Closed Tuesday?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, I've been so disappointed in my broader neighborhood. There are so many houses with pristine, cleared driveways and untouched sidewalks. The worst are the corner lots, where people just decided that it was too much work to break up the ice.

As part of this, a big problem has been the lack of help for the older folks. But I understand it. It is normally a 10-15 minute job to shovel someone's sidewalk in a normal 1/4 acre residential neighborhood. In these conditions it ends up being an hour-plus.

There's nothing that FCPS can do to make this better. They just have to decide what is the tipping point where the kids have missed enough school that it is ok to send them out in potentially dangerous conditions.

Everyone here is disappointed.....disappointed in neighbors(maybe they were sick or injured and couldn't help)....disappointed in school systems....no one seems to want to say that this is not a normal storm and VA does not have the resources to clean up they way up north does. Kids safety matters-all kids not just yours. Everyone will have to be disappointed-we have the snow days and we never use them all. This was a big and intense storm. It is what it is~stop with the teacher hate they don't make the calls.

Our neighborhood had people posting that they were available to help if people needed help and then did so when people reached out. My neighbor who cleared their driveway and din’t touch their sidewalk didn’t need help to do that, they just didn’t want to so they didn’t. Pretty much everyone in my neighborhood has clear drive ways, half didn’t touch their sidewalks. That is a choice they made that we all pay for.

I don’t care about using snow days, although they are not actual snow days but hours that are counted. That includes things that have nothing to do with being in class, like passing periods and lunch time, so these are not actual instructional minutes and not really snow days. FCPS plans for hte legally required 180 days, it doesn’t build in snow days. It switches to hours after the first snow days. This notion that there are 10 built in snow days is BS.

The real issue isn't sidewalks. I could shovel my sidewalk today and it would not affect whether it is safe for kids to be in school. But instead of taking responsibility for their decisions, FCPS blames sidewalks so they can blame parents.

We say this every year. The kids who could not possibly walk on a snowy sidewalk are the same kids who are out playing in the snow and sledding on snow days. Kids have walked on snow to get to school for 100 years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This question might be off topic, but if we do open this week, won’t we need to do 2 hour delays everyday - since there’s a danger that Middle Schoolers who walk in the early morning could be hit by cars?

Yes and that’s fine by me. It feels like the right amount of risk tolerance.

Whole problem here is the terrible decision making by folks being paid 300-400k year. You cannot reasonably claim, if conditions were so “unsafe” that entire school system had to close, that conditions tomorrow will be materially any better tomorrow (or Wed/Thurs for that matter). So leadership is either OK with another full week of no school (which is terrible ninny timid leadership) OR will hypocritically move the goal posts later this week.

What upsets me is that the people making these decisions are so far removed from the life blood of the school community, that they are thinking of their own reputations, liability status, and popularity rather than the welfare of children. If they want to open, they should at least make an effort to be proactive — start initiating community carpool drives, recruit volunteers to supervise children at the bus stop, create a list of contact information for folks willing to remove ice for a fee… they don’t have to be 100 percent successful, but they should TRY. I don’t have access to all the information they do, I know, but I am disheartened by their, I don’t know, uselessness. They should be working and thinking and planning like someone lit fires under their butts, but I don’t see that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, I've been so disappointed in my broader neighborhood. There are so many houses with pristine, cleared driveways and untouched sidewalks. The worst are the corner lots, where people just decided that it was too much work to break up the ice.

As part of this, a big problem has been the lack of help for the older folks. But I understand it. It is normally a 10-15 minute job to shovel someone's sidewalk in a normal 1/4 acre residential neighborhood. In these conditions it ends up being an hour-plus.

There's nothing that FCPS can do to make this better. They just have to decide what is the tipping point where the kids have missed enough school that it is ok to send them out in potentially dangerous conditions.

