Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We don't have any kids yet, but live on the same street as an ES. I noticed the car line this morning and was surprised how late it was, so I checked the FCPS site and see that most ES in the county start at 9:45. How on earth do working parents make that schedule work?

You are exaggerating. My kids' ES bell schedules start at 8:40 AM and 9:15 AM. They get out at 3:25 PM and 4 PM.

If MOST ES start at 9:45, they get out at 4:30 PM, and the bus riding kids don't get home until 5:30-6 PM. Not happening for elementary kids.

I'm really not exaggerating, this is what I was looking at: https://www.fcps.edu/sites/default/files/BellSchedule2021.pdf
Granted it appears to be a couple years old.

No, those were special covid bell schedules, when schools only had 50% (or more or less) students in the building on special schedules. Our ES actually started at 10am - virtually. (At least I think, my memories of that time are fuzzy, it was all so weird and terrible.)

The bell schedules have never been like that, before the pandemic or after/now.

So Lake Braddock is a secondary school- 7-12 on the same campus and the kids share the buses so they start at the HS time. Why can't Frost- which is next to Woodson- share buses and start at the same time?

the MS time is ridiculous.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We don't have any kids yet, but live on the same street as an ES. I noticed the car line this morning and was surprised how late it was, so I checked the FCPS site and see that most ES in the county start at 9:45. How on earth do working parents make that schedule work?

You are exaggerating. My kids' ES bell schedules start at 8:40 AM and 9:15 AM. They get out at 3:25 PM and 4 PM.

If MOST ES start at 9:45, they get out at 4:30 PM, and the bus riding kids don't get home until 5:30-6 PM. Not happening for elementary kids.

I'm really not exaggerating, this is what I was looking at: https://www.fcps.edu/sites/default/files/BellSchedule2021.pdf
Granted it appears to be a couple years old.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do you want the opposite (early ES, late HS)? Move to Loudoun County.

NP. Where I went to school, all the elementary schools, middle schools, and high schools all started around 8:15. Like a civilized school district.

People have been sold a bill of goods here with this "economies of scale" stuff and these large school districts and inadequate bus fleets.

I think 8:30 or 9am would be civilized for all grades.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do you want the opposite (early ES, late HS)? Move to Loudoun County.

NP. Where I went to school, all the elementary schools, middle schools, and high schools all started around 8:15. Like a civilized school district.

People have been sold a bill of goods here with this "economies of scale" stuff and these large school districts and inadequate bus fleets.

Yep, I was told that FCPS did not have enough buses (and drivers).
We'll then give me back some of my real estate taxes.
It's ridiculous that some early ES starts after 9:30am while some MS starts at 7:30am!

I am so so jealous. I'm in LCPS and school starts at 7:30. It's the biggest fight all year round to get them to school on time. And not one parent I know of can keep a full time job and still be able to pickup at 2:30. It's just a ridiculous end time.

Anonymous wrote:We don't have any kids yet, but live on the same street as an ES. I noticed the car line this morning and was surprised how late it was, so I checked the FCPS site and see that most ES in the county start at 9:45. How on earth do working parents make that schedule work?

You are exaggerating. My kids' ES bell schedules start at 8:40 AM and 9:15 AM. They get out at 3:25 PM and 4 PM.

If MOST ES start at 9:45, they get out at 4:30 PM, and the bus riding kids don't get home until 5:30-6 PM. Not happening for elementary kids.

Ours starts at 9:15. 9:15-4 every day. My husband and I both have early work schedules and we do before school SACC. It opens at 7. So, it sucks for my kids who are at school from about 7:15-4 every day, but it is what it is.

And, yeah, our middle school bus picks up at 6:50 (so kid leaves the house at 6:40) and school is from 7:30-2:15. I think the high school bus pick up is around 7:40 and high school starts at 8:15 til 3:30ish.

I also think our very wealthy district should figure out the bus situation so that elementary has the 9-4 schedule and middle AND high school have a roughly 8-3 schedule. The middle school years are absolutely ridiculous, even for me who is used to getting to work early. Makes a strong argument for living in bounds for a secondary school where the 7th and 8th graders get to do the high school schedule and skip the ridiculous middle school timeline.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What's funny is how early high school starts when high schoolers want to sleep in and elementary students are up at 6am.

Sports.

But my kids soccer club team doesn't start practice until 7:30 so sports is a lame excuse.

High school sports


Not elementary rec sports.

Our county starts at 9am for HS and ends at 4pm and HS sports isn't a problem. ES starts right before 8am and MS also begins at 9am.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What's funny is how early high school starts when high schoolers want to sleep in and elementary students are up at 6am.

Sports.

They could easily practice HS sports before school starts.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What's funny is how early high school starts when high schoolers want to sleep in and elementary students are up at 6am.

Sports.

Funny how LCPS HS starts at 9:30 and they still manage to have sports. I wonder how they work that out?

They probably practice before school flr some sports

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What's funny is how early high school starts when high schoolers want to sleep in and elementary students are up at 6am.

Sports.

But my kids soccer club team doesn't start practice until 7:30 so sports is a lame excuse.

High school sports


Not elementary rec sports.

Anonymous wrote:OP, Bell time is not the same for all schools mostly because of buses. In general it goes middle, high and elementary. Check the individual school’s website for the bell-time.

First bell is 9:20. Not quite 9:45 but still late!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do you want the opposite (early ES, late HS)? Move to Loudoun County.

NP. Where I went to school, all the elementary schools, middle schools, and high schools all started around 8:15. Like a civilized school district.

People have been sold a bill of goods here with this "economies of scale" stuff and these large school districts and inadequate bus fleets.

Agree.

Anonymous wrote:Do you want the opposite (early ES, late HS)? Move to Loudoun County.

NP. Where I went to school, all the elementary schools, middle schools, and high schools all started around 8:15. Like a civilized school district.

People have been sold a bill of goods here with this "economies of scale" stuff and these large school districts and inadequate bus fleets.