Post by bunnymendelbaum on Apr 1, 2015 20:05:06 GMT -5
Anyone have kids on an extended schedule? The school we are thinking of has breaks dec 22- jan 9, then March 30-April 17, school out june 26. Starts August 18th.
My sister (who teaches K in a different state) was not a fan of this schedule.
ETA: I just read they do a 2 hour early release every Wednesday too?
Childcare would be my only hesitation. There is a charter school that starts in july, two or three week break in oct, dec and march and then ends after memorial day. As of now they don't have childcare during Breaks. Womp womp
Post by imojoebunny on Apr 1, 2015 20:15:18 GMT -5
I kind of hate our short summer. We get out the end of May and go back at the beginning of August. 9 weeks total. We have a week for fall, winter, and spring break, and a week at Thanksgiving, 2 at Christmas, and a few other random days off.
I thrive on routine, and find all the random weeks off to be annoying. One of my kids is fine with them, the other really prefers routine.
The only bonus is that if you only have one kid in school (we have two in different school systems), you can go on vacation at random times, making it cheaper/off season.
All of the schools here do it. School starts late July and gets out mid May. We have a fall break, extended winter break and extended spring break. I love the break in October since it is a great time to take a vacation and avoid the crowds. It is also nice to have a break from the early mornings, running around and homework throughout the year.
Post by rootbeerfloat on Apr 1, 2015 20:23:26 GMT -5
Our school year is beginning of August through end of May. They get a week in October, 2-3 weeks for winter break, and another week in March. I like the October break because it's a cheap time to travel.
I'm back to say that our breaks aren't odd, they pretty much follow the regular DOE calendar. 1 week or so in December/January, a week for winter break in February and another week or so for Passover/Easter in the spring, depending on how those holidays fall. All parents here are in the same boat re: childcare when it comes to those weeks off.
I don't feel like the summer is too short. DD is still doing overnight camp for one week, we're going out of town together for 4 weeks and then she still gets about two weeks before school starts that I don't have plans for yet.
DD is on an extended day and extended school year. She starts in August when regular public schools here start after Labor Day. School day is 8am-4pm.
What are your specific questions?
I guess I wanted to know how this schedule compares. My sister felt it was a little odd and unbalanced. No break at the beginning of the school year, but end seems very split up? If the point is to lose less over the summer, I'm not sure this front-loaded calendar does that?
I need to find out if this early release every Wednesday is true.
My Early release each week is probably for staff development.
The school I used to teach at had a very similar schedule to the one you posted. Mid- August start, 2 week break during winter, 2 week break during spring. However, we got out the first week of June, and had two short days a week for staff development.
The schedule made more sense because our semester officially ended before we went to winter break, as opposed to continuing for 3 or 4 weeks after Christmas. Those weeks in January were such a waste before finals, because kids would forget so much information over break. I was better for us to start fresh with new units.
Thanks for the input. My sister was just concerned because this is two 3 week breaks. What are your thoughts on that versus 2?
bunnymendelbaum, the only break we get in the fall is for the Jewish holidays, but it's just a couple of days, same as other public schools here. And now that I think about it, we get an extra day for Thanksgiving and an extra day for the Dec/Jan break, both of which I appreciate because we usually travel at those times.
More than the extended year, though, I love the extended day. I'm able to work with only occasional after-care. If she were done at 2:00 every day, I would need regular after-care.
Eta: we have one half-day every month for staff development. That is kind of a PITA for childcare, but I get all of the dates at the beginning of the school year and plan accordingly.
Our district is starting to move toward an extended year. A handful of elementary schools are doing it now. Instead of extending breaks thru the year like I've heard being done before (year round but three week breaks in Dec/Mar/July) they straight up added twenty days to the school year, no additional breaks. School starts the second week of August, they follow the regular calendar and then go on until end of June.