Everyone here is disappointed.....disappointed in neighbors(maybe they were sick or injured and couldn't help)....disappointed in school systems....no one seems to want to say that this is not a normal storm and VA does not have the resources to clean up they way up north does. Kids safety matters-all kids not just yours. Everyone will have to be disappointed-we have the snow days and we never use them all. This was a big and intense storm. It is what it is~stop with the teacher hate they don't make the calls.

Our neighborhood had people posting that they were available to help if people needed help and then did so when people reached out. My neighbor who cleared their driveway and din’t touch their sidewalk didn’t need help to do that, they just didn’t want to so they didn’t. Pretty much everyone in my neighborhood has clear drive ways, half didn’t touch their sidewalks. That is a choice they made that we all pay for.

I don’t care about using snow days, although they are not actual snow days but hours that are counted. That includes things that have nothing to do with being in class, like passing periods and lunch time, so these are not actual instructional minutes and not really snow days. FCPS plans for hte legally required 180 days, it doesn’t build in snow days. It switches to hours after the first snow days. This notion that there are 10 built in snow days is BS.

The real issue isn't sidewalks. I could shovel my sidewalk today and it would not affect whether it is safe for kids to be in school. But instead of taking responsibility for their decisions, FCPS blames sidewalks so they can blame parents.

We say this every year. The kids who could not possibly walk on a snowy sidewalk are the same kids who are out playing in the snow and sledding on snow days. Kids have walked on snow to get to school for 100 years.

It is different this year - it’s pure ice. However, I agree that FCPS is showing a lack of leadership in this crisis.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There will be a revolt if they turn back on the delay for tomorrow!

A revolt on DCUM, let's get the facts straight.

Literally all of the parents I know are PISSED school is closed today. I don’t think yall are the majority you think you are.

I’m not, and neither are any of the parents you know. Your little group of four isn’t the voice of FCPS parents.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why aren't they doing virtual?

Originally a couple years ago there was a plan to do virtual on all snow days. Then a group complained and said kids deserved the days to play in the snow, so they changed it. While I agree that on the first day it’s fun to play in the snow, that doesn’t account for weeks like this where it’s closed for piles of ice.

I know virtual doesn’t work for the young elementary school students, but it could be done for MS and HS.

I mean, my kid didn't bring a computer home so I have absolutely no clue how they'd do virtual. Definitely isn't something they can just decide mid snow days.

Exactly. A plan would really need to been in place to switch to virtual instruction.

So I will be lobbying for a plan to be in place next year when this happens again.

With the number of days off and half days already in this insane calendar, we really do the kids a huge disservice but not pushing for more actual educating.

Yes. That’s fair.

Sure go ahead but really you should lobby for upper elementary middle and high schools to go virtual. Most sane people don’t want to have to watch their little kids during virtual grade 1 Prek and kindergarten instruction. It is a waste of actual teaching time to teach logging on to those kids. Not to mention the budget will be horrible this round so to give all of those kids devices to a once every 10-15 year storm is ridiculous.

Use some calm down techniques and place this storm historically so you can take it in stride rather than start advocating for something that wastes time and money.

Love a virtual kindergarten and first grade parent during Covid

Ok, so maybe for K-3, it'll just be some pre-printed worksheets that they do on their own. The teacher can still log on, if parents want to help with logging in, for a 30 min morning meeting, attendance optional. Done.

See. It's all hypothetical at this point. It needs to be planned. It's not so simple as, "Maybe do this. Done."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why aren’t we doing virtual?

What do you picture when you say “virtual”? Are you thinking purely asynchronous work? Synchronous instruction?

People keep bringing this up. If you are going to do virtual instruction it needs to be planned ahead of time. You can’t just flip a switch and do it. Students and teachers both need to be prepped on expectations, especially if any type of synchronous instruction is going to happen. You’d have to make sure to send their laptops and Chromebooks home before the storm.

