Anonymous
Post 10/23/2018 15:36     Subject: Anybody planning to skip school on the half days?
Anonymous wrote:There will be sooo many half days in November...should I feel guilty to drag out kids (lover and higher grade level in elementary school) from school during those kind of school days to plan a vacation?


doesn't MCPS have like four half days in a row in November.

WTF is the purpose of that? What am I supposed to tell my employer? How much money is that for childcare?
Anonymous
Post 10/23/2018 14:54     Subject: Anybody planning to skip school on the half days?
No, but I have no big moral thing about it. Whatever works, OP!
Anonymous
Post 10/23/2018 14:53     Subject: Anybody planning to skip school on the half days?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Last year the Wednesday before thanksgiving, they had a turkey trot run on the half day. Those days are optional for my kids. If I can use them for appointments, I do.


For the whole 4-5 hours? OK. G-D forbid your kids do a fun athletic thing with their schoolmates.

They didn’t have to run. Most of them sat and watched. I have no problem if my kids don’t enjoy it and skipped...I don’t send them just for the sake of sending them and have zero guilt about it.
Anonymous
Post 10/23/2018 11:50     Subject: Anybody planning to skip school on the half days?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:And why do HS kids suddenly have them off now too even though there are no conferences?


Because the high school teachers can't do planning/in-service when the high school kids are in school, and there can't be separate planning/in-service days (as there used to be) because of the governor's Ocean City School Calendar executive order.


But the elementary teachers do not get a planning day..they are hosting conferences.


Read the superintendent's memo, here: https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/uploadedFiles/calendar/2019-2020%20Sch%20Yr%20Calendar%20Revised%20181009.pdf

and look for the explanation.


I don't really see anything aside from this..does that mean there will be HS conferences?

Both scenarios align the two early release days for parent-teacher conferences with
Veterans Day (November 11 and 12, 2019). This is consistent with past practice and reflects
the interests of some parents/guardians and schools to have an opportunity for conferences
on a day which some parents/guardians may have off from work


No, the high school teacher will be having professional development, not parent/teacher conferences.
Anonymous
Post 10/23/2018 11:49     Subject: Anybody planning to skip school on the half days?
Anonymous wrote:Last year the Wednesday before thanksgiving, they had a turkey trot run on the half day. Those days are optional for my kids. If I can use them for appointments, I do.


For the whole 4-5 hours? OK. G-D forbid your kids do a fun athletic thing with their schoolmates.
Anonymous
Post 10/23/2018 11:47     Subject: Anybody planning to skip school on the half days?
Anonymous wrote:If they taught anything on the half days I would consider it but they are an absolute waste.


Because you are in every teacher's classroom on each of those half days, am I right?
Anonymous
Post 10/23/2018 11:45     Subject: Anybody planning to skip school on the half days?
Last year the Wednesday before thanksgiving, they had a turkey trot run on the half day. Those days are optional for my kids. If I can use them for appointments, I do.
Anonymous
Post 10/23/2018 11:39     Subject: Anybody planning to skip school on the half days?
Anonymous wrote:If you don't send your child on half days because you think they're stupid, maybe the teacher should consider not teaching those children for precisely the same reason.


What about all the kids that skip for Bring Your Child to Work day? That’s still a day of instruction. My son went to school and less than half the class was there.
Anonymous
Post 10/23/2018 11:37     Subject: Anybody planning to skip school on the half days?
Yes skipping Veterans Day. Will be out of town.
Anonymous
Post 10/23/2018 11:37     Subject: Anybody planning to skip school on the half days?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Great way to teach your kids that school doesn't matter.


+1.

My kids complain every time we have these that so many other kids skip and I won't let them. I only wish teachers would expect more of kids on these days-- even if they don't do new material because of all of the absences, they could do substantive review or enrichment.


And that the rules don't apply to them.


Yep. These are the same parents who let their kids not do homework the kids and parents think is dumb.


I hope I can raise children who don't follow dumb rules just for the sake of it. I want them to make an assessment of whether a rule makes sense, possible consequences for breaking it etc.

They are preparing to be humans, not robots.


Anonymous
Post 10/23/2018 11:36     Subject: Anybody planning to skip school on the half days?
Anonymous wrote:As a teacher I don't waste time. Half days are still days of instructions. The kids that don't show up are usually the kids that hate school or are bratty whiners.


Exactly. And the parents don't respect the teacher's time, so the kids don't respect it either. Pathetic.
Anonymous
Post 10/22/2018 22:12     Subject: Anybody planning to skip school on the half days?
I wouldn’t hesitate to have my ES student miss class on half days. I don’t feel she’s learning all that much. But for my middle schooler, it’s different. The kids are finally being taught at a decent level.
Anonymous
Post 10/22/2018 20:44     Subject: Anybody planning to skip school on the half days?
As a teacher I don't waste time. Half days are still days of instructions. The kids that don't show up are usually the kids that hate school or are bratty whiners.
Anonymous
Post 10/22/2018 18:44     Subject: Anybody planning to skip school on the half days?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:There will be sooo many half days in November...should I feel guilty to drag out kids (lover and higher grade level in elementary school) from school during those kind of school days to plan a vacation?


There are three in Nov. the same as every other year for at least the last five. The third half day is because so many parents pull their kids out the Wed before Thanksgiving.


How is that any different than parents who pull their kids out for Jewish holidays? There are things that are important to families and communities. I'm not going to keep my child in school on a day where there is no real learning when we could be spending time together as a family. This is especially relevant in an area such as ours where so many people are not from here.
Anonymous
Post 10/22/2018 18:03     Subject: Anybody planning to skip school on the half days?
If you don't send your child on half days because you think they're stupid, maybe the teacher should consider not teaching those children for precisely the same reason.