 4-day holiday at the semester's end in January
- The holiday for President's Day
- Spring break (best to be timed at the end of the quarter and move the end-of-quarter teacher workday to the Friday before Spring Break or the Monday after)
- Memorial Day

I would be very happy with that. Now we are going to see a ton of posts on why we are culturally insensitive and why every group needs it's special day off.

I don't want a two week winter break. I want breaks that align to the end of the quarter. The only reason that break is when it is is because of YOUR RELIGIOUS HOLIDAY THAT I DON'T CELEBRATE AND DON'T PLAN MY LIFE AROUND. Life is not about Christianity. GET OVER IT YOU PSYCHOS.

The majority of parents in FCPS do want a 2-week winter break. I would love to have winter break align with the end of the semester though! Unfortunately, I think you are stuck with winter break encompassing Christmas and New Years. Next year, how about we start the school year a week earlier in August and then have our winter break from the 23rd of Dec through the 7th of Jan?

I would much rather end school a week earlier in June than off the extra week at winter break this year -- they have ELEVEN days off, it's absurd. The week before christmas is totally unnecessary. Where I grew up, it was just the week between christmas and new years.

The school board set a precedence years ago that there would always be 2 weeks at Christmas for mental health. Haha I don’t think it’s going anywhere.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Let's get down to specifics. Review the holiday list here. Which dates would you get rid of and why?

https://www.fcps.edu/calendars/standard-school-year-calendar

Get rid of:
- 26 Sep (Rosh Hashanah) -- not needed as holiday
- 5 Oct (Yom Kippur) -- not needed as holiday
- 10 Oct (Indigenous Peoples') -- not needed as holiday
- 24 Oct (Diwali) -- not needed as holiday
- 31 Oct (Halloween) -- not needed as holiday
- 11 Nov (Veterans) -- not needed as holiday
- 3 Mar -- not needed as holiday
- 14 Apr (Orthodox Good Friday) -- not needed as holiday (they should time spring break to be at the end of the quarter and include a teacher workday on the Friday before or Monday after)
- 21 Apr (Eid) -- not needed as holiday


Add in:
- Week long "fall break" at the middle or end of Oct (best to be timed at the end of the quarter)


Keep:
- 4-day Labor Day break
- Election Day
- The 2 week winter break
- The 3-day Thanksgiving break
- The holiday for MLK
- The 4-day holiday at the semester's end in January
- The holiday for President's Day
- Spring break (best to be timed at the end of the quarter and move the end-of-quarter teacher workday to the Friday before Spring Break or the Monday after)
- Memorial Day

I would be very happy with that. Now we are going to see a ton of posts on why we are culturally insensitive and why every group needs it's special day off.

I don't want a two week winter break. I want breaks that align to the end of the quarter. The only reason that break is when it is is because of YOUR RELIGIOUS HOLIDAY THAT I DON'T CELEBRATE AND DON'T PLAN MY LIFE AROUND. Life is not about Christianity. GET OVER IT YOU PSYCHOS.

The majority of parents in FCPS do want a 2-week winter break. I would love to have winter break align with the end of the semester though! Unfortunately, I think you are stuck with winter break encompassing Christmas and New Years. Next year, how about we start the school year a week earlier in August and then have our winter break from the 23rd of Dec through the 7th of Jan?

I would much rather end school a week earlier in June than off the extra week at winter break this year -- they have ELEVEN days off, it's absurd. The week before christmas is totally unnecessary. Where I grew up, it was just the week between christmas and new years.

Every year they have done a survey the majority wants a 2 week Winter Break. The issue with the calendar is no one will be happy. Parents shouldn’t even have a say in my opinion.

[Anonymous]

The majority of parents in FCPS do want a 2-week winter break. I would love to have winter break align with the end of the semester though! Unfortunately, I think you are stuck with winter break encompassing Christmas and New Years. Next year, how about we start the school year a week earlier in August and then have our winter break from the 23rd of Dec through the 7th of Jan?

This would need to get off by Memorial Day.
This plan would also optimize instructional time before state testing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Kids love these days off..they break up the monotony of a long school year. Teachers generally don't mind them because days off here and there really aren't that disruptive to learning. The only ones who really care are...parents.

Not sure why we want kids to experience the same 9-5, 5 day a week grind of so many of their parents.

See, I don't get this. Kids love not going to school and playing video games all day, but that doesn't mean it will help their academic progress. I have always found the days off to be incredibly disruptive to my kids, especially my one child with ADHD who absolutely needs a struct routine.

My kids hate them. No kid loves them unless they have a SAHM parent who can take them to play. Most of us are just piecing together a plan to keep them sane and not fighting with one another or entertained. Everyone prefers routine.

We both work but my kids love the breaks they get from the days off. I’d rather a longer school year with days off sprinkled in, too.

Me too. And lots of long weekends mean that we can go to our cabin and work from there. It's good for kids to have some downtime throughout the year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I just up the student holidays. Ridiculous! Sorry, but we don’t need off for every religious holiday. Give them a fall break, winter break, February break and spring break, like other secular countries. And, let them out two weeks earlier in June. It has to be impossible to teach with all the sporadic days off.

ITA and also, let's make it easier on teachers and students and make sure the breaks are aligned to the end of the quarter like they are in more secular countries - e.g., winter break comes at the end of January, not December, and spring break comes at the end of Q3, rather than being tied to Easter. This year, high school students are going to have exams either the week before spring break in which case they come back after spring break and do nothing for a week, OR they're going to go on spring break and have to come back to exams. Either one is a ridiculous scenario.

