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Subject: What kind of school vacations are there where you live?


Author:
Pam
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Date Posted: 13:06:57 10/07/02 Mon
 Seems like around here, the kids go less and less every year. I don't remember getting this many days off when I was in school. School starts in the middle of August and gets out in mid May. They get at least one day off per month for something. September has Labor Day, October has a two day fall break, then a parent teacher conference. November has three days for Thanksgiving, December and January have Xmas break (at least 10 days, usuall more depending on what day Xmas falls on), plus January has two more days off later in the month for teacher workshops. February brings another workshop, March is a week for Spring break, and April has two days that they take off if they haven't used any snow days earlier in the year. May has another workshop at the beginning of the month, then school lets out three weeks later.

I seem to remember getting the major holidays off, Spring Break, and maybe four other days for conferences and workshops. And Thanksgiving break was only Thursday and Friday, they just recently added Wednesday to that. No fall break either, Thanksgiving WAS fall break.

Pam
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Replies:
[> Subject: Too many


Author:
Hope
[Edit]
Date Posted: 13:18:31 10/07/02 Mon
Now not being a teacher I might take offense but really, do they need as many breaks as they get?

They take one day a month for a Teachers Day. They are suppose to use the day to plan for the next month. Mind you, I know many that just go away for a long weekend or anything but do school related work.

October we have Thanksgiving BUT they still get that one day off to plan for November. November is Rememberance day and another Teachers Day. December is Christmas Holidays. No Teachers Day this month. January, continuation of Christmas holidays. There is also no Teachers Day this month. February, there is a Teachers Day as well as March. Easter (depending on when it falls.. March or April). This is considered our Spring break. May there are no holidays but the teachers still get a planning day even though School lets out in June. Not until the end of June though.

I remember getting Rememberance day, Christmas holidays which lasted until the first day after New Years. Easter was the next holiday and then nothing until the end of the year. No saved up snow days... if it snowed to hard, there just was no school. We didn't bank them.

Just seems like kids spend less and less time at school and I wonder if they can learn all they need in the shortened school years.

Now... anyone want to talk about highschool spares? OMG, M has so many spares... I was lucky to have 1... LOL

H
[> [> Subject: What are "spares"??


Author:
Pam
[Edit]
Date Posted: 13:39:55 10/07/02 Mon
I've never heard of spares. I assume they're some sort of days that high schoolers can take off?

The snow days here are a weird thing. Oklahoma generally doesn't get much snow, there have been years when there wasn't even any snow at all on any school day, let alone enough to close school. There are two built in snow days to cover it if school has to close, if they're not used they give them to the kids later. Kids are required to be in school a certain number of days per year, so if they didn't budget in snow days, and school was out, they'd have to take them away from another vacation or add them on to the end of the school year. Last year when we had the ice storm, that took the two snow days, and they had to cover the last one by taking a day away from Easter break.

Pam
[> [> [> Subject: Re: What are "spares"??


Author:
Hope
[Edit]
Date Posted: 14:21:37 10/07/02 Mon
During a school day the kids here have several classes. Their day is broken up into 4 blocks. 2 before lunch and 2 after. Sometimes there are no classes in a block so they have a spare. It's suppose to be used so they have extra time to study but it's used more for them to goof off.

M started with only D block as a spare but now that he's changed his math to a 3 semister split, and it doesn't start until next month, he's got 2 spares now... A and D block. Really tough eh? Most days he doesn't even have to be at school until 9:30. He better be coming home with some incredible grades in the two classes he does have left... LOL

H

[> Subject: It doesn't seem like that many but it probably is


Author:
Lynn7
[Edit]
Date Posted: 13:39:04 10/07/02 Mon
Our kids go from September through to June. There are also summer schools if a child needs that.

They started in early September and then the last two school days in September were for a Teacher's retreat. I wonder what they do at those? Do they go to a spa and get massages to relieve them from the stressful 3 whole weeks of school? lol

They get one day for Thanksgiving, which is in October here. They'll get one day for Remembrance Day in November. I haven't seen their calendars past October so I don't know if there will be more retreats. December they get two weeks for Christmas and New Years. In March they will get a week for Spring Break. April will be Easter and they'll get two days for that. I guess that's so they can recover from eating the two years' supply of chocolate that their grandma will likely give them again.

Despite the odd retreat it didn't seem like they had nearly the days off at the catholic school like they did in the public schools.

My older girls seem to have way more free time and days off. Crystal graduated but she's taking two classes to improve her mark for University entrance. Ashley is now in grade 12 and like Hope mentions there are so many spares! I can only remember having one spare during the school day. For a time I used it to take drivers ed. High school seems more about having a place to send your teenagers so that they can have an organized social life.
[> Subject: Re: What kind of school vacations are there where you live?


Author:
Kimmy
[Edit]
Date Posted: 16:09:43 10/07/02 Mon
Here in Kansas, it is pretty much the same way it is in Oklahoma, with a few more days off, well not really days off, but they call them "Late Starts" The kids don't have to be at school that day until 10am. On that day, the teachers have meetings in the mornings.

I remember going back to school after summer break after Labor Day, here they start school on the 16th of August. They go until the very last week in May. I really think that is a crock. I do know of some parents that would like to see year round schools. Hell, who could afford it! With both of my boys out of school I can breathe a little sigh of relief, my brother has four boys and it cost him over $700.00 just to get them enrolled. They are all grade school age, no junior high or high schoolers. I didn't think we would ever survive the High School years. Boy, they are expensive.
[> [> Subject: Re: What kind of school vacations are there where you live?


Author:
Pam
[Edit]
Date Posted: 16:32:17 10/07/02 Mon
Why did it cost so much to enroll them? Did he prepay for lunches or something? Speaking of lunches, jiminy christmas, they're high! I could take Shelbey to Sonic every day for what it costs to eat at school. Outside of that, there are school supplies, which get cheaper the older you are around here. High schoolers don't need Kleenex, crayons, safety scissors and glue. LOL

Pam
[> [> [> Subject: Yep!


Author:
Kimmy
[Edit]
Date Posted: 16:39:27 10/07/02 Mon
That was including lunches, plus I guess, they had to pay something into the field trip fund on each kid! Never heard of that! Oh, they had to prepay for expenses on the Christmas Musical Program, for costumes and refreshments!!!! What a crock! This isn't a private school or anything like that, with state school funding cut, the school is really hitting the parents harder this year on just about everything. I'm glad I'm done.
[> [> [> [> Subject: speaking of cuts in funding


Author:
Pam
[Edit]
Date Posted: 16:47:24 10/07/02 Mon
One nearby town is thinking of going to four day weeks, and I've heard that our town is, too. What I can't figure out is how it's going to work out right, time wise. They currently go from 8:20 til 3:10, and if they change the days to 8:00 to 4:00, that just makes up four hours and 40 minutes of the missed day. And parents are screaming about having to do a full day of day care on Fridays, since they won't have school.

Pam
[> [> [> [> [> Subject: It is here too.....


Author:
Kimmy
[Edit]
Date Posted: 17:00:27 10/07/02 Mon
Two small towns near us already do that. That can't get enough kids to go there and when they do the state cut funding so deep, they had to go to four days or close altogether. Ship the kids to another school just to make the numbers. What gets me is the one school just built a brand new gym, the property taxes are so high in that town becuase of the bond issue that people can't afford to move in, let alone stay. It is damned if you do and damned if you don't. It is really sad.
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