It's normal to start school before Labor Day. Only ~16% of school districts in the country start after Labor Day.

Anonymous wrote:It's terrible! If you have a kid in HS band or fall sports practice starts two weeks before schools open. That date is now on or around August 1st. Couple this date with the late June release and many high school students only have 6-7 weeks of summer. It's very hard to try to get an internship or job for that length of time.

At the University of Washington, they have the first football game before school even starts.

"The August start should require FCPS ending Memorial Day weekend.

Each student should get 2 "free" days off for cultural and religious holidays, with the only religious holidays with no school being the ones where a large number (10%?? 15%??) Of students and teachers traditionally misding school.

Spring break should be tied to the end of the quarter.

Winter break should only go from 12/23-1/1, with school resuming on the 2nd. Getting off for Christmas is justified because of the sheer numbers of teachers and students who would miss that week, the federal offices and major businesses all closing or completely empty over that week, and the national holiday and cultural history of Christmas in the USA, not only as a religious holiday but also as a secular cultural holiday."

+1

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why it starts before Labor Day and ends at the 3rd week of June? Winter break/spring break aren’t any days longer compared to former years.

They are shortening the summer break to lessen the effects of summer learning loss. The longer the summer break, the more kids forget what they learned during the previous year. With a break that’s a bit shorter, kids have less time to forget.

None of the FCPS schools learn anything in June.

The linger calendar does not do anything to prevent learning loss.

Anonymous wrote:It's terrible! If you have a kid in HS band or fall sports practice starts two weeks before schools open. That date is now on or around August 1st. Couple this date with the late June release and many high school students only have 6-7 weeks of summer. It's very hard to try to get an internship or job for that length of time.

The high school issue is not tge starting in August. That is what the majority of the rest of the country does.

The issue is being one of the few school districts in the country that continues school through late June.

Anonymous wrote:I think only the western counties where snowfall was heavier got waivers. Certainly not FCPS, APS, etc, which started after Labor Day.

The trend across the country, except in some Northern and Western states, is to start a few weeks before Labor Day. Summer is becoming shorter but there are more breaks during the school year.

You are wrong about the other states.

Yes, they almost all start mid August.

No, they don't add days off during the year to stretch out the school year.

The other states get out by Memorial day.

Their summer breaks go from Mid to late May after the AP tests end, through mid August.

This year full of 3 and 4 day weeks is a special kind of nonsense that only FCPS could have dreamed up.

Anonymous wrote:Virginia switched about 4 years ago or so. Maryland switched to starting before labor day after Governor Hogan's term ended.

Hard to believe, but before covid, most local school districts in and around DC started after Labor Day.

Starting in August is so much better for the students.

The problem is that FCPS adds a ton of holidays and days off to the calender, making us go into mid-June, 3 weeks or more past when all the testing schedules end and overlapping with most university summer programs.

The August start should require FCPS ending Memorial Day weekend.

Each student should get 2 "free" days off for cultural and religious holidays, with the only religious holidays with no school being the ones where a large number (10%?? 15%??) Of students and teachers traditionally misding school.

Spring break should be tied to the end of the quarter.

Winter break should only go from 12/23-1/1, with school resuming on the 2nd. Getting off for Christmas is justified because of the sheer numbers of teachers and students who would miss that week, the federal offices and major businesses all closing or completely empty over that week, and the national holiday and cultural history of Christmas in the USA, not only as a religious holiday but also as a secular cultural holiday.

Anonymous wrote:The School Board wanted more school days before the AP tests in May, so they decided to start before Labor Day.

Then they negated any benefit of that by adding unnecessary religious holidays.

They are only good at keeping kids out of school.

Yes for sure. Especially with all the 4 day weeks.

Anonymous wrote:Why it starts before Labor Day and ends at the 3rd week of June? Winter break/spring break aren’t any days longer compared to former years.

They are shortening the summer break to lessen the effects of summer learning loss. The longer the summer break, the more kids forget what they learned during the previous year. With a break that’s a bit shorter, kids have less time to forget.

The School Board wanted more school days before the AP tests in May, so they decided to start before Labor Day.

Then they negated any benefit of that by adding unnecessary religious holidays.

They are only good at keeping kids out of school.

Why it starts before Labor Day and ends at the 3rd week of June? Winter break/spring break aren’t any days longer compared to former years.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:6 years ago. My child who is currently in 7th, started K after Labor Day, but started 1st before Labor Day.

Wrong. It started in August 2017. It’s now 2025. That’s eight (8) years ago.

+1 A current 7th grader, like my own child, would have started K before Labor Day. Her K year was fall 2018 - and the first day was 8/28/18. I have a picture.

Anonymous wrote:6 years ago. My child who is currently in 7th, started K after Labor Day, but started 1st before Labor Day.

Wrong. It started in August 2017. It’s now 2025. That’s eight (8) years ago.

Anonymous wrote:I think only the western counties where snowfall was heavier got waivers. Certainly not FCPS, APS, etc, which started after Labor Day.

The trend across the country, except in some Northern and Western states, is to start a few weeks before Labor Day. Summer is becoming shorter but there are more breaks during the school year.

I wish. More like there are more random Tuesdays off. Actual breaks with enough days to go somewhere would be a meaningful tradeoff, but that's not what we got.

former teacher here. blame testing and NCLB. it created this monster.