Other counties do it, so it wouldn't be that hard to start. In Henrico, they were told at the start of the year that they would go virtual after 3 snow days, so I know a few teachers that were making lessons plans on that 3rd snow day. They knew a storm was in the forecast, so the kids took their devices home.

Right. Planned.ahead.of.time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, I've been so disappointed in my broader neighborhood. There are so many houses with pristine, cleared driveways and untouched sidewalks. The worst are the corner lots, where people just decided that it was too much work to break up the ice.

As part of this, a big problem has been the lack of help for the older folks. But I understand it. It is normally a 10-15 minute job to shovel someone's sidewalk in a normal 1/4 acre residential neighborhood. In these conditions it ends up being an hour-plus.

There's nothing that FCPS can do to make this better. They just have to decide what is the tipping point where the kids have missed enough school that it is ok to send them out in potentially dangerous conditions.

Everyone here is disappointed.....disappointed in neighbors(maybe they were sick or injured and couldn't help)....disappointed in school systems....no one seems to want to say that this is not a normal storm and VA does not have the resources to clean up they way up north does. Kids safety matters-all kids not just yours. Everyone will have to be disappointed-we have the snow days and we never use them all. This was a big and intense storm. It is what it is~stop with the teacher hate they don't make the calls.

Our neighborhood had people posting that they were available to help if people needed help and then did so when people reached out. My neighbor who cleared their driveway and din’t touch their sidewalk didn’t need help to do that, they just didn’t want to so they didn’t. Pretty much everyone in my neighborhood has clear drive ways, half didn’t touch their sidewalks. That is a choice they made that we all pay for.

I don’t care about using snow days, although they are not actual snow days but hours that are counted. That includes things that have nothing to do with being in class, like passing periods and lunch time, so these are not actual instructional minutes and not really snow days. FCPS plans for hte legally required 180 days, it doesn’t build in snow days. It switches to hours after the first snow days. This notion that there are 10 built in snow days is BS.

The real issue isn't sidewalks. I could shovel my sidewalk today and it would not affect whether it is safe for kids to be in school. But instead of taking responsibility for their decisions, FCPS blames sidewalks so they can blame parents.

We say this every year. The kids who could not possibly walk on a snowy sidewalk are the same kids who are out playing in the snow and sledding on snow days. Kids have walked on snow to get to school for 100 years.

It is different this year - it’s pure ice. However, I agree that FCPS is showing a lack of leadership in this crisis.

Do you have food, water, power? Yes? Not a crisis.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why aren’t we doing virtual?

What do you picture when you say “virtual”? Are you thinking purely asynchronous work? Synchronous instruction?

People keep bringing this up. If you are going to do virtual instruction it needs to be planned ahead of time. You can’t just flip a switch and do it. Students and teachers both need to be prepped on expectations, especially if any type of synchronous instruction is going to happen. You’d have to make sure to send their laptops and Chromebooks home before the storm.

Other counties do it, so it wouldn't be that hard to start. In Henrico, they were told at the start of the year that they would go virtual after 3 snow days, so I know a few teachers that were making lessons plans on that 3rd snow day. They knew a storm was in the forecast, so the kids took their devices home.

Right. Planned.ahead.of.time.

That's literally what it says, so they can plan for it next year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, I've been so disappointed in my broader neighborhood. There are so many houses with pristine, cleared driveways and untouched sidewalks. The worst are the corner lots, where people just decided that it was too much work to break up the ice.

As part of this, a big problem has been the lack of help for the older folks. But I understand it. It is normally a 10-15 minute job to shovel someone's sidewalk in a normal 1/4 acre residential neighborhood. In these conditions it ends up being an hour-plus.

There's nothing that FCPS can do to make this better. They just have to decide what is the tipping point where the kids have missed enough school that it is ok to send them out in potentially dangerous conditions.

