School & Teens

School is asking class 7 parents whether we'd prefer a five-day week with longer days

coral_kite_872

A survey came from our son's school yesterday. The proposal is to make Saturdays off for the middle school and add about forty-five minutes to the other five days, so the finish time moves past four. My first reaction was relief, because Saturday is the one morning our caregiver isn't needed and the whole family is home. My second was the picture of a twelve-year-old getting home at five with homework still to do, and tuition after that for some of his friends. For those whose children already have a five-day week with longer hours, has it worked better or worse than six shorter days? We have until Monday to reply.

7 comments

  • lemon_kite_4432

    Our daughter's school moved to five days two years ago. The longer day itself was fine. What changed was the evening: homework now starts at six instead of half past four, dinner moved later, and bedtime crept with it. The Saturday is lovely, but by Friday night she is much more tired than she used to be. I would ask the school what happens to homework; if the amount stays the same, the extra time comes out of sleep.

  • saffron_pigeon_9279

    Does the survey say what the extra forty-five minutes would be used for? If it is the same subjects spread longer, I would expect the benefit to be mostly the Saturday. If it includes activity periods or supervised homework time, that changes the comparison entirely. I would want that answered before voting.

  • sage_fern_563

    Ours is five days. Works fine for him. Saturdays are for cricket and sleep, in that order.

  • indigo_kite_2717

    From the staff side: with longer days, the last period is usually the one nobody learns much in. Worth asking which subject they plan to put there.

  • moss_veranda_8292

    We have the five-day week. The tradeoff for us has been that Saturday becomes the catch-up day for everything the week didn't fit: projects, birthday parties, groceries, the dentist. So it isn't a free day, it's a different kind of busy. I still prefer it, because at least we choose what goes in. But I wouldn't vote for it expecting more rest.

    • coral_kite_872

      'A different kind of busy' is what I was worried about and couldn't put into words. I've voted yes, with a note asking what the extra time is for, since that came up more than once here. We'll see what comes back.

  • citrus_piano_9000

    teacher here, different school. we're on five days and the long-day tiredness is real by thursday, for staff too 🤷 the kids adapt faster than the adults do

  • basil_sandal_2278

    Our elder one is on a five-day week, the younger still goes on Saturdays, so we get both versions. The five-day child is more tired on weekday evenings, no question. But it's the only arrangement where I, with on-call weekends, ever get a whole day with him. I'd vote yes for that reason alone ❤️

Add a comment

Share what happened for you. Plain text; be kind and specific.

Keep going

Keep reading

More from the parents who were here.