School starting

[Susan1]

Just a general curiosity - when do your schools start this year? They get earlier every year. Miamisburg starts on August 8! And ends May 20. All of the other major schools in the area start by August 22. Back "in my day" - 60s-70s (and my exes kids in the 80's), we started school on the Wednesday after Labor Day and went till the first-ish week in June - 8th or 10th or whenever. Miamisburg gets all the usual holidays and a week long fall break and a Christmas break AND a long weekend winter break and spring break and teachers' days off and possible snow days. We sure didn't get all that time off.

I don't even have any kids, but think how that messes up summer vacations, and the amusement and water parks. And schools with no air conditioning. They'll send them home early like they did last year.

 

[GarrAargHrumph]

Generally speaking, I've noticed that schools in the south of the US start earlier than those in the northern US, and also get out earlier. The schools where my dad lives in Florida start in the second week of August, but they also get out in May. Up here where I am in NY State, the schools tend to start just before or after Labor Day, and end in late June. This year, I think school starts the Wednesday after Labor Day.

 

[paskatefan]

Last year, schools in Philadelphia started back the week before Labor Day. There was a heatwave, and many of the older schools are not air-conditioned. There were early dismissals for @ least 2 days of that week as a result. This year, the start of school for the students is after Labor Day (as it was when I was a kid). I'm not sure if the teachers go back though @ the end of August.

 

[Aceon6]

I’m in Massachusetts. The districts around me are starting as early as August 26th and as late as September 4th. My nephew’s kids in NYC don’t start until the 5th this year as the Jewish holidays are late in the month. When they’re earlier, they sometimes start mid September.

 

[annie720]

It's August 12 in my suburban Denver community.

 

[TheGirlCanSkate]

It is because of AP testing for high schools - then middle and elementary schools are pressured to match. The dates are set in stone and the teachers have that school year to teach the material. It's a very short timeline. Schools realized they could do better with more time on the subjects instead of cramming it all in.

 

[AxelAnnie]

It's August 12 in my suburban Denver community.

Ditto here in California. Used to be the Tuesday after Labor Day.

 

[skategal]

We don’t start here until Sept 5th. Pretty sure we are the last ones in North America to go back to school. Lol!

But we are also the last ones to start summer break. Last year school ended June 28 and this upcoming year not until June 30.

 

[Japanfan]

We don’t start here until Sept 5th. Pretty sure we are the last ones in North America to go back to school. Lol!

But we are also the last ones to start summer break. Last year school ended June 28 and this upcoming year not until June 30.

I think the general tendency to start school in Sept. in Canada is based on the light. Summer nights in Canada are long and in some places, kids are outside playing until 9 pm or 10 pm. I remember being reluctant to come in from outside for bed during the summer when I was about 10 and living in the Canadian north. The northern sky is a thing a beauty and is always changing.

I think that idea is kids will be outside a lot during months, to enjoy the light and the warm weather. More likely to hunker down happily to homework the dark, wet and cold winter
months.

 

[hanca]

We don’t start here until Sept 5th. Pretty sure we are the last ones in North America to go back to school. Lol!

But we are also the last ones to start summer break. Last year school ended June 28 and this upcoming year not until June 30.

In my original country school year is always from 1st September until 30th June. For all schools except of universities.
Here children go to school until the end of 3rd week of July and start in September.

 

[flyingsit]

In my area of Denver, school starts are staggered; 6th and 9th graders went back last Thursday, the rest of middle and high schoolers this week, and elementary kids next week. Everyone is out of school before Memorial Day.

 

[Ageless]

In suburban Chicago, the kids went back today.

 

[skategal]

I think the general tendency to start school in Sept. in Canada is based on the light. Summer nights in Canada are long and in some places, kids are outside playing until 9 pm or 10 pm. I remember being reluctant to come in from outside for bed during the summer when I was about 10 and living in the Canadian north. The northern sky is a thing a beauty and is always changing.

I think that idea is kids will be outside a lot during months, to enjoy the light and the warm weather. More likely to hunker down happily to homework the dark, wet and cold winter
months.

I know I sound like an old fogey but when I went to school we started the day after Labour Day and would be out no later than June 21 or 22.

I don’t know why they are in so long these days?

Would be nicer if these young Canadians could finish school a bit earlier to enjoy more of our ‘gone too soon’ summer.

 

[oleada]

They don't go back until after Labor Day here.

 

[quartz]

Day after Labour Day here. When I was in high school it was a few days later than that as so many kids were still working in the tobacco fields. Even with the delay, some kids didn't start back for 2 weeks after that - it depended on the harvest.

 

[AxelAnnie]

In my area of Denver, school starts are staggered; 6th and 9th graders went back last Thursday, the rest of middle and high schoolers this week, and elementary kids next week. Everyone is out of school before Memorial Day.

I am curious about who benefits from this schedule?

My daughter lives in Tiburon, CA. They have a great way of handling schools. Everyone starts at the same time. They have three schools. One is for K-2, Next is 3-5 and last 6-8. There are several classes in each grade. Kids stay together, and change schools when they move up. It also eliminates the awkward middle school transition.[/QUOTE]

 

[PrincessLeppard]

My students started today. Earlier this year, we had agreed on how to handle today, and, uh, whoever made the schedule forgot a really important part and now we have to somehow cram that in tomorrow, when the idea was that all of the "important" meetings with students would happen today and we could just start teaching tomorrow.

The schedule for tomorrow has still not been sent out. It's going to be fun.

Oh, and we are tentatively scheduled to get out May 20. Too many snow days could push that back.