Everyone here is disappointed.....disappointed in neighbors(maybe they were sick or injured and couldn't help)....disappointed in school systems....no one seems to want to say that this is not a normal storm and VA does not have the resources to clean up they way up north does. Kids safety matters-all kids not just yours. Everyone will have to be disappointed-we have the snow days and we never use them all. This was a big and intense storm. It is what it is~stop with the teacher hate they don't make the calls.

Our neighborhood had people posting that they were available to help if people needed help and then did so when people reached out. My neighbor who cleared their driveway and din’t touch their sidewalk didn’t need help to do that, they just didn’t want to so they didn’t. Pretty much everyone in my neighborhood has clear drive ways, half didn’t touch their sidewalks. That is a choice they made that we all pay for.

I don’t care about using snow days, although they are not actual snow days but hours that are counted. That includes things that have nothing to do with being in class, like passing periods and lunch time, so these are not actual instructional minutes and not really snow days. FCPS plans for hte legally required 180 days, it doesn’t build in snow days. It switches to hours after the first snow days. This notion that there are 10 built in snow days is BS.

The real issue isn't sidewalks. I could shovel my sidewalk today and it would not affect whether it is safe for kids to be in school. But instead of taking responsibility for their decisions, FCPS blames sidewalks so they can blame parents.

We say this every year. The kids who could not possibly walk on a snowy sidewalk are the same kids who are out playing in the snow and sledding on snow days. Kids have walked on snow to get to school for 100 years.

It is different this year - it’s pure ice. However, I agree that FCPS is showing a lack of leadership in this crisis.

Do you have food, water, power? Yes? Not a crisis.

You’re right. Look at Nashville. It could be much, much worse. I think I’m absorbing the distress of parents posting here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why aren't they doing virtual?

Originally a couple years ago there was a plan to do virtual on all snow days. Then a group complained and said kids deserved the days to play in the snow, so they changed it. While I agree that on the first day it’s fun to play in the snow, that doesn’t account for weeks like this where it’s closed for piles of ice.

I know virtual doesn’t work for the young elementary school students, but it could be done for MS and HS.

I mean, my kid didn't bring a computer home so I have absolutely no clue how they'd do virtual. Definitely isn't something they can just decide mid snow days.

Exactly. A plan would really need to been in place to switch to virtual instruction.

So I will be lobbying for a plan to be in place next year when this happens again.

With the number of days off and half days already in this insane calendar, we really do the kids a huge disservice but not pushing for more actual educating.

Yes. That’s fair.

Sure go ahead but really you should lobby for upper elementary middle and high schools to go virtual. Most sane people don’t want to have to watch their little kids during virtual grade 1 Prek and kindergarten instruction. It is a waste of actual teaching time to teach logging on to those kids. Not to mention the budget will be horrible this round so to give all of those kids devices to a once every 10-15 year storm is ridiculous.

Use some calm down techniques and place this storm historically so you can take it in stride rather than start advocating for something that wastes time and money.

Love a virtual kindergarten and first grade parent during Covid

Ok, so maybe for K-3, it'll just be some pre-printed worksheets that they do on their own. The teacher can still log on, if parents want to help with logging in, for a 30 min morning meeting, attendance optional. Done.

See. It's all hypothetical at this point. It needs to be planned. It's not so simple as, "Maybe do this. Done."

This whole thread has been about planning it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This question might be off topic, but if we do open this week, won’t we need to do 2 hour delays everyday - since there’s a danger that Middle Schoolers who walk in the early morning could be hit by cars?

Yes and that’s fine by me. It feels like the right amount of risk tolerance.

Whole problem here is the terrible decision making by folks being paid 300-400k year. You cannot reasonably claim, if conditions were so “unsafe” that entire school system had to close, that conditions tomorrow will be materially any better tomorrow (or Wed/Thurs for that matter). So leadership is either OK with another full week of no school (which is terrible ninny timid leadership) OR will hypocritically move the goal posts later this week.