I’ve taught high school for over 20 years and read your post multiple times. I don’t understand your reasoning at all. Why are they doing nothing? If there is an exam, they start new material after. It doesn’t matter if that falls the week before or after a break. No one says there is one week until break so let’s sit here and do nothing.

That’s just the story all these parents tell them selves to justify harassing and demeaning teachers

I am not harassing or demeaning teachers, I am just saying that the schedule is stupid. Stop taking offense to everything.

There are multiple posts that are insulting teachers. It may not be you but they definitely exist.

Okay well then start your own thread about harassing teachers and stop derailing other people's threads/comments.

I’ll do whatever I like because you have no idea who I am.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Kids love these days off..they break up the monotony of a long school year. Teachers generally don't mind them because days off here and there really aren't that disruptive to learning. The only ones who really care are...parents.

Not sure why we want kids to experience the same 9-5, 5 day a week grind of so many of their parents.

Because many of us parents have to work and we need our kids in school while we work!

No matter how much you want it to be true, school is not daycare. Teachers are not daycare providers. You chose to have kids. You choose to work. It is 100% on you to figure this out.

Aaaaaand that’s why I send my kids to private school. Teachers like this.

I’m not a teacher. I’m a parent who accepts responsibility for my kids. I’ve never considered the school a daycare center.

Fine, if you say so. I used to teach in a public school. Watching teachers spin this kind of garbage is why my kids will never see the inside of a public school.

I’m sure the schools are happy that you and your kids are gone. You sound like an entitled jerk.

I do feel entitled to a functional school schedule, yes. And of COURSE it's child care. The people who deny it are making asses of themselves.

You’re getting the state required instructional days/hours. That is all you are entitled to.

Actually, we're not getting the required hours of INSTRUCTION b/c FCPS is fudging the numbers by counting 100 mins of "walk to the bus" and "walk to the classroom from the bus"-time as "instructional time" --- when we all know that it is NOT instructional time. You might think that is no big deal, but that 100 min of lost instructional time per week adds up to another week and a half of school lost b/c FCPS is being dishonest. Lunch and recess don't count as "instructional" time. Walking to the classroom from the bus or walking to the bus from the classroom are not legitimate instructional time.

Your math makes no sense at all. If my daughter is in school from 9:20 to 4:20, that is 7 hours. If I remove an hour for lunch and recess that is 6 hours. 6 hours x 180 days is 1080 hours, more than the requirement. No one is counting “walking to the bus” time. That happens prior to 9:20 and after 4:20. Please stop buying into every rumor you hear.

^^ Sorry, just double checked the times. They go until 4:05pm. So 5 hours and 45 minutes x 180 = 1035. Still more than 990.

Minor point: you didn't count the 5 early release days as "half days" (which gets you to the 990).

More important point: FCPS gives us "just enough" scheduled time to meet the requirements.... but have you ever considered what happens when there are snow days (i.e. no school), early release for weather, or 2 hr delays for weather --- WHEN THERE ARE NO MAKE UP DAYS?

If you only have 990 hours scheduled, and you tell people that they never have to make up snow days because the snow days are "built in" -- something is fishy! If there are NO snow days/late arrivals/early releases (for weather), THEN your kid gets the required minimum. If there are ANY snow days, delays, early releases throughout the year, your kid is simply getting gipped out of their required educational time. Welcome to FCPS.

5 early release days (10 hours) gets you to 1025, not 990. That is still 35 hours extra which equals 6 days of snow.
When it’s all said and done, it’s probably pretty close to 990.

I know you don't want to believe it, but it's true. The way they worked out the "built in" snow days was to find a way to count non-instructional time as "instructional" time so that they "magically" found 10 "built in" snow days without actually adding 10 days to the calendar. That is the fact. I assure you FCPS is not scheduling one hour more than 990 in their planned calendar. And when snow days come, or delays or wind or rain days... the way they get around making them up is by fudging the way they count the hours.

Be smart: Don't you think FCPS would be trying to shorten the year if they had -- let's say--- 3 snow days in a given year (less than the supposed 10 that are "built in")? If they actually met the 990 hours earlier in June, don't you think they'd shorten the year and let kids out early? They don't do that b/c there aren't really 10 snow days built into the calendar. There are no actual snow days built in.... just faux "instructional hours." They get around making up snow days (or other missed days) by padding the number of scheduled instructional hours with 100 min. per week of walking time to and from the classroom as being "instructional hours." You and I know that that activity is NOT "instruction." To count it as "instruction" to meet the 990 means that they are giving less than the 990 ACTUAL instructional hours when there are any snow days (or weather delays) per year.

It's a slight of hand. Those who were around 10 years ago when this "creative accounting" was conceived know the truth. It hasn't changed.

And by reducing the snow days to 5, it’s easier for them to justify the virtual days as instructional.

[Anonymous]

What sucks also is that SOLS will be in May and then there are weeks of school with no teaching whatsoever. So as far as “instructional time”, it is lost. That’s the babysitting part. So much would rather actual school without breaks and an early release once they stop teaching (or: after SOL).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What sucks also is that SOLS will be in May and then there are weeks of school with no teaching whatsoever. So as far as “instructional time”, it is lost. That’s the babysitting part. So much would rather actual school without breaks and an early release once they stop teaching (or: after SOL).

That really isn’t true at all. Trust me, there is plenty of content that can still be taught and many fun learning projects that can be done.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What sucks also is that SOLS will be in May and then there are weeks of school with no teaching whatsoever. So as far as “instructional time”, it is lost. That’s the babysitting part. So much would rather actual school without breaks and an early release once they stop teaching (or: after SOL).

That really isn’t true at all. Trust me, there is plenty of content that can still be taught and many fun learning projects that can be done.

+1, people say this over and over but it’s not true.