 

[Matryeshka]

We started July 30. Kids start Aug 8. We end the Friday before Memorial Day. There are historical reasons why Southern schools do this.

Once upon a time, Memorial Day was strictly for Union soldiers. There was a competing Confederate Memorial Day on June 3 (date varies state to state on this one) and until the Civil Rights Era, most Southern schools got out on June 3, but not Memorial Day. So fast forward to past the Civil Rights Era and now Memorial Day is for ALL fallen soldiers, Confederate Memorial Day has no meaning now; most people my age and younger have never heard of it. But now old Southern white men (so harrd to be a white man in the South ) back in the day faced a dilemm they didn’t want to be seen nationally as racists but kinda still were so a compromise was born: schools would get out the Friday BEFORE Memorial Day, sidestepping the issue.

Now all Memorial Day means in most places in south Louisiana is the first day of summer. There really are no longer racial connotations. Banks close on Memorial Day, my school’s office staff closes on Memorial Day and June 3 is a day like any other. But that’s where the early dismissal/early start comes from. Waaaay before AP was a thing in Louisiana.

In general, kids go to school slightly longer now than they did. Summer is shorter, but there are more holidays/in-service days throughout the year to balance it out. The real kicker is the length of the day and classes which are MUCH LONGER and time for PE/Recess/Arts is practically non-existent in some places while core subject time is increased.

 

[Prancer]

I am curious about who benefits from this schedule?

I don't know why they follow that schedule in Denver, but they do that here so that the sixth graders starting off their first year of middle school and the ninth graders starting off their first year of high school have a week to get used to school before the other kids show up.

The schools are overcrowded and this allows the new kids time to have their schedules and classrooms down before they have to deal with the jam-packed hallways and throngs of much-bigger students armed with backpacks and sometimes pure meanness.

 

[AxelAnnie]

YAY WALMART!

Walmart is set to end sales of handguns in Alaska and will discontinue the sale of short-barrel rifle and handgun ammunition in stores nationwide, the super chain's president and CEO announced Tuesday afternoon.

 

[MacMadame]

Oh, and we are tentatively scheduled to get out May 20. Too many snow days could push that back.

I think climate change is a factor here. More snow days means school has to start earlier or it won't get out until half way through the summer!

 

[Mozart]

School starts on sept 5 for students here (sept 3 for teachers). They get out the end of june

 

[flyingsit]

I don't know why they follow that schedule in Denver, but they do that here so that the sixth graders starting off their first year of middle school and the ninth graders starting off their first year of high school have a week to get used to school before the other kids show up.

This is exactly why they do it.

 

[GarrAargHrumph]

My daughter's school was supposed to start today, but then this happened:

Unplanned Conference Day Wednesday, September 4

All M-W schools will be closed on September 4. The first day of school will be Thursday, September 5.

www.mw.k12.ny.us

https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/NY-School-Delays-Start-of-Year-After-Ransomware-Attack-559322971.html

They've said it'll start tomorrow instead, but there's a hint in that letter that that's hopeful, not certain.

 

[gkelly]

I live around the corner from a school bus depot.

Last June my office moved to a new location and so my route to work changed to take me past the depot. I didn't notice large numbers of school buses in June and there weren't large numbers during June and July, but come last September I would run into school bus traffic jams on my way to work so I started noticing and keeping count every morning.

This year I had to suspend my morning counting game on the way to work for a couple of months, but now they're back. Yesterday I passed 19 school buses, and this morning 27!

(My all-time record was 35)

 

[Winnipeg]

Just a general curiosity - when do your schools start this year? They get earlier every year. Miamisburg starts on August 8! And ends May 20. All of the other major schools in the area start by August 22. Back "in my day" - 60s-70s (and my exes kids in the 80's), we started school on the Wednesday after Labor Day and went till the first-ish week in June - 8th or 10th or whenever. Miamisburg gets all the usual holidays and a week long fall break and a Christmas break AND a long weekend winter break and spring break and teachers' days off and possible snow days. We sure didn't get all that time off.

I don't even have any kids, but think how that messes up summer vacations, and the amusement and water parks. And schools with no air conditioning. They'll send them home early like they did last year.

What is the item in your icon picture???

 

[Susan1]

What is the item in your icon picture???

Just a peachy flower wallpaper for early fall.

 

[PDilemma]

Schools here started between August 12 and August 21. They will get out in the last week of May, generally. End dates for the districts I work in are dependent on the number of snow days.

It is because of AP testing for high schools - then middle and elementary schools are pressured to match. The dates are set in stone and the teachers have that school year to teach the material. It's a very short timeline. Schools realized they could do better with more time on the subjects instead of cramming it all in.

It isn't here. It's because over the years, the state has increased the required amount of time kids have to be in school. For years, that was measured in days. It is now measured as "instructional minutes". Each level has more required than the previous one--the most for high school, the least for elementary.

Most states require a certain amount of classroom time per school year; they all measure in different units.

Schools have also added more time off for teachers to collaborate, for professional development and have built in more breaks to try to get parents to not take vacations during school. My local district has a week long spring break and a lot of families plan trips then and fewer kids are missing school for that.

 

[gkelly]

I live around the corner from a school bus depot.

Last June my office moved to a new location and so my route to work changed to take me past the depot. I didn't notice large numbers of school buses in June and there weren't large numbers during June and July, but come last September I would run into school bus traffic jams on my way to work so I started noticing and keeping count every morning.

This year I had to suspend my morning counting game on the way to work for a couple of months, but now they're back. Yesterday I passed 19 school buses, and this morning 27!

(My all-time record was 35)

35 again today!