What upsets me is that the people making these decisions are so far removed from the life blood of the school community, that they are thinking of their own reputations, liability status, and popularity rather than the welfare of children. If they want to open, they should at least make an effort to be proactive — start initiating community carpool drives, recruit volunteers to supervise children at the bus stop, create a list of contact information for folks willing to remove ice for a fee… they don’t have to be 100 percent successful, but they should TRY. I don’t have access to all the information they do, I know, but I am disheartened by their, I don’t know, uselessness. They should be working and thinking and planning like someone lit fires under their butts, but I don’t see that.

Its's been 4 days....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There will be a revolt if they turn back on the delay for tomorrow!

A revolt on DCUM, let's get the facts straight.

Literally all of the parents I know are PISSED school is closed today. I don’t think yall are the majority you think you are.

I’m not, and neither are any of the parents you know. Your little group of four isn’t the voice of FCPS parents.

lol, get some friends Patricia. I’m doing just fine in my very wide circle.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This question might be off topic, but if we do open this week, won’t we need to do 2 hour delays everyday - since there’s a danger that Middle Schoolers who walk in the early morning could be hit by cars?

Yes and that’s fine by me. It feels like the right amount of risk tolerance.

Whole problem here is the terrible decision making by folks being paid 300-400k year. You cannot reasonably claim, if conditions were so “unsafe” that entire school system had to close, that conditions tomorrow will be materially any better tomorrow (or Wed/Thurs for that matter). So leadership is either OK with another full week of no school (which is terrible ninny timid leadership) OR will hypocritically move the goal posts later this week.

What upsets me is that the people making these decisions are so far removed from the life blood of the school community, that they are thinking of their own reputations, liability status, and popularity rather than the welfare of children. If they want to open, they should at least make an effort to be proactive — start initiating community carpool drives, recruit volunteers to supervise children at the bus stop, create a list of contact information for folks willing to remove ice for a fee… they don’t have to be 100 percent successful, but they should TRY. I don’t have access to all the information they do, I know, but I am disheartened by their, I don’t know, uselessness. They should be working and thinking and planning like someone lit fires under their butts, but I don’t see that.

Its's been 4 days....

The storm happened has been over for more than a week. Where’d you go to school, FCPS?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There will be a revolt if they turn back on the delay for tomorrow!

A revolt on DCUM, let's get the facts straight.

Literally all of the parents I know are PISSED school is closed today. I don’t think yall are the majority you think you are.

I’m not, and neither are any of the parents you know. Your little group of four isn’t the voice of FCPS parents.

Get ready to go back tomorrow...or don't. Nobody cares.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This question might be off topic, but if we do open this week, won’t we need to do 2 hour delays everyday - since there’s a danger that Middle Schoolers who walk in the early morning could be hit by cars?

Yes and that’s fine by me. It feels like the right amount of risk tolerance.

Whole problem here is the terrible decision making by folks being paid 300-400k year. You cannot reasonably claim, if conditions were so “unsafe” that entire school system had to close, that conditions tomorrow will be materially any better tomorrow (or Wed/Thurs for that matter). So leadership is either OK with another full week of no school (which is terrible ninny timid leadership) OR will hypocritically move the goal posts later this week.

What upsets me is that the people making these decisions are so far removed from the life blood of the school community, that they are thinking of their own reputations, liability status, and popularity rather than the welfare of children. If they want to open, they should at least make an effort to be proactive — start initiating community carpool drives, recruit volunteers to supervise children at the bus stop, create a list of contact information for folks willing to remove ice for a fee… they don’t have to be 100 percent successful, but they should TRY. I don’t have access to all the information they do, I know, but I am disheartened by their, I don’t know, uselessness. They should be working and thinking and planning like someone lit fires under their butts, but I don’t see that.

Its's been 4 days....

Yeah, I know. I’m okay if we open or close, but so many people posting here seem so anguished. FCPS could at least reassure them with updates and better communication. I think not knowing is making people anxious.