Melanie Meren's FB post about the calendar

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't know anyone who pays for care on days off. The parents usually just trade using vacation days, telework if possible, use grandparents, or team up with friends.

You know why they do that? Because finding child care on erratic, random days is very difficult.

The calendar is not good for students and their education and that's my main problem with it. I would actually PAY to have education be at the forefront of FCPS. I have HS students so childcare is no longer a concern for me but both my husband and children find this calendar detrimental. "It's been hard to lock in this year" is a refrain I hear a lot from my kids and their friends. We don't need all these days off to relax and sleep.

There it is again. The calendar is not good for students and their education.

PROVE IT. Where is the data that suggests that? Are there lower test scores? Lower overall GPAs? Are reading levels progressing slower? Lower SAT scores? Lower graduation rates? Where are the actual FACTS? Not your opinion or your anecdotal evidence based on your kid and their friends. Real hard data.

Because if you don’t have that you have nothing but your opinion and everyone knows what they say about opinions…

You want actual data, not anecdotes. Multiple nonpartisan research groups - including Brown University, Stanford University, RAND, Harvard’s Shorenstein Center, and UConn’s Neag School—have all found the same thing: when districts reduce or destabilize instructional time, student achievement drops.

• Brown University & Stanford University (EdWorkingPaper 22‑653, 2023–24)
“Lost instructional time has consistently negative effects on student achievement.”
https://www.edworkingpapers.com/ai22-653

• Harvard Shorenstein Center – Journalist’s Resource (2025)
Peer‑reviewed studies show districts with reduced or inconsistent weekly schedules see lower test scores, *especially in math*
https://journalistsresource.org/education/four-day-school-week-research

• RAND Corporation (2023)
Irregular or shortened weekly schedules come with academic tradeoffs, including measurable declines in core subjects.
https://www.rand.org/blog/2023/04/the-four-day-school-week-are-the-pros-worth-the-cons.html

• UConn Neag School of Education / CEPARE (2024)
Fragmented or frequently altered schedules disrupt instructional continuity and harm learning.
https://education.uconn.edu/2024/01/03/around-the-block-evaluating-school-schedules

• American Psychological Association (2024)
Schedule structure - timing, consistency, predictability - has measurable effects on academic performance and attendance.
https://www.apa.org/monitor/2024/08/schools-shift-later-start-times

So yes, there is data. And it’s remarkably consistent: When instructional time becomes irregular or fragmented, student outcomes decline. FCPS’s calendar fits the exact pattern the research warns about.

Thank you. It will be interesting to see FCPS’ data in the coming years.

The links aren’t working for some of these. The others say the studies that have been done on it aren’t great. One says increasing the time is most 8mportsnt which Virginia does by having kids go to school longer each day. That is why there are so many snow days available.

Increasing the time becomes important WHEN you have fractured and irregular calendars. The deliberately caused ones as well, not just snow days.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:lol teachers get a 3-4 day work week and summers off, nevermind parents work 5 days a week+ funding schools fully with heavy tax burdens

And they’ll get the same salary and longer summers with a rational calendar.

Most accomplished teachers I know have summer jobs which are actually more lucrative than their teaching. Good teacher teachers will not object to more time off in the summer. The ones who make ends waitressing might.

Teachers have 40 week days in the summer from last day of work in June to first day of teacher workdays in August.

The starting teaching salary in FCPS is $61,747. For a 190 contract that’s $324 a day. Or $46 a hour.

What summer job do your teacher friends have for 40 days in the summer that pays more than $61,747?

Or what summer job do they have that will pay them more than $13,000?

What part time job is paying teachers more than $40 a hour, for 7 hours every weekday, for just the 40 days they’re available in the summer.

Please post the job link because teachers will line up for this lucrative endeavor.

I don't care if teachers make $40/hour or $100/hour. They work extremely hard and do a job most of us could do. Can you imagine dealing with 1000, 13-year-olds every day?

