New Attendance Policy at DD's school - no more family trips during school!

[portia9]

Just a comment about year round schooling.

I am Australian and we now have 4 10 weeks terms a year. Our school year starts at the end of January and runs through to December-they break up on Dec 21st this year. The kids have 2 weeks off in April, 2 weeks off in July, 2 weeks off in October and around 5 weeks off over Christmas and January-that is our summer. I love it-I find by the end of term they are getting tired and the break really revives them.

I will be taking my 3 boys out next year to go to WDW-they will miss 4 days of school but we have overlapped our April break. They will be in Year 6, Year 2 and kindergarten. They will miss 24 hours of school but once you take out lunch, recess, library, fitness (they do that every morning), sport and assembly none of which are academic then they will miss around 12 hours of actual learning over that four days. They are all pretty bright kids and I think they will be fine and the teachers at school are very helpful and I am sure will be supportive. I do plan to take work with us and hopefully incorporate whatever they are learning into our trip. I just hope they aren't doing a lot on anything Australian LOL.

 

[IndianaMouseLover]

Just a comment about year round schooling.

I am Australian and we now have 4 10 weeks terms a year. Our school year starts at the end of January and runs through to December-they break up on Dec 21st this year. The kids have 2 weeks off in April, 2 weeks off in July, 2 weeks off in October and around 5 weeks off over Christmas and January-that is our summer. I love it-I find by the end of term they are getting tired and the break really revives them.

I will be taking my 3 boys out next year to go to WDW-they will miss 4 days of school but we have overlapped our April break. They will be in Year 6, Year 2 and kindergarten. They will miss 24 hours of school but once you take out lunch, recess, library, fitness (they do that every morning), sport and assembly none of which are academic then they will miss around 12 hours of actual learning over that four days. They are all pretty bright kids and I think they will be fine and the teachers at school are very helpful and I am sure will be supportive. I do plan to take work with us and hopefully incorporate whatever they are learning into our trip. I just hope they aren't doing a lot on anything Australian LOL.

That is interesting.

Correct me if I am wrong. You mention Year 2 and Year 6......does your school practice the schooling that I have been reading about. They promote the student on to the next "year" at the point they master the content for the year they are in? Students are not just promoted based on just a calendar year and age? I have been reading about Australian schools that have gone to this is yours one of them?

Thanks!

 

[Lizzy2]

I have a Ph.D from a highly ranked university. Obviously, I do value education. I value education so much that during the summer breaks, we still do some schoolwork with my children. I value education so much that my youngest, who just turned 4 two weeks ago, is already reading because I have worked with her. HOWEVER important education is, family is moreso. Yes, I understand that there are summer breaks, but that is not always the best for the FAMILY.

I pulled my oldest out of first grade a few years ago for a WDW trip in September. Why September? Her brother had died, and September would have been his birthday. We, as a family, needed it for some healing. And yes, it seemed to be much more important to heal as a family in the middle of the school year than it did for my daughter to attend a school that tries to fit every child into a cookie cutter mold.

I do not believe that those who take their children out during the school year are all about personal indulgence over education. Perhaps our value systems are not so different; rather, the way we define education is what is different. To me, education is so much more than sitting at a desk in a classroom following a curriculum that the state dictates. Education is essentially about becoming a productive member of society. No one cares how old you were when you started reading; when you go out and get a job, they just want to know if you have the skills, can follow directions, and can get along with others--the latter two you can most certainly learn at Disney!

I just wanted to say thankyou for saying so gracefully what I was too angry to say last night. My BFF died in April at 37y. from lung cancer(she never even smoked) and her dream was to take my DD to WDW. Since I have no sisters, she was in everyway my DD's aunt and was holding my right leg as I pushed my DD into the world. I am taking DD to WDW in October w/ BFF's husband and kids and other close friends as a memorial for her birthday. NO ONE is going to tell us not too I don't care if my daughter gets zero's everyday we're gone. The public school is a government institution that was intended to be of service to the public. That is why taxes are paid to support it. Until we, the parents and taxpayers, start attending school board meetings, writing our Congressmen, and in general paying attention when these PIA rules are made, nothing will change. Homeschooling is looking better and better to me-

 

[ameraumi]

PS. Rumor has it that the IDOE (Indiana Dept. of Ed.) is thinking about moving from 180 day calendar to a 200. I just read that in my email today. Money is too tight and that is a long way down the road. I would be totally against that. I see that quality versus quantity is the way to go.

