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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Actually, flipping elementary school and middle school would be great. If you look at the rhythms of sleep for kids, as they start to go with puberty in middle school it’s important for them to have more sleep. So if you had elementary start at 7:40, middle at nine, it would work better. especially since middle school kids don’t have to work after school like high school kids.  [/quote]
I'd love this as a morning person and Pre-K teacher. My students are so tired by 3, late start schools are rough for some little kids![/quote]
I’m not sure how this would be beneficial though— most parents with kids work and so the vast majority of kids would be in aftercare.  I can’t imagine the kids getting out at 2:30 on normal days, and 11 on early release.  They would be in aftercare until 5 for most kids, that’s a really long day. Middle and highschool come home more or less independently.  Also they say that elementary school has to be the latest because of an adult isn’t there to meet a child, they have to take them back to school.  Can’t do that if there’s another route after.[/quote]

First, all early release days should be eliminated entirely.  They are a waste for everyone.
Second, kids are either going to be in before-school care or extended day after school.  Why not just have extended day instead of both?  Schools weren't created for the convenience of parents.  THey were created to educate the populace.  Parents are just going to have to figure out alternatives.  It takes a village.
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So there is limited space for extended day.  Having kids get home at 2:30 would mean nearly everyone would need extended day.  Leaving work at 3:00 to pick up at a bus stop at 3:40 is feasible, leaving at 1:50 to meet your kids at the bus at 2:30 is not feasible for most people who work full time.  Aps extended day only has room for about 20% of students that age.  Remember how hard it was to get into extended day pre-pandemic? There either needs to be a significant expansion of extended day, or there would need to be many more aftercare options than what currently exists.
Also my kids middle school bus picks up at 7:05.  She has to wake up at 6 in order to have enough time to get ready and to eat breakfast.  I would hate having to get my elementary school kids on a bus at 7:15 (which would be the shifted equivalent of their current bus — they get picked up at 8:35 for a 9:00 start).  Kids get up early but that is really early!  And elementary is for 6 years!  They had middle school start at the earliest time because it’s the shortest length you are at one school.  
Not to mention that you didn’t address the fact that elementary school bus drivers have to take kids back to their school if they aren’t met by an adult.  How do you do that if they have middle and high school routes right after?[/quote]
Again, the schools that already operate on that schedule manage just fine, some have extended day waitlists and others don't. This year extended day enrollment is down and I think it's reasonable to expect it to be lower than pre-pandemic as more people are on permanent telework.[/quote]
No elementary school starts at 7:40.  The earliest is 8 (three schools) and 8:20 (another three schools).  8 would be ok— bus pick up for most people would be after 7:20.  Having bus pick up before 7:20 is not pleasant, most people drive so their kid can get another 10-15 minutes sleep.  That kind of eliminates the point— for traffic reasons they want people taking the bus— and elementary school is twice as long as middle school.
For me personally, it would be pretty nice.  Shifting my morning schedule to wake up at 5:30 so the kids can make the bus at 7:03 has been really tough for my sleeping patterns.  I realized this morning im going to have someone in middle school for the next 8 years!  If you shift elementary school to be the early ones, at least I’ll be able to sleep in in five years![/quote]

No, “most “parents do not drive to give their kids an extra 20 minutes of sleep. Hello privilege. [/quote]

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