ES parent, my kid loves the various breaks. She has time to concentrate reading books she likes, hanging with friends and working on her hobbies. She has dyslexia she in advance math and had the highest marks on the benchmarking scores in her grade. All kids work hard and they deserve some breaks to be a kid.

at least the gaps are getting larger.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is like the 3rd active thread on this topic right now. The others didn’t suffice?

Seriously. It is what it is. My high school kids really like it. It’s actually a nice regular break during those stressful years. Clearly people have found a way to get childcare so just stick with that. Constant threads on DCUM will never get it to change.

I have one of each and the cons for elementary out weight the pros for high school. Elementary with 1/2 releases can’t get into a rhythm or routine. It has been awful! Small groups get cut, learning is cut way may in elementary and differentiation just is impossible (small groups just can’t happen).

I was only talking about the days off. I teach small groups and I too hate the elementary 3 hour early release. Hopefully they decide it’s a failed experiment. Teachers don’t like it either.

The Calendar is a joke on anyone who values education

Some of the school board wants to change the calendar and some like it. Sandy Anderson sent an email extolling the calendar for its inclusivity and the short summer which combats learning loss. There certainly isn't universal hatred of the current calendar.

I'll take all the days off AND a long summer with teens that I like having around and always seem to have plenty to do to fill their time.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think having every religious holiday under the sun is absolutely absurd but maybe I’m in the minority.

Monday and Friday off this week after spring break? Absolutely asinine.

Yes, you're in the minority. And you're an -ist of some sort.

Why is it absurd? Explain it to me like I'm five.

DP. Country did school for a long time with a basic formula. Start after Labor Day, fall break, winter break, spring break, assorted federal holidays that occur outside of breaks, and end right around Memorial Day.

There are still school systems that successfully execute this basic formula.

Sounds like you are just stuck in a “back in MY DAY” thought loop. Why does everything have to be dragged back to the 1960s to appease your sense of stability?

I will stop caring when my kid is out of elementary school.

So privileged to argue that 1/3 of parents work from home?

Again, this is not always about child care!!! I have HS kids, work from home and we all hate this disjointed calendar. It is terrible for so many reasons and even my kids can list their own reasons why they hate it.

Some of you are just absurd. Do you not value education?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think having every religious holiday under the sun is absolutely absurd but maybe I’m in the minority.

Monday and Friday off this week after spring break? Absolutely asinine.

Yes, you're in the minority. And you're an -ist of some sort.

Why is it absurd? Explain it to me like I'm five.

DP. Country did school for a long time with a basic formula. Start after Labor Day, fall break, winter break, spring break, assorted federal holidays that occur outside of breaks, and end right around Memorial Day.

There are still school systems that successfully execute this basic formula.

Too simple. Why would I need to get a Ed.D. degree if it's that simple? Oh wait...uh oh...

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think having every religious holiday under the sun is absolutely absurd but maybe I’m in the minority.

Monday and Friday off this week after spring break? Absolutely asinine.

Yes, you're in the minority. And you're an -ist of some sort.

Why is it absurd? Explain it to me like I'm five.

DP. Country did school for a long time with a basic formula. Start after Labor Day, fall break, winter break, spring break, assorted federal holidays that occur outside of breaks, and end right around Memorial Day.

There are still school systems that successfully execute this basic formula.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think having every religious holiday under the sun is absolutely absurd but maybe I’m in the minority.

Monday and Friday off this week after spring break? Absolutely asinine.

Monday and Friday this week are not religious holidays. Don't blame minority religions for your issues with the calendar.

The BS "School Planning Day" is covering for Orthodox Good Friday.

There are only 7 religious/cultural holidays on the calendar:

Rosh Hashanah
Yom Kippur
Diwali
Christmas (tied to winter break)
Eid al Fitr
Easter (tied to spring break)
Eid al Adha

In some years, some of those fall on weekends or over the summer and don't affect the calendar at all.

It makes sense for them to line up teacher work days and planning days with other holidays to help people celebrate without having a bunch of extra days off. I agree that this Monday and Friday are annoying to have off, but they're not actually holidays on the calendar, and framing this issue as a problem with holidays is just scapegoating the holidays instead of addressing the issue of poorly timed/too many TWs/SPs and early release days.

Once again, Christmas and Easter are not school holidays.

The TW/SP are covering for the religious holidays. We all know this, just stop saying otherwise. Just look at the ridiculous 5 day Memorial Day weekend. There's no reason for it other than a religious holiday.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I hope FCPS can make this fix. All of the random days off are disruptive to learning and hard on working parents. I'm totally supportive of a 4 day weekend in October and/or February to break up the longer stretches, but we need more consistency and 5 day weeks.

-Arlington parent, with a school board that feels compelled to follow the FCPS schedule

That’s a you problem, not an FCPS problem.

Uh, most kids have two working parents. It's not 1950 any more.

Probably 1/3rd of my students’ parents work from home. They can figure it out.

Do you think working from home with children at home is actually do-able with the amount of time FCPS kids have off school? This has to be a joke...and to the PP that noted her child is working on a science project and studying for AP- ill make sure I tell my 8 yr old to sit for 7 hours and work on school work and make themselves lunch and snacks...while my middle schooler does the same...and we can all meet back up at 5pm in the living room for family time. I am all for holidays off and breaks from school but this is getting out of hand- day 6 today for spring break oh and go to school for 3 and then have Friday off for??? I will make sure to vote for teachers to work for all 12 months and see how they enjoy summer home while working...its not an easy things to do.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I hope FCPS can make this fix. All of the random days off are disruptive to learning and hard on working parents. I'm totally supportive of a 4 day weekend in October and/or February to break up the longer stretches, but we need more consistency and 5 day weeks.

-Arlington parent, with a school board that feels compelled to follow the FCPS schedule

That’s a you problem, not an FCPS problem.

Uh, most kids have two working parents. It's not 1950 any more.

Probably 1/3rd of my students’ parents work from home. They can figure it out.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No way, I love the days off and what they represent. Most secondary parents like them, whether they care about the holidays off or not.

Good to know you don't value education. Most. parents and teacher do.

You’re an idiot. It’s the same number of hours/days regardless of how you arrange them. While 5 day weeks may be better for elementary students, days off throughout the year can benefit middle and high schoolers.

Parents who don’t mind the current calendar value education as much as you do.

Stop parroting this nonsense. It is totally awful to have all these days off. No one likes them. We want to get on with actual school. And get out for summer earlier. We just had Spring Break. Even the kids want to get back into the swing of things.

It has pros and cons for high school. Summer is so short. It is hard to fix in other experiences for kids. Also - makes it hard for those kids who need to work to work! Really the calendar benefits high schoolers who take AP classes and don’t have to work.

My kids is not AP. It is important that he try other things away from school so find his place in the world and this calendar is awful!

Between a family trip and coming back early to start sports it an hard to fit anything else in. Grrrr

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is like the 3rd active thread on this topic right now. The others didn’t suffice?

Seriously. It is what it is. My high school kids really like it. It’s actually a nice regular break during those stressful years. Clearly people have found a way to get childcare so just stick with that. Constant threads on DCUM will never get it to change.

I have one of each and the cons for elementary out weight the pros for high school. Elementary with 1/2 releases can’t get into a rhythm or routine. It has been awful! Small groups get cut, learning is cut way may in elementary and differentiation just is impossible (small groups just can’t happen).