I think your math, by the way, is pretty flawed. I looked up the salary tables for FCPS, and it says teachers work 194-208 days. It is also public knowledge that teachers work more days than that, and they work 10 or more hours per day during school weeks.

Both my DH and I make significantly more than you claim teachers make per hour, yet our jobs are probably not nearly as stressful overall as a teacher’s job is. There is no way either of us would leave our jobs to go have the "cushy" job of a teacher. Absolutely not.

I don’t think the poster’s tone was saying teachers jobs are cushy or was trying to undermine the work teachers do by any means. Pretty sure they were just trying to compare what teachers make per year (salary/daily/hourly) to show how much they’d have to make in the summer for it to be more lucrative than their teaching job.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This entire thread boils down to:

1) Jews and Muslims shouldn't get holidays.

and

2) I don't want my kids at home with me during federal holidays.

That's pretty much it.

Actually, speaking only for myself, it’s the excessive Thanksgiving and Memorial Day that need to go first.

So for this instance, it’s #2.

Never understood people having kids and not wanting to spend the most time possible with them.[b]

I see this a lot on DCUM and curious where it comes from. It seems that starting with Gen X, well meaning parents think that it’s good to spend as much time as possible with their children. Maybe some sort of guilt for working full time? Or the whole attachment parenting movement? But research actually shows that as kids get older their growth and development happen when they are NOT with their parents. And not giving them that space to develop away from us can lead to more anxiety. Wanting your kid around as much as possible might feel good, but that’s not what they need once they are no longer very young. This whole “the more the better” thing is misguided.

And before you say “oh that’s just an excuse to not deal with your kids”… come on. I dont think anyone posting on DCUM is the type of truly neglectful parent where lack of attention or time together is leading to bad outcomes in their kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here's the thing: if they create more 5-day school weeks the school year will start later and/or end sooner. Either scenario is fine with me, but childcare will be needed when school is not in session. That's the financial side of things. And with the amount of advanced notice families have had to get childcare lined up - calendars published years in advance - only emergencies and snow days are not known ahead of time for planning.

Please, it's a lot easier to figure out childcare for full weeks of summer vs random days scattered throughout the year.

Exactly

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This entire thread boils down to:

1) Jews and Muslims shouldn't get holidays.

and

2) I don't want my kids at home with me during federal holidays.

That's pretty much it.

It's amazing how wrong some people can be.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This entire thread boils down to:

1) Jews and Muslims shouldn't get holidays.

and

2) I don't want my kids at home with me during federal holidays.

That's pretty much it.

Actually, speaking only for myself, it’s the excessive Thanksgiving and Memorial Day that need to go first.

So for this instance, it’s #2.

Never understood people having kids and not wanting to spend the most time possible with them.

This whole calendar debate boils down to:

1) I choose to have kids and then figure out if it works to be employed - either way it's fine
2) I have to work so my decision to have kids depends a lot on childcare options

It’s neither of those things. Well, maybe for some it is. But a lot of us are concerned about the actual education our kids are getting when we have so many days off and shortened days, on top of the usual winter weather issues, on top of both student and teacher illnesses and absences. It’s a lot. Yes, next year and the year after won’t be as bad in terms of the planned days off. I just think we need some kind of a future plan to make sure this type of heavily disjointed schedule doesn’t happen again in the future. I think it’s bad for education and I worry that they aren’t able to cover everything that they need to.

What’s unfortunate is that I don’t think the school board votes on the 3 hour early release schedule. I don’t know how the calendar can be “fixed” if the placement of those dates are unknown and there’s no input on when they should be held. This year, the worst weeks were the ones where our kids were out Tuesday and then had an early release that Wednesday. Those weeks were incredibly disjointed and it happened three times. Looking at next year’s calendar, there aren’t enough Wednesdays in November to avoid the scenario.

[Anonymous]

Two things can be true:

1. You enjoy spending time with your children.

2. You want your children to be in school receiving a good education.

Wanting what is best for your children just might involve having them in school consistently.

