Anonymous
Post 06/15/2026 11:06     Subject: May/June attendance now optional?
I substitute regularly at a few elementary schools. It seemed pretty much regular school through last Friday, with a different “air” about it. On Friday during the math block for example, the class I had was assigned the task of creating a design for a sculpture for the front of the school. They could work independently or in a small group. First they had to sketch the design and write a short description of how it represented the school. Then they used Keva planks to build a model of the design using more than 25 but less than 45. Once that was done they were given a total budget that could be spent on the sculpture. Each plank used was given a dollar amount that corresponded to a material (stone $4, copper $6, etc). They had to figure out the cost of using each material or a combination of materials and had to adjust their design accordingly. They knew it wasn’t for a grade, but they had fun and got some positive things out of it.
Anonymous
Post 06/15/2026 08:54     Subject: May/June attendance now optional?

Former FCPS employee from 2016-2022. Assigned to 118 distinct schools. Can confirm that this “attendance optional/no learning/glorified daycare” has been problematic (and gotten progressively worse) since my first hand experience.

Look at the school calendars post SOL (or just ahead of HS grad). Award ceremonies, patrol picnics, class parties, end of year assemblies, field day (no longer competitive- just walking around). Classrooms get packed up and move watching begins.

Most HS now have a “senior internship” program (Langley, Madison, Oakton, Marshall to name a few) where seniors do NOT come to school but use the 2 weeks+ to volunteer/work with a parent/“do something meaningful.”

Parents miss this, but the first two weeks of ES are chaotic with very little instruction- it’s all administrative with last minute registrations, tours of the school, specials starting, mandatory screenings beginning.

Are kids isn’t learning


Anonymous
Post 06/15/2026 08:38     Subject: May/June attendance now optional?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Those of you who are upset about the state of teaching in the classroom, have you reached out to either the teacher or the admin? Or is everyone venting online only?


The teachers aren't at fault for this calendar and the district making consistent school and educational quality and afterthought.

This is a school board and superintendent level problem, not a teacher problem


Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Those of you who are upset about the state of teaching in the classroom, have you reached out to either the teacher or the admin? Or is everyone venting online only?


Yes. They don’t listen. They sent out surveys that intentionally screen the feedback they don’t want to hear.


The teacher and admin send out surveys? I don't mean the school board. This has nothing to do with the calendar. I have been teaching material up until the very last day when we are doing final exams (non AP classes) or final projects (AP underclassmen). If my colleagues are slacking off, they need to be notified that it's not okay. I showed ONE day of a movie (the day after the AP test, a movie related to my content) while kids filled out course surveys and feedback forms so that I could better prepare next year's group based on their responses. Then it was back to activities and content. Any teacher showing a week+ of disney movies at the secondary level is not doing their job.
Anonymous
Post 06/15/2026 08:28     Subject: May/June attendance now optional?
Anonymous wrote:Those of you who are upset about the state of teaching in the classroom, have you reached out to either the teacher or the admin? Or is everyone venting online only?


Yes. They don’t listen. They sent out surveys that intentionally screen the feedback they don’t want to hear.
Anonymous
Post 06/15/2026 08:27     Subject: May/June attendance now optional?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:The next three days are painful. More movies and TV series played in all classes. Laptops collected tomorrow, too. This is drawn out this year.


Which annoys me because they do consider these instructional days. They aren’t. And it isn’t just these last two weeks, for elementary it is all those early releases. Our school did virtually nothing learning on those days.

So those that argue this calendar provided the same amount instruction are missing the bigger picture.


+100.

Everyone who argued all year that FCPS was meeting their legal requirement never considered how low that legal requirement was. Said it before and I will say it again, meeting the legal requirement isn't enough and FCPS needs to do better!! We should not be in school this late in June and we need to have more consistent 5 day weeks in the Fall and Winter. Weather happens but we can control every other random day off on the Calendar.

This isn't about childcare but about improving education. The system is very broken.


DP. Agree. Teachers used to grade during school days—give the kids some worksheets and move on. My MS has done nothing at school for the last week and a half.
Anonymous
Post 06/15/2026 08:10     Subject: May/June attendance now optional?
Anonymous wrote:Those of you who are upset about the state of teaching in the classroom, have you reached out to either the teacher or the admin? Or is everyone venting online only?


The teachers aren't at fault for this calendar and the district making consistent school and educational quality and afterthought.

