19:50 What happens after 4th grade? They become a latchkey kid or something?

My DD just started K at a parochial school in NoVA this fall. What we have done thus far, is:

1) I (mom) switched to part-time so I could be home with her in the afternoons. So I can do p/up and also any extracuriculars. So, later one (middle-school, hs, etc.) I can be there for supervision when I think issues get trickier (driving, peer influence, etc.)

2) We pay for morning care at the school. It is about $100/month. We can drop her off as early as 7 a.m. and the school bell rings at 8:15. I drop her off at about 7:15-7:30 and then go on to my job in Tysons at 8:30.

We are about 4 weeks into this and so far, so good, but we'll see how it continues to go. I already am pretty ticked at the amount of random 11:30 a.m. dismissal days I see coming up on the year's calendars, the # of random teacher-work days, the HUGE amount of time they get off at Christmas (2 weeks!!), etc. We are going to be playing these by ear. . . .my parents do live close by so they will try to help as they can but I have 5 other siblings all around the country (and world!) who deserve to have them come visit too, so I cannot be "greedy" and assume that they'll be there whenever we need them.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Before/Afte school programs and staggered start times with DH.

This.

I leave for work at about 6:40...and my DC is still in bed. Hubby doesn't start working until about 9ish...so he handles the walk to the bus stop. (The bus comes at 8am)

I get off of work at about 3:40...and I go to my son's after school care program and pick him up right away...or I'll come home and finish dinner (I make a lot of freezer meals) and then pick him up.

It works well for us.

I agree a mix of staggering schedules and before and after care seems to work best so that the kids don't have such a long day and the parents can still work full-time. I also live close to work which helps. My daughter goes to school 8:45-3:30. DH works 7-3:30 and I work 9-5:30. I do drop off and DH picks her up from aftercare. If one of us is out of town or has meetings, we use a drop-in before care program and/or leave her at aftercare a little longer (it is open until 6:30). I also am able to telework frequently, so that I can pick her up and continue working at home when DH is unavailable to do pick-up.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most public schools have a before/aftercare program that you pay for.

This. our beforecare opens at 7:30. Aftercare closes at 6:30. Parents with odd work schedules (beginning before 7:30 am) normally hire a morning sitter/nanny to cover the time.

Or you find a daycare that will transport to your school and that opens early. We just left daycare, but our old place opens at 6.30am and closes at 6.30pm. They also transport to a variety of elementary schools nearby. Our current preschool opens at 7am.

Anonymous wrote:Most public schools have a before/aftercare program that you pay for.

This. our beforecare opens at 7:30. Aftercare closes at 6:30. Parents with odd work schedules (beginning before 7:30 am) normally hire a morning sitter/nanny to cover the time.

Anonymous wrote:We have an au pair for all the reasons stated. When you add in summers too, it works out well financially.

My kids just started parttime preschool and we have an au pair who has started the mid-day drop off and pick ups. I expect that we will have an AP for many years to come just for this reason (and the evening and weekend babysitting coverage is a HUGE bonus too).

DS' school starts at 9:15 and ends at 1 on Mondays and 4 on Tues-Fri. I put him on the bus daily around 8:20. Thank God for after care program at his karate place. They pick him from school, do lots of activities and help with any homework he has.

Oh, and I'm a single mom.

Anonymous wrote:You shift your hours so that the kids don't need ten hours of coverage - one parent gets up before the sun, works a day and does pick-up and cooks dinner. The other parent gets up later, does drop-off works a day and cleans up dinner. You see each other again after 4th grade. Or you get a nanny/au pair.

oops. I should have read first.

You shift your hours so that the kids don't need ten hours of coverage - one parent gets up before the sun, works a day and does pick-up and cooks dinner. The other parent gets up later, does drop-off works a day and cleans up dinner. You see each other again after 4th grade. Or you get a nanny/au pair.

Anonymous wrote:Before/Afte school programs and staggered start times with DH.

This.

I leave for work at about 6:40...and my DC is still in bed. Hubby doesn't start working until about 9ish...so he handles the walk to the bus stop. (The bus comes at 8am)

I get off of work at about 3:40...and I go to my son's after school care program and pick him up right away...or I'll come home and finish dinner (I make a lot of freezer meals) and then pick him up.

It works well for us.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder this all the time. My niece goes to high school from 7:30-2:30, which is ridiculously early to get to school and to get home.

Most teen pregnancies, alcohol and drug use occur between 3 and 6pm.

{You know, I've dug into this factoid a number of times and never found a source for it. Do you know where it comes from?}

The drop off is early enough that one of the parents can manage it but the pickup requires some coordination with other families. It requires some horsetrading with logistics for other activities so no one feels like they are being taken advantage of.
As some point out, having money for an au pair that drives or just have the Mom cut back or eliminate her paid work so she can do it. Money makes a lot of things easier and this is one of them.

School is not childcare. It is school.

You need to arrange for childcare during hours and on days in which school is not in session.

OMG, thank you so much for this helpful information. It is so specific that I am sure it will prove highly useful.

Anonymous wrote:I wonder this all the time. My niece goes to high school from 7:30-2:30, which is ridiculously early to get to school and to get home.

Most teen pregnancies, alcohol and drug use occur between 3 and 6pm.

Anonymous wrote:Also, one parent can drop off, one can pick up, presuming schedules are flexible enough to stagger a bit. That with some before/aftercare gets it done. It's daunting, but not impossible.

Not if you're a single parent. I drop my son off at his school's before care program around 8am and head to work. I pick him up around 5:30 from the after school program. It's trickier on days off of school but I find one day camps at the nature center or he spends the day at his friend's house.

Also, one parent can drop off, one can pick up, presuming schedules are flexible enough to stagger a bit. That with some before/aftercare gets it done. It's daunting, but not impossible.