Anyone else object to starting Fairfax County middle schools earlier just to start hs later?

[Anonymous]

PP again. Mine is the MS that starts at 7:20. Even without the after school program, school goes until 2:25 and buses don't leave the school until 2:35. Most kids aren't home before 3, many later. With the after school program, my MSer doesn't get home until 4:45 most days.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm so tired of DCUMers always ignoring the fact that the middle schools inside the beltway start at 6th grade! My 11 year old 6th grader will not be ready to be home alone at 2-2:30!

This is not universal. Which Middle Schools? Longfellow and Cooper are both inside the beltway and both start in the 7th grade.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:PP again. Mine is the MS that starts at 7:20. Even without the after school program, school goes until 2:25 and buses don't leave the school until 2:35. Most kids aren't home before 3, many later. With the after school program, my MSer doesn't get home until 4:45 most days.

Our Middle School currently starts at 7:50 and the kids get off the bus and are home by 3:00pm.

[Anonymous]

It depends on the route. Kids at the beginning of the route will of course be home sooner. Some of the routes for our school are almost an hour long. My kids school is out at 2:25 and she walks in the door at 2:50 on days she doesn't take the late bus. The last stop on the route is at 3:15.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:7:30 is an improvement for our MS, so I'll take it. And living through our second year of hell of a 7:20 start, I absolutely would trade two years of 7:30 for four years at 8/8:15. Especially when, for most kids, those MS grades don't count.

No doubt. I think OP is unaware that kids at the middle school part of secondary schools have been getting on a bus at 6:40 for years and years. This is a great improvement for them b/c being attached to a hs is actually resulting in a beneficial 8:00 start time.

Cry me a river, OP. (but, I do understand your angst since you've had it so good for so long).

[Anonymous]

Not sure I understand why all this money is being spent to give high schools a thirty minute delay... Really, what is the point? We're not talking two hours - just 30-40 minutes! What a waste of time and money.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:7:30 is an improvement for our MS, so I'll take it. And living through our second year of hell of a 7:20 start, I absolutely would trade two years of 7:30 for four years at 8/8:15. Especially when, for most kids, those MS grades don't count.

No doubt. I think OP is unaware that kids at the middle school part of secondary schools have been getting on a bus at 6:40 for years and years. This is a great improvement for them b/c being attached to a hs is actually resulting in a beneficial 8:00 start time.

Cry me a river, OP. (but, I do understand your angst since you've had it so good for so long).

I didn't realize there were so many sadists in Fairfax County. So your "pain" must be inflicted on others? How does that help?

In any case, there will be no benefits from this change (unless you sell buses). It's a total load of BS, perpetrated by a bunch of whiny hypocrites.

[Anonymous]

I think the plan makes perfect sense. High school students have a much heavier work load than m.s. students, they play after school sports, join clubs, get jobs, etc. and need a little more sleep. M.S. children aren't as busy, and middle school is really a stepping stone for high school. I have both a H.S. child and a M.S. child and I am in full support of the changes.

[Anonymous]

No, our MS has some after school activities but they aren't every day and they don't start right at the beginning of the year. I need to be at work and need something reliable!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think the plan makes perfect sense. High school students have a much heavier work load than m.s. students, they play after school sports, join clubs, get jobs, etc. and need a little more sleep. M.S. children aren't as busy, and middle school is really a stepping stone for high school. I have both a H.S. child and a M.S. child and I am in full support of the changes.

Actually, middle school kids need more sleep than high school students.

Also, all of you justifications (heavier work load, significant after school activities, jobs) actually support early start times, not later. The time after school is far more valuable for all of those activities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think the plan makes perfect sense. High school students have a much heavier work load than m.s. students, they play after school sports, join clubs, get jobs, etc. and need a little more sleep. M.S. children aren't as busy, and middle school is really a stepping stone for high school. I have both a H.S. child and a M.S. child and I am in full support of the changes.

Actually, middle school kids need more sleep than high school students.

Also, all of you justifications (heavier work load, significant after school activities, jobs) actually support early start times, not later. The time after school is far more valuable for all of those activities.

Can you cite the evidence please?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:7:30 is an improvement for our MS, so I'll take it. And living through our second year of hell of a 7:20 start, I absolutely would trade two years of 7:30 for four years at 8/8:15. Especially when, for most kids, those MS grades don't count.

Exactly. And my middle schooler is already standing outside in the dark to catch a 6:20 bus. I doubt it'll be much different next year, but at least high school will be later.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think the plan makes perfect sense. High school students have a much heavier work load than m.s. students, they play after school sports, join clubs, get jobs, etc. and need a little more sleep. M.S. children aren't as busy, and middle school is really a stepping stone for high school. I have both a H.S. child and a M.S. child and I am in full support of the changes.

Actually, middle school kids need more sleep than high school students.

Also, all of you justifications (heavier work load, significant after school activities, jobs) actually support early start times, not later. The time after school is far more valuable for all of those activities.

Can you cite the evidence please?

Plenty of evidence:

"Children aged five to 12 need 10-11 hours of sleep."

http://sleepfoundation.org/sleep-topics/children-and-sleep/page/0%2C2/

"School-aged children At least 10 hours a day" (note that the category "school aged children" includes many middle school students).

http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/health-topics/topics/sdd/howmuch.html

So, if SLEEP is pushing for high school kids to get their utterly necessary recommended amount of sleep, then why aren't they pushing for middle school students to get that same recommended amount of sleep?

Can you smell the hypocrisy?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think the plan makes perfect sense. High school students have a much heavier work load than m.s. students, they play after school sports, join clubs, get jobs, etc. and need a little more sleep. M.S. children aren't as busy, and middle school is really a stepping stone for high school. I have both a H.S. child and a M.S. child and I am in full support of the changes.

Actually, middle school kids need more sleep than high school students.

Also, all of you justifications (heavier work load, significant after school activities, jobs) actually support early start times, not later. The time after school is far more valuable for all of those activities.

Can you cite the evidence please?

Plenty of evidence:

"Children aged five to 12 need 10-11 hours of sleep."

http://sleepfoundation.org/sleep-topics/children-and-sleep/page/0%2C2/

"School-aged children At least 10 hours a day" (note that the category "school aged children" includes many middle school students).

http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/health-topics/topics/sdd/howmuch.html

So, if SLEEP is pushing for high school kids to get their utterly necessary recommended amount of sleep, then why aren't they pushing for middle school students to get that same recommended amount of sleep?

Can you smell the hypocrisy?

Middle schoolers are much more likely to be asleep at an earlier time. Less homework, not having a job or competing social interests. Teens may need fewer hours, but they're not getting it. That's the problem. The solution is a later start time.

http://www.latimes.com/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-american-academy-of-pediatrics-later-school-start-times-20140825-story.html

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I applaud Karen Garza for doing what her predecessor could not. Great decision.

Hi Karen garza. You SUCK!