Please tell me this will not happen!!!! It is hard enough to get family time in during the school breaks and adding another 20 days to the already long schedule is INSANE!

 

[Colleen27]

PS. Rumor has it that the IDOE (Indiana Dept. of Ed.) is thinking about moving from 180 day calendar to a 200. I just read that in my email today. Money is too tight and that is a long way down the road. I would be totally against that. I see that quality versus quantity is the way to go.

Do you hae any idea what the thinking behind that is? Is it educational or social? I've heard a longer school year advocated by a lot of different groups, but always for all the wrong reasons (less childcare burden on parents, less problems with kids loitering or causing trouble during the summer, extending the reach of the free/reduced breakfast & lunch programs, etc). I've never heard an educational rationale for it.

 

[cissy]

I want to get on topic...notifying the social worker about school (or non school) stuff and off topic...this is not about absences. But something happened to a friend of mine last week that is pretty scary.

Her DD10 is a rather dramatic girl. She exaggerates a lot. She is at a new year round school this year and in the 5th grade. She was in a different school last year, but base school lines got redrawn so even though she was going into her last year at elementary, she had to move schools. No one got grandfathered in, of course!

Anyway, she has been in school almost 2 months. She began her track in July. Last week she got mad at her mom and she was blowing off steam in class. Her teacher suggested she go to the school counselor to talk. No call to her mom and dad, but sent to the counselor. So, off she goes and gives a performance worthy of an Oscar. How mistreated she is and how mean her parents are.

Well, instead of calling home to talk to the parents, this counselor (who has never met this child and did not speak to the teacher, the principal or the parents) decides to call the Department of Social Services. Because, that is what she has been told to do if she suspects abuse!!

So, my friend gets a call 2 days later from DSS. She is shocked and scared because her daughter is adopted and she is afraid it could be anything. DSS won't give her any info on why they are coming. She is worried sick. Finally, the guy arrives and starts questioning them on what her daughter has said.

WELL, the are horrified. The daughter admits to making most of it up and what isn't made up is greatly exaggerated. The social worker leaves and tells them he knows there is no abuse and this was a case of crossed wires.

BUT the school NEVER notified them. So, she called the principal the next day and was livid! She couldn't believe that no one had called them to let them know there daughter had even seen a counselor. And that the teacher didn't know her daughter well enough over 2 months to not take her drama seriously. The whole thing was a nightmare!

Now, don't post back saying that it is a counselors job and blah blah blah. If you are around this girl for more than an hour, it is obvious she loves drama and has a great sense of the dramatic. What is at the root issue here is that the school took it upon themselves to potentially harm this family. They have the power to seriously jeopardize a family unit.

Scary stuff. There is a time and place, certainly, for schools to get involved with DSS. I am sure there are children who are saved from dangerous families every day. But this is a GROSS mishandling of authority. And even if proven "innocent," there is now a RECORD of DSS coming to their home. A permanent record.

Anyway, my friend is pulling her child out and putting her in private school. Her sense of violation is too great for her to ever trust her child to the PS system.

Sorry so long, but let me reiterate an earlier sentiment. Get the government OUT OF THE SCHOOLS. Make schools compete like any other business. Most of Europe is on the competitive track and there schools have vastly improved. When schools have to compete for their dollars, kids win.

 

[PaulaSue]

OP, that is crazy. I hope our school doesn't do that!

 

[Colleen27]

BUT the school NEVER notified them. So, she called the principal the next day and was livid! She couldn't believe that no one had called them to let them know there daughter had even seen a counselor. And that the teacher didn't know her daughter well enough over 2 months to not take her drama seriously. The whole thing was a nightmare!

Now, don't post back saying that it is a counselors job and blah blah blah. If you are around this girl for more than an hour, it is obvious she loves drama and has a great sense of the dramatic. What is at the root issue here is that the school took it upon themselves to potentially harm this family. They have the power to seriously jeopardize a family unit.

Scary stuff. There is a time and place, certainly, for schools to get involved with DSS. I am sure there are children who are saved from dangerous families every day. But this is a GROSS mishandling of authority. And even if proven "innocent," there is now a RECORD of DSS coming to their home. A permanent record.

