school hours, kinder logistics

[Anonymous]

I figured this forum gets more responses…We are looking for house to buy in Fairfax county and I have some questions about elementary schools. I see the schools that have full day vs. half day kindergarten. I also see on the fcps.edu site info about aftercare as well. I can only find regular school hours and the special Monday hours (another story). We are currently in a full day preschool and I think my son would do fine in full day but I’m not sure on the other logistics. If it is half day or full day how do the aftercare hours work? Are they different? Are these aftercare programs a free for all and I’d be better off with a nanny or more flex time to have him home with me.
But maybe he’d only be there for a hour or so.

We’re trying to figure out if we’d need to get other (non after/extended care) beyond the school day. I pretty much could have my husband take him to school and I could pick up at 3:30.

Any advice welcomed.

[Anonymous]

My DS is in a Fairfax county 1/2 day kindergarten program. We too did a full day preschool program and I really wish that he was in a full day kindergarten program (our school was suppose to have it by now, but we were dropped from the lists 2 years ago because of budget issues).

We use the SACC program. There are 3 kinds - before school, after kindergarten, and after school. We only use the after kindergarten version of SACC. It fills the gap from noon until 3:30pm and only has kindergarteners in it. It kind of makes it like a full day program for him. He eats lunch at school and they do arts/crafts, games, playground time, etc. My son takes the school bus in the morning to school, does kindergarten, then SACC and takes the bus home again.

[Anonymous]

I don't know about the kindergarten-only SACC programs, but in my experience the regular SACC (starting at 3:30 or whenever school ends for everyone) is a free-for-all. They try to have homework time, etc., but it doesn't seem very organized. Plus, in our school it looks very crowded--no opportunity for a kid to relax and have some quiet time after a long day at school.

[Anonymous]

OP - Most SACC programs have a waitlist that's at least a year long. You'll want to get on the list as soon as you find a house, even if you haven't decided if you want to use SACC.

[Anonymous]

PP here - Also, I think you may get more responses in the VA Public Schools Forum.

[Anonymous]

rumor is that all Fairfax county schools will have only half-day kindergarten next year for budget reasons. I can only imagine how that will impact the availability of care from noon to 3:30.

but don't take my word for it. The school system should have a site. The PTA for the schools you are considering would be a good resource, too.

And be aware that school boundaries shift. We have friends who bought a house in a specific district, then the boundaries changed before their kids were school aged.

[Anonymous]

Here is the SACC website: http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/ofc/Sacc.htm

You can do SACC for before school, after K, or after school (meaning after regular school). My older DD is in before school SACC. We have been on the wait list for after school SACC for 18 months. But the wait list varies by school. We've been #2 since August. Sigh.

For us, the before school SACC is a bargain, because we get almost 2 full hours of care for the cheaper price. Our school is from 9:15-3:55, so it runs a later schedule than many of the other schools.

And be aware, as a PP mentioned, full day K is on the chopping block for next year except at Title 1 schools.

[Anonymous]

PP again. Also, my older DD (third grader) does a couple after school programs, Girls on the Run and a FLEX language class, so that helps us to cover after school until 5. Depending on your school, there may be options like that available. But with half day K, it's hard.

Many working parents choose to do full day K in a private to avoid the scheduling nightmare that is half day K in FCPS.