Smothering just may not be the best mothering.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This entire thread boils down to:

1) Jews and Muslims shouldn't get holidays.

and

2) I don't want my kids at home with me during federal holidays.

That's pretty much it.

Actually, speaking only for myself, it’s the excessive Thanksgiving and Memorial Day that need to go first.

So for this instance, it’s #2.

Never understood people having kids and not wanting to spend the most time possible with them.

This whole calendar debate boils down to:

1) I choose to have kids and then figure out if it works to be employed - either way it's fine
2) I have to work so my decision to have kids depends a lot on childcare options

It’s neither of those things. Well, maybe for some it is. But a lot of us are concerned about the actual education our kids are getting when we have so many days off and shortened days, on top of the usual winter weather issues, on top of both student and teacher illnesses and absences. It’s a lot. Yes, next year and the year after won’t be as bad in terms of the planned days off. I just think we need some kind of a future plan to make sure this type of heavily disjointed schedule doesn’t happen again in the future. I think it’s bad for education and I worry that they aren’t able to cover everything that they need to.

What’s unfortunate is that I don’t think the school board votes on the 3 hour early release schedule. I don’t know how the calendar can be “fixed” if the placement of those dates are unknown and there’s no input on when they should be held. This year, the worst weeks were the ones where our kids were out Tuesday and then had an early release that Wednesday. Those weeks were incredibly disjointed and it happened three times. Looking at next year’s calendar, there aren’t enough Wednesdays in November to avoid the scenario.

They didn’t vote. They were imposed by Reid, ostensibly to address statewide requirements in ‘24.

Parents, because surrounding counties did not seem to have the same need for constant early release to meet the same requirement, but we’re assure that this was a one time, Richmond driven, problem. Without any consultation with parents, Reid extended it into 25.

The board put into this by simply saying that it was not permitted.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Two things can be true:

1. You enjoy spending time with your children.

2. You want your children to be in school receiving a good education.

Wanting what is best for your children just might involve having them in school consistently.

Smothering just may not be the best mothering.

Can I add number three? I would rather spend an extra day with my child relaxed on a summer beach or even in our neighborhood pool then sitting home on a random Tuesday when we can’t travel because there is school on Wednesday, none of our nearby family has the day off, so we can’t spend time together, and options for enrichment are so intensely limited. Yes I want to spend time with my kid— and I want it to be the right time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This entire thread boils down to:

1) Jews and Muslims shouldn't get holidays.

and

2) I don't want my kids at home with me during federal holidays.

That's pretty much it.

Actually, speaking only for myself, it’s the excessive Thanksgiving and Memorial Day that need to go first.

So for this instance, it’s #2.

Never understood people having kids and not wanting to spend the most time possible with them.[b]

I see this a lot on DCUM and curious where it comes from. It seems that starting with Gen X, well meaning parents think that it’s good to spend as much time as possible with their children. Maybe some sort of guilt for working full time? Or the whole attachment parenting movement? But research actually shows that as kids get older their growth and development happen when they are NOT with their parents. And not giving them that space to develop away from us can lead to more anxiety. Wanting your kid around as much as possible might feel good, but that’s not what they need once they are no longer very young. This whole “the more the better” thing is misguided.

And before you say “oh that’s just an excuse to not deal with your kids”… come on. I dont think anyone posting on DCUM is the type of truly neglectful parent where lack of attention or time together is leading to bad outcomes in their kids.

Your kid could also spend time with their friends on those days. A lot of learning with children happens outside the classroom and comes from their peers.

Also, Wednesday and Friday around Thanksgiving and a day or two after Memorial Day is not going to be the deciding factor in whether or not your kid gets anxiety. Let's be realistic here...

[Anonymous]

Love the five day Memorial Day holiday!

If parents want to spend more time with their children and extended family, this is a great option. Especially because so many parts of the country are done with school on Friday before Memorial Day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This entire thread boils down to:

1) Jews and Muslims shouldn't get holidays.

and

2) I don't want my kids at home with me during federal holidays.

