New school start times survey

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:These schedules are all about the parents and their needs. They don't have anything to do with the students. The students are a non-issue. It's all about the parents' needs.

I mean they actually aren't a non-issue. They're kids that we as adults are supposed to nurture and protect.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:These schedules are all about the parents and their needs. They don't have anything to do with the students. The students are a non-issue. It's all about the parents' needs.

Starting middle school later is about the kids though. The main resistance is actually the middle school teachers. They like the early schedule, especially the teachers with elementary age kids. They can finish their work day, head home, and be there when their kids get off the bus or walk home. No after school SACC or programs needed. They might not even need AM care if the other parent can flex their hours enough to where they can leave for work after the kids get on the bus.

[Anonymous]

I have a middle schooler, and one that will be in middle school in two years. So we are on this current schedule for the next four years. I'm fine with it.

[Anonymous]

I am a middle school teacher and a parent, and I desperately want one of the later MS start times. Personally, I have to get up super early and leave home before my kids are up or dressed or have had breakfast, hoping they'll do these things and get to the bus on time. My spouse works a flex schedule so sometimes is home, sometimes not. Then at school most of my students are half-awake and clearly not ready to learn at 7:30AM. You can say it's "only two years" but it's a critical 2 years when student engagement in learning and interest in reading for pleasure plummet as hormones change and access to phones increases. So having them hating going to school isn't ideal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am a middle school teacher and a parent, and I desperately want one of the later MS start times. Personally, I have to get up super early and leave home before my kids are up or dressed or have had breakfast, hoping they'll do these things and get to the bus on time. My spouse works a flex schedule so sometimes is home, sometimes not. Then at school most of my students are half-awake and clearly not ready to learn at 7:30AM. You can say it's "only two years" but it's a critical 2 years when student engagement in learning and interest in reading for pleasure plummet as hormones change and access to phones increases. So having them hating going to school isn't ideal.

It is better than having elementary schools opening at almost 10. You won't have well prepared middle school students with that model.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Option 1 has the high schools starting too late. 9 am is not ok, especially when they initially said high school times wouldn’t be affected.

The earliest acceptable start time for both MS and HS is 830a. 9a is not terribly late. Could it be a smidge earlier? Sure, but not by much. And they have to find a way to make this all work with the available transportation capacity. Given that, 9a seems pretty darn reasonable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am a middle school teacher and a parent, and I desperately want one of the later MS start times. Personally, I have to get up super early and leave home before my kids are up or dressed or have had breakfast, hoping they'll do these things and get to the bus on time. My spouse works a flex schedule so sometimes is home, sometimes not. Then at school most of my students are half-awake and clearly not ready to learn at 7:30AM. You can say it's "only two years" but it's a critical 2 years when student engagement in learning and interest in reading for pleasure plummet as hormones change and access to phones increases. So having them hating going to school isn't ideal.

It is better than having elementary schools opening at almost 10. You won't have well prepared middle school students with that model.

Which is why Option 1 makes by far the most sense for students. All 7th+ grade students starting 830a or later? Check. ES starting at a non-insane time? Check. Would we like ES to be a liiiiitle bit later than what's in Option 1? Probably, but we have transportation realities to deal with, and at least it's not academically detrimental for them in the same way it would be for 7th+ grade students to start that early.

[Anonymous]

Last night at the WSHS LB rezoning meeting FCPS said there were already around 21,000 responses to the start time survey.

Don't forget to scroll down. They added a neither choice.

[Anonymous]

Even though most of us prefer option 1 I don’t think that option 1 is even possible after talking to a high school athletic director. Balancing the sports in the afternoon, especially in the spring would be a nightmare and most of the schools have partnerships with local youth clubs that have the fields after a certain time. In best case scenario youth sports practices would be pushed back an hour even option 1 is selected. So my kid would be going to bed much later than I’m comfortable with.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Even though most of us prefer option 1 I don’t think that option 1 is even possible after talking to a high school athletic director. Balancing the sports in the afternoon, especially in the spring would be a nightmare and most of the schools have partnerships with local youth clubs that have the fields after a certain time. In best case scenario youth sports practices would be pushed back an hour even option 1 is selected. So my kid would be going to bed much later than I’m comfortable with.

I mean it is possible. Loudoun has high schools getting out after 4 and they have sports/clubs too.

[Anonymous]

A lot do activities in the morning instead

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Option 1 has the high schools starting too late. 9 am is not ok, especially when they initially said high school times wouldn’t be affected.

The earliest acceptable start time for both MS and HS is 830a. 9a is not terribly late. Could it be a smidge earlier? Sure, but not by much. And they have to find a way to make this all work with the available transportation capacity. Given that, 9a seems pretty darn reasonable.

9:00 is fine.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Even though most of us prefer option 1 I don’t think that option 1 is even possible after talking to a high school athletic director. Balancing the sports in the afternoon, especially in the spring would be a nightmare and most of the schools have partnerships with local youth clubs that have the fields after a certain time. In best case scenario youth sports practices would be pushed back an hour even option 1 is selected. So my kid would be going to bed much later than I’m comfortable with.

Actually most of us don’t prefer option 1. It’s too late for middle schoolers to start and end. No time to do homework.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A lot do activities in the morning instead

That doesn't work well and would not work for FCPS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Even though most of us prefer option 1 I don’t think that option 1 is even possible after talking to a high school athletic director. Balancing the sports in the afternoon, especially in the spring would be a nightmare and most of the schools have partnerships with local youth clubs that have the fields after a certain time. In best case scenario youth sports practices would be pushed back an hour even option 1 is selected. So my kid would be going to bed much later than I’m comfortable with.

Actually most of us don’t prefer option 1. It’s too late for middle schoolers to start and end. No time to do homework.

Most people don't really fret about the two middle school years and are pissed that fcps is using the 2 years of middle school (not even all the middle schools since secondary middle schools are on the high school schedule) as a reason to disrupt and blow up the schedule for everyone else.