Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nobody's changing the reality that it takes awhile to clear snow around here. But is it too much to ask for a school calendar that has enough built-in snow days to reflect that reality. We shouldn't be burning through our entire allotment during one moderate snowfall.

This is the very, very least the BoE and superintendent can do. We should build-in 4 or 5 days to the calendar. And we should identify make-up days during the year that we're actually willing to use. It's ridiculous that we have make-up days identified in the calendar that we're told we can't use.

The problem is, what happens if they aren’t used, do you end the year early? Because then you end up with parents upset that they don’t have camps or childcare lined up for those days.

I don't see a problem there. You think the kids will have learned everything there is to be learned after the 180th day?

Of course not. Hold the days of school. Isn't that obvious? Hopefully some teachers will come up with some fun enrichment projects. If not, they could build in some more review/studying days towards the end of the year.

+1. It's interesting to me that for an area so educated that parents would complain about an extra day or two of school. Ouch.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It infuriates me that people on this board talk about the "laziness of staff and teachers who want another day off"! Those of us who work for MCPS have no say in the weather closure decisions! Stop spewing your hatred on those of us who work with your children!

Then we do not want to hear ANY teachers or staff complain when they take away your “professional day” on 1/29.

Who crawled up your arse? Why use quotes? I guess the students don’t need second quarter grades on their report cards, because that is the day for that to be done.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nobody's changing the reality that it takes awhile to clear snow around here. But is it too much to ask for a school calendar that has enough built-in snow days to reflect that reality. We shouldn't be burning through our entire allotment during one moderate snowfall.

This is the very, very least the BoE and superintendent can do. We should build-in 4 or 5 days to the calendar. And we should identify make-up days during the year that we're actually willing to use. It's ridiculous that we have make-up days identified in the calendar that we're told we can't use.

The problem is, what happens if they aren’t used, do you end the year early? Because then you end up with parents upset that they don’t have camps or childcare lined up for those days.

If they don't get used, the kids get a few extra days of learning in. Horrible!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So does everyone agree now that 1/29 needs to be a make-up day?

No

What's the better day?

I'm betting they choose June 6.

+1 1/29 is Lunar New Year. Not going to be a make up day. Extend the school year.

Will Asian American parents really push back though?

This Asian parent couldn't care less about Lunar New Year.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nobody's changing the reality that it takes awhile to clear snow around here. But is it too much to ask for a school calendar that has enough built-in snow days to reflect that reality. We shouldn't be burning through our entire allotment during one moderate snowfall.

This is the very, very least the BoE and superintendent can do. We should build-in 4 or 5 days to the calendar. And we should identify make-up days during the year that we're actually willing to use. It's ridiculous that we have make-up days identified in the calendar that we're told we can't use.

The problem is, what happens if they aren’t used, do you end the year early? Because then you end up with parents upset that they don’t have camps or childcare lined up for those days.

I don't see a problem there. You think the kids will have learned everything there is to be learned after the 180th day?

Of course not. Hold the days of school. Isn't that obvious? Hopefully some teachers will come up with some fun enrichment projects. If not, they could build in some more review/studying days towards the end of the year.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So does everyone agree now that 1/29 needs to be a make-up day?

No

What's the better day?

I'm betting they choose June 6.

Parents need to contact the BoE to make sure this doesn't happen.

I don't necessarily have a problem with June 6th as a make-up day, but we're going to need more. We need to use 3 make-up days before we can even ask the state for a waiver.

Given that we all know days at the end of the year are a waste, and that none of us want to take days away from spring break, that leaves 1/29, 3/31, and 6/6.

We know we're going to need all three. And we only have a short window of time to make the call on 1/29. It's still plenty far enough away to make than an instructional day.

Unlikely they will decide before February or March.

There's no reason to wait.

Its dumb that it even needs an action by the BoE. They should just use the next available day in the calendar.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So does everyone agree now that 1/29 needs to be a make-up day?

No

What's the better day?

I'm betting they choose June 6.

Parents need to contact the BoE to make sure this doesn't happen.

I don't necessarily have a problem with June 6th as a make-up day, but we're going to need more. We need to use 3 make-up days before we can even ask the state for a waiver.

Given that we all know days at the end of the year are a waste, and that none of us want to take days away from spring break, that leaves 1/29, 3/31, and 6/6.

We know we're going to need all three. And we only have a short window of time to make the call on 1/29. It's still plenty far enough away to make than an instructional day.

Unlikely they will decide before February or March.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So does everyone agree now that 1/29 needs to be a make-up day?

No

What's the better day?

I'm betting they choose June 6.

Parents need to contact the BoE to make sure this doesn't happen.

I don't necessarily have a problem with June 6th as a make-up day, but we're going to need more. We need to use 3 make-up days before we can even ask the state for a waiver.

Given that we all know days at the end of the year are a waste, and that none of us want to take days away from spring break, that leaves 1/29, 3/31, and 6/6.

We know we're going to need all three. And we only have a short window of time to make the call on 1/29. It's still plenty far enough away to make than an instructional day.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So does everyone agree now that 1/29 needs to be a make-up day?

No

What's the better day?

I'm betting they choose June 6.

Parents need to contact the BoE to make sure this doesn't happen.

I don't necessarily have a problem with June 6th as a make-up day, but we're going to need more. We need to use 3 make-up days before we can even ask the state for a waiver.

Given that we all know days at the end of the year are a waste, and that none of us want to take days away from spring break, that leaves 1/29, 3/31, and 6/6.

We know we're going to need all three. And we only have a short window of time to make the call on 1/29. It's still plenty far enough away to make than an instructional day.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So does everyone agree now that 1/29 needs to be a make-up day?

No

What's the better day?

I'm betting they choose June 6.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nobody's changing the reality that it takes awhile to clear snow around here. But is it too much to ask for a school calendar that has enough built-in snow days to reflect that reality. We shouldn't be burning through our entire allotment during one moderate snowfall.

This is the very, very least the BoE and superintendent can do. We should build-in 4 or 5 days to the calendar. And we should identify make-up days during the year that we're actually willing to use. It's ridiculous that we have make-up days identified in the calendar that we're told we can't use.

The problem is, what happens if they aren’t used, do you end the year early? Because then you end up with parents upset that they don’t have camps or childcare lined up for those days.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nobody's changing the reality that it takes awhile to clear snow around here. But is it too much to ask for a school calendar that has enough built-in snow days to reflect that reality. We shouldn't be burning through our entire allotment during one moderate snowfall.

This is the very, very least the BoE and superintendent can do. We should build-in 4 or 5 days to the calendar. And we should identify make-up days during the year that we're actually willing to use. It's ridiculous that we have make-up days identified in the calendar that we're told we can't use.

The problem is, what happens if they aren’t used, do you end the year early? Because then you end up with parents upset that they don’t have camps or childcare lined up for those days.

If they don't get used, the kids get a few extra days of learning in. Horrible!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nobody's changing the reality that it takes awhile to clear snow around here. But is it too much to ask for a school calendar that has enough built-in snow days to reflect that reality. We shouldn't be burning through our entire allotment during one moderate snowfall.

This is the very, very least the BoE and superintendent can do. We should build-in 4 or 5 days to the calendar. And we should identify make-up days during the year that we're actually willing to use. It's ridiculous that we have make-up days identified in the calendar that we're told we can't use.

The problem is, what happens if they aren’t used, do you end the year early? Because then you end up with parents upset that they don’t have camps or childcare lined up for those days.