That's pretty much it.

Actually, speaking only for myself, it’s the excessive Thanksgiving and Memorial Day that need to go first.

So for this instance, it’s #2.

Never understood people having kids and not wanting to spend the most time possible with them.[b]

I see this a lot on DCUM and curious where it comes from. It seems that starting with Gen X, well meaning parents think that it’s good to spend as much time as possible with their children. Maybe some sort of guilt for working full time? Or the whole attachment parenting movement? But research actually shows that as kids get older their growth and development happen when they are NOT with their parents. And not giving them that space to develop away from us can lead to more anxiety. Wanting your kid around as much as possible might feel good, but that’s not what they need once they are no longer very young. This whole “the more the better” thing is misguided.

And before you say “oh that’s just an excuse to not deal with your kids”… come on. I dont think anyone posting on DCUM is the type of truly neglectful parent where lack of attention or time together is leading to bad outcomes in their kids.

Your kid could also spend time with their friends on those days. A lot of learning with children happens outside the classroom and comes from their peers.

Also, Wednesday and Friday around Thanksgiving and a day or two after Memorial Day is not going to be the deciding factor in whether or not your kid gets anxiety. Let's be realistic here...

I am referring specifically to the comment of “why have kids if you don’t want to spend as much time with them as possible”. Because some people keep bringing out the tired argument that parents who think there should be fewer days off just don’t want to be around their kids. By that logic, shipping your kid off to a friend’s house on days off is also bad because it means you aren’t spending time with your kid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Love the five day Memorial Day holiday!

If parents want to spend more time with their children and extended family, this is a great option. Especially because so many parts of the country are done with school on Friday before Memorial Day.

Not if they used all their PTO on random Wednesday “TW” days.

[Anonymous]

Can anyone explain why Orthodox Good Friday is a holiday in 2025-2026 and an O day in 2026-2027?

It makes the week after Spring Break this year really strange. They have Monday as a TW and then Friday as a holiday.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This entire thread boils down to:

1) Jews and Muslims shouldn't get holidays.

and

2) I don't want my kids at home with me during federal holidays.

That's pretty much it.

Actually, speaking only for myself, it’s the excessive Thanksgiving and Memorial Day that need to go first.

So for this instance, it’s #2.

Never understood people having kids and not wanting to spend the most time possible with them.

I see this a lot on DCUM and curious where it comes from. It seems that starting with Gen X, well meaning parents think that it’s good to spend as much time as possible with their children. Maybe some sort of guilt for working full time? Or the whole attachment parenting movement? But research actually shows that as kids get older their growth and development happen when they are NOT with their parents. And not giving them that space to develop away from us can lead to more anxiety. Wanting your kid around as much as possible might feel good, but that’s not what they need once they are no longer very young. This whole “the more the better” thing is misguided.

And before you say “oh that’s just an excuse to not deal with your kids”… come on. I dont think anyone posting on DCUM is the type of truly neglectful parent where lack of attention or time together is leading to bad outcomes in their kids.

Your kid could also spend time with their friends on those days. A lot of learning with children happens outside the classroom and comes from their peers.

Also, Wednesday and Friday around Thanksgiving and a day or two after Memorial Day is not going to be the deciding factor in whether or not your kid gets anxiety. Let's be realistic here...

I am referring specifically to the comment of “[b]why have kids if you don’t want to spend as much time with them as possible”. Because some people keep bringing out the tired argument that parents who think there should be fewer days off just don’t want to be around their kids. By that logic, shipping your kid off to a friend’s house on days off is also bad because it means you aren’t spending time with your kid.

Its a bad faith argument. Parents advocating for a normal schedule want the same number of days off, and therefore want to spend the exact same amount of time with their kids. They want that time to make sense, is all, which is a normal reaction in two-career families. FCPS assumes women don’t have jobs, or have hobby jobs only.