This is a school board and superintendent level problem, not a teacher problem
Anonymous
Post 06/15/2026 07:50     Subject: May/June attendance now optional?
Those of you who are upset about the state of teaching in the classroom, have you reached out to either the teacher or the admin? Or is everyone venting online only?
Anonymous
Post 06/15/2026 07:47     Subject: Re:May/June attendance now optional?
My Carson kid and his friends, most in AAP or all honors, had finals and projects last week. The only class showing a movie was his LA class and the movie tied to a book that they had been reading. This week they are doing nothing.
Anonymous
Post 06/15/2026 07:46     Subject: May/June attendance now optional?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Dp. We are experiencing the same lack of teaching since mid-May after the SOLs ended. It’s like the teachers quit. Some started taking personal days off, others threw up a movie, and some created projects which were clearly busy work. I noticed it easier getting through the K&R line as a result. Progressively more movies were added to all academic topics except math.


You keep saying this, yet you do not name the school. Why, I wonder? Oh wait, it's just because you want to stir up the pot yet again.


Dp

My kids go to Carson and navy and it's been like this for weeks


Your ES kid has done nothing for weeks? Is watching movies? Not sure I believe that.


Once the SOL are administered, very little happens. Teachers check out. People don't like to hear it but it is 100% true.
Anonymous
Post 06/15/2026 07:45     Subject: May/June attendance now optional?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:The next three days are painful. More movies and TV series played in all classes. Laptops collected tomorrow, too. This is drawn out this year.


Which annoys me because they do consider these instructional days. They aren’t. And it isn’t just these last two weeks, for elementary it is all those early releases. Our school did virtually nothing learning on those days.

So those that argue this calendar provided the same amount instruction are missing the bigger picture.


+100.

Everyone who argued all year that FCPS was meeting their legal requirement never considered how low that legal requirement was. Said it before and I will say it again, meeting the legal requirement isn't enough and FCPS needs to do better!! We should not be in school this late in June and we need to have more consistent 5 day weeks in the Fall and Winter. Weather happens but we can control every other random day off on the Calendar.

This isn't about childcare but about improving education. The system is very broken.
Anonymous
Post 06/15/2026 07:42     Subject: May/June attendance now optional?
My 9th grader has been spending hours and hours on his phone at school for WEEKS.

So much for "away for the day."

What are they going to do next year with no phoned allowed?
Anonymous
Post 06/15/2026 07:35     Subject: May/June attendance now optional?
Anonymous wrote:The next three days are painful. More movies and TV series played in all classes. Laptops collected tomorrow, too. This is drawn out this year.


Which annoys me because they do consider these instructional days. They aren’t. And it isn’t just these last two weeks, for elementary it is all those early releases. Our school did virtually nothing learning on those days.

So those that argue this calendar provided the same amount instruction are missing the bigger picture.
Anonymous
Post 06/15/2026 07:07     Subject: May/June attendance now optional?
Anonymous wrote:What happens if the mandated instructional days aren’t, in fact, “instructional” at all. Kids are being transported, class is being held, but there is no content. No summatives, no formatives.

Eerie, actually. Like the dumbing down of the US Education system has officially arrived. And many of you seem fine with it!


Yes!!! This is how it is and it is terrifying.

And all you hear all year long on this board is how people love the 4 day weeks and want weather related closures and want every other day off. It is terrifying that people are ok with this.
Anonymous
Post 06/15/2026 07:00     Subject: May/June attendance now optional?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Dp. We are experiencing the same lack of teaching since mid-May after the SOLs ended. It’s like the teachers quit. Some started taking personal days off, others threw up a movie, and some created projects which were clearly busy work. I noticed it easier getting through the K&R line as a result. Progressively more movies were added to all academic topics except math.


You keep saying this, yet you do not name the school. Why, I wonder? Oh wait, it's just because you want to stir up the pot yet again.


Dp

My kids go to Carson and navy and it's been like this for weeks


Your ES kid has done nothing for weeks? Is watching movies? Not sure I believe that.
Anonymous
Post 06/15/2026 06:59     Subject: May/June attendance now optional?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Dp. We are experiencing the same lack of teaching since mid-May after the SOLs ended. It’s like the teachers quit. Some started taking personal days off, others threw up a movie, and some created projects which were clearly busy work. I noticed it easier getting through the K&R line as a result. Progressively more movies were added to all academic topics except math.


My Carson kid had work in every class but LA last week. This week has nothing going on. His friends all had finals last week.

You keep saying this, yet you do not name the school. Why, I wonder? Oh wait, it's just because you want to stir up the pot yet again.


Dp

My kids go to Carson and navy and it's been like this for weeks