The threat of CPS involvement really is a frightening one, precisely because every call and report results in a permanent record even when determined to be frivolous. We have a jack#@$ of a neighbor who has called repeatedly, claiming we regularly leave DS9 home alone for extended periods of time (and this isn't his only nuisance complaint - we've actually considered moving because of this jerk's harrassment). In his front porch gossip, he's noticed that I routinely leave with DD6 without DS but somehow failed to notice DS's dad picking him up and dropping him off. The social worker who came out verified that every single call that was made (he called about a dozen times) took place on dates when DS was with his father! No big deal, on the surface.

The scary part? The social worker told me if they'd gotten the report during the school year, DH & I would never have been informed they were investigating. They'd have gone to the school, pulled the kids out of class to talk to, and taken action based on their findings without so much as getting our side of it! I cannot even imagine what that would do to DS; his infant half-brother is in foster care because my ex's girlfriend was deemed unfit, and he's understandably insecure about family and extremely wary of the entire concept of social workers.

 

[scrapquitler]

Sure, ideally, we would vacation at WDW (or anywhere) during school vacations so that our child would not miss any days of school. However, we have taken her out of school for such trips, and we've done it without any guilt, regrets or hassles from the school.

Firstly and foremost: NOT EVERYONE'S JOB ALLOWS THEM TO TAKE OFF DURING SCHOOL VACASTION.

Examples: I used to work retail. Noone was allowed to take off from a couple weeks before Thanksgiving until the week after New Years. So there goes the idea of a Christmas or Thanksgiving week trip.
When I later worked in a corporate job, Vacation time was given out by seniority. And only one person was allowed to be on vacation during any given week. Even in the summer. For the three years I worked there, I was never able to get week off between Easter and Mid-October because of this policy. So there would go the rest of the school vacation weeks. Oh, except for President's Day week, which was also hard to get because of the seniority thing.
Fast forward to now. Sure, I'm a stay at home mom. But my husband has a high-pressure consulting job. He is allowed to take vacation on exactly TWO situations: a.> when he has no client (i.e. if he is unemployed), which means we probably aren't going to take a vacation because hello, he is unemployed and looking for a new gig. or b.> If he is doing multiple projects for the same client, a project ends and the next one is not scheduled to start immediately. Now when this happens is a great time to take a vacation, since he's got no work hanging over him. BUT, this situation usually comes up unexpectedly or is tenatitve until the last minute. So when this sort of situation happens, we need to take our trip NEXT WEEK or within about two/three weeks. Which leaves little time for planning or working around school calendars.

So anyone saying, "Oh just go on vacation during the school vacations". Great if it works for you,thats fabulous, but it just isn't even possible for everyone. And don't we deserve to be able to have a family trip, too??

 

[memobrien]

Quite honestly, I don't care if any child only attended 1 day of school. If you know the work you should pass. Also- since they are my children I will decide when we vacation according to the needs of my family. Sorry if that sounds rude but I think the school social worker should concentrate efoorts on more important things. Things like this really annoy me.

I just wanted to add that at orientation for pre-school (private) for my 3 year old the director asked that we not take vacations during the school year because the kids will miss too much!!!

Funny you just said that about the preschool. I had orientation for my daughter’s school. She is in a Montessori school and her class is a PreK/K room (3-6 year olds). Anyway, in the handbook and at the meeting they said that there should be no taking the kids out of school for vacations. But I’ve already got a trip booked for Jan. So, whatever I’m taking her out. At this stage of the game, she will be fine. She isn’t going to miss anything significant work wise. They can give her homework if they want but I’m doing it.

Here is my take on the public school and taking kids out….this might be an unpopular point of view…but I’m going to start my saying that I was a teacher and my mother IS still a teacher in public schools. When the teachers and principals stop taking trips during the school year, they can talk to me about me not doing it with my kid. My mother is taking a long weekend to go to CA, then again to go with us to FL in Jan, then again in May. These are all planned and no problem. If she can miss a few days, then my kid can and I will be responsible for making up the work with her. It’s not like my mother is the exception to the rule. They other staff take time, including the principal. As long as the work gets done, so be it.

I know some people mentioned missing an exception amount of days. I think that is another category. Then again that kid who missed 100+ days couldn’t possible have done all their work, and therefore there should be consequences. But I think that is a whole other story compared to a few days.

Maura

 

[perdidochas]

The real kicker about NCLB and schools meeting their AYP for attendance is that the board only looks at TWENTY SPECIFIC school days out of the year. Not the whole year--TWENTY. MEASLY. DAYS.

And this year they're counting attendance from September 4 through October 1 at my oldest DS's school. And guess who has plans for WDW the last week of September?

I spoke to the interim principal and she told me that she would NOT excuse my son's absences NOR would she allow him to make up his work--he'd receive zeros in every class.

I was in severe panic mode. I finally calmed down and pulled the assistant principal aside and asked her what I should do...and another teacher suggested I withdraw my boys for a week and then re-enroll them a week later! INSANITY!

That's what I would do--I would take the kids out for "homeschool" for a week, and then come back and reenroll them with all A's. It's a lot of paperwork, but it would make the point.

Fortunately, the interim principal is on her way out and I know the school secretary who said she will make sure his absences are "taken care of".

My other son's school was a little more understanding (his absences will be unexcused but he will be allowed to make up his work) and the secretary said she wouldn't refer me to truancy court. When I spoke to his teacher he said "Why didn't you lie?!" Well, because I'm trying to do this the RIGHT way! That'll teach me! He told us to go and enjoy ourselves and that he doubted he would assign DS much, if any work.

My boys usually have stellar attendance and this is the first time we've ever pulled them out of school. They are both on honor roll, too. It just makes me SICK--all of the bureaucratic baloney that people can create. DH and I were just talking about this today...public school has become so bogged down in paperwork and grudge matches (a whole other topic) and has totally forgotten that their goal is educating our children!

Well, it's the public's own fault. We asked the schools for accountability. They are providing it. Accountability means CYA, and CYA usually means paperwork.

 

[Minniemouse07]

Nope, but I do believe that parents set an example for their children. And I believe that taking children out of school for a WDW vacation implies that self-indulgence is more important than education.

As a parent (and a former teacher) I am empowering my children to become life long learners. Learning is done through many ways and the toolbox that my children use to "learn" from is NOT restricted to only the "school" tool.

When I pull my dd from her first grade class this year (for 5 days in December) I will be expanding her learning toolbox to include experiences that she doesn't get exposed to every day. Travel, budgeting, planning, geography, math, language arts, history, cultures of the world...all of that will be part of our vacation, and in fact she has already started much of it.

Yes, classroom instruction is important but it isn't the only education tool that I want my children exposed to. If I place too much importance on school then I am doing them a disservice since that ignores the many other tools that are just as important as school. In our ever changing information age, being exposed the multiple ways of learning really is the best way to prepare our children to be ready for a life full of change. That way as the information and technology changes, my children will be able to learn and adapt as they need to.

I am showing my children the entire learning toolbox, not just the one single tool of a traditional schoolroom.

 

[MM27]

Well, instead of calling home to talk to the parents, this counselor (who has never met this child and did not speak to the teacher, the principal or the parents) decides to call the Department of Social Services. Because, that is what she has been told to do if she suspects abuse!!

School staff members are legally obligated to call Social Services or whatever it's called in your particular state. I've had to call DYFS (Division of Youth and Family Services) several times because of things kids have told me. I talked to the school nurse and my principal, but the person that gets the information from the child is the one that is required to call. I've had children report sexual, physical and verbal abuse by parents, foster parents and boyfriends of the kids mother. After I call DYFS, it is no longer in my hands, it is up to the social worker assigned to the case to determine what needs to be done. We've had DYFS workers come to the school and talk to kids and in one case, they removed several children from one family.

 

[Lizzy2]

Sure, ideally, we would vacation at WDW (or anywhere) during school vacations so that our child would not miss any days of school. However, we have taken her out of school for such trips, and we've done it without any guilt, regrets or hassles from the school.

Firstly and foremost: NOT EVERYONE'S JOB ALLOWS THEM TO TAKE OFF DURING SCHOOL VACASTION.

Examples: I used to work retail. Noone was allowed to take off from a couple weeks before Thanksgiving until the week after New Years. So there goes the idea of a Christmas or Thanksgiving week trip.
When I later worked in a corporate job, Vacation time was given out by seniority. And only one person was allowed to be on vacation during any given week. Even in the summer. For the three years I worked there, I was never able to get week off between Easter and Mid-October because of this policy. So there would go the rest of the school vacation weeks. Oh, except for President's Day week, which was also hard to get because of the seniority thing.
Fast forward to now. Sure, I'm a stay at home mom. But my husband has a high-pressure consulting job. He is allowed to take vacation on exactly TWO situations: a.> when he has no client (i.e. if he is unemployed), which means we probably aren't going to take a vacation because hello, he is unemployed and looking for a new gig. or b.> If he is doing multiple projects for the same client, a project ends and the next one is not scheduled to start immediately. Now when this happens is a great time to take a vacation, since he's got no work hanging over him. BUT, this situation usually comes up unexpectedly or is tenatitve until the last minute. So when this sort of situation happens, we need to take our trip NEXT WEEK or within about two/three weeks. Which leaves little time for planning or working around school calendars.

So anyone saying, "Oh just go on vacation during the school vacations". Great if it works for you,thats fabulous, but it just isn't even possible for everyone. And don't we deserve to be able to have a family trip, too??

This too was an issue for my family growing up. My Mom and Dad owned their own marine repair business and there was no such thing as a taking a trip in the summer especially for my Dad. This was their busiest time of year!

 

[cissy]

School staff members are legally obligated to call Social Services or whatever it's called in your particular state. I've had to call DYFS (Division of Youth and Family Services) several times because of things kids have told me. I talked to the school nurse and my principal, but the person that gets the information from the child is the one that is required to call. I've had children report sexual, physical and verbal abuse by parents, foster parents and boyfriends of the kids mother. After I call DYFS, it is no longer in my hands, it is up to the social worker assigned to the case to determine what needs to be done. We've had DYFS workers come to the school and talk to kids and in one case, they removed several children from one family.

Yes, but you notified someone else before you did it. This woman told no one at the school and just called. Had she spoken to the teacher or principal, the call to DSS most likely would not have happened. And, get this! My friend went to the school on Monday to speak with the counselor and was told she COULDN'T!! Yep, this person can talk to her MINOR child without parental consent but the parent can't talk to her. Her MINOR child. Her elementary aged child.

Look, abuse happens. Kids are saved by caring people in the schools. But there need to be safeguards for the parents as well. And the counselor should have to get retrained after a certain number of "false" calls. Or fired!

Again, I say to all: VOTE!! Sign petitions, write you representatives. Get on the PTA and make changes. And take you kids out of school to vacation with your family when it is best for you.

I am making all sorts of cool activity sheets for my kids to do at Disney. They are already earning their own money and learning what things cost and we don't leave for another 3 months. This trip will be loaded with educational opportunities, but most importantly, family time.

 

[disneyjunkie]

Yes, but you notified someone else before you did it. This woman told no one at the school and just called. Had she spoken to the teacher or principal, the call to DSS most likely would not have happened. And, get this! My friend went to the school on Monday to speak with the counselor and was told she COULDN'T!! Yep, this person can talk to her MINOR child without parental consent but the parent can't talk to her. Her MINOR child. Her elementary aged child.

Look, abuse happens. Kids are saved by caring people in the schools. But there need to be safeguards for the parents as well. And the counselor should have to get retrained after a certain number of "false" calls. Or fired!

Again, I say to all: VOTE!! Sign petitions, write you representatives. Get on the PTA and make changes. And take you kids out of school to vacation with your family when it is best for you.

I am making all sorts of cool activity sheets for my kids to do at Disney. They are already earning their own money and learning what things cost and we don't leave for another 3 months. This trip will be loaded with educational opportunities, but most importantly, family time.

That's exactly what you're required to do in NYC. As a matter of fact, we're told if you SUSPECT abuse you're required to call ACS. NEVER contact the parents. If you decide to ignore this, then you run the risk of losing your job, licence or having the city file charges against you.

Of course not all mandated reporters adhere to this. However, each time they ignore the policy, they place themselves at risk.

 

[dawnball]

It just seems stupid that parents are pitted as adversaries against the school systems over what amounts to really trivial matters such as this. There are far more important matter at hand that have direct effects on the children and their education. This is exactly why the public education system in this country loses more supporters every year...making mountains into molehills while also ignoring the real issues at hand.

The problem is that trivial matters like this are fundamental to the differences between the public school system and parents right now. The public schools as we know them were designed to create good cogs. Most active parents don't want their children to grow up to be cogs. Most passive parents don't really care, as long as they don't have to think about it too much. Passive parents will ignore regulations about when they can take their children out of school (frequently out of ignorance of the existence of such rules) and active parents complain. Frequently active parents pull their kids out to go to private school or badger the school system into making "exceptions". It all results in the discrediting of public education. These are gross generalizations, but I can see distinct patterns in the parents of the local school sytems I'm involved with.

Now - I don't think that most people who work in public education have a desire to turn children into good cogs. I do think that was the original design of public education and I think it is fundamental to the way public education is structured. A lot of the assumptions and standards that underlie current pedagogy encourage a standardization among students. NCLB encourages that same standardization.

And, while I wouldn't pull my DD out of school for vacation - a large part of that is that she isn't in the public school system. I suspect that I might change my priorities if she were.

 

[dawnball]

Dawnball
In the quote above you mention that you are helping to pay for my DCs education. My point is that I don't want you to help pay for my DCs education. I can do that myself. However, I do not believe that we should be funding a school system where my child does not attend. If choose to send my child to private school, then I forced to pay for both the private school and the public school system. (Spread the wealth, spread the pain)

Then demand scaled tax subsidies for people who send their children to private school. Or agitate for changes in your local tax structure. I believe that educating everyone to a certain minimum standard is *required* for a functional democracy and that elimination of some kind of public education would spell the demise of the US as a first world country.

We have elderly in this country that are helping to pay for the low hanging fruit to attend school. All this while they struggle to make ends meet. Your response is for them to move. So after 30 years of living in a community they should pull up their roots and move?

I'm not quite sure who you mean by "low hanging fruit". 30 years ago they moved into that community understanding the obligations that were expected of them. If they can't meet those obligations anymore, then yes - they should move or find ways to change the expected obligations. Children are this country's future. Every child plays a role in the world to come. Sacrificing the education of a child because of their parent's inability to pay is national suicide.

I pay social security taxes even though I have no expectation of collecting social security when I retire. I do it without grumbling because I know how many people would be unable to feed themselves without social security. However, I still advocate for means testing for social security and moving social security to more of a welfare model.

I personally love your comments on how people are free to come and go where they want. Spoken like a true card carrying liberal. I love it.

Sorry to disappoint you, but I don't find that slapping a label on myself is particularly helpful in finding my path through life. I am a big believer in responsibility and keeping an eye toward the future, however.

Come back to reality. The point here is that we are a free people. If we want to take our DCs out to go to WDW or Washington DC or camping, then it's our prerogative. The school systems should not be attempting to punish a parent for a child missing school for a family vacation. However, you feel that you are better than us and need to dictate to the masses when we can take time with our families.

On the contrary. I feel that the masses have dictated how they'd like their educational system to be run, or (in many cases) their complete indifference to how things should be run - as long as it doesn't inconvenience them. We are a free people and you're free to find a school system/regional government that you're more comfortable with. Or you can simply pull your children out of school and deal with the consequences.

I don't honestly think that I'm better than anyone and I don't have any desire to be a dictator. I've never said that anyone shouldn't pull their children out of school. I've said I wouldn't pull my child out of school,which is a different matter. I have said that our actions (the sum of them, not any individual one) indicates to our children (and anyone else who observes them) what our actual priorities and values are. I stand behind that statement and will continue to do so.

 

[lastminutemom]

Have you actually checked to see if this is a NCLB standard to meet AYP or your schools. NCLB is nation wide not state wide. We do not have the same standards here.

NCLB requires each state to pick a second indicator other than academic performance in reading and math to meet. Many states have picked attendance. I know Georgia has.

I will say that I am very involved in education in Georgia and while I think the testing is a joke -- I can attest to the fact that schools that pay more attention to attendance do see greater improvement in student achievement than those schools that don't. A flu outbreak (which is of course excused) can really hinder student progress.

Our high schools do not excuse vacations and are under no obligation to give make up work.

Recently, a high school principal said that not one student in the top 10 percent of the class had missed more than 8 days in any high school year. (excused or unexcused.)

By the way, Georgia passed a law/rule last year allowing military families days off from school when soldiers have leave or are returning from deployment --but otherwise the state is pretty strict.

Also, around here teachers don't get to take vacations during the school year except during vacation