Asking my principal for a 2 pm finish till December. Has any dad teacher done this?

mango_marigold_92306 Jun 2026

School reopens in the middle of the month and I'm back full-time with a 2 month old at home. My partner is on leave till September, then goes back to a job with late calls. From then on, evenings are mine. I'm thinking of asking for my periods to be bunched in the mornings so I can leave by 2, at least till December. Female colleagues have got this after maternity leave. I've never heard of a dad asking. Amma says I'm asking for trouble, my partner says just ask. Anyone done this, teaching or otherwise? How did you put it?

3 comments

sage_fern_54926 Jun 2026
Ask, and go in with the timetable already worked out. When I asked for a changed schedule after my leave, the conversation went far better because I showed which slots would move where instead of leaving them to figure it out. Does your school already have staff on split or part-time schedules? That's the easiest precedent to point to.
breezy_gecko_85056 Jun 2026
I asked for a fixed early finish two days a week when our daughter started daycare. My manager agreed, but the unspoken cost was that I wasn't considered for the projects with evening sessions that year. Worth asking anyway. Just go in knowing what you might be trading.
velvet_chai_51867 Jun 2026
Another Pune dad here. When our son was tiny I asked for my comp offs to be split into short days, and my manager's first reaction was 'is everything okay at home?'. Once I explained, he was fine with it. Say it plainly. It's a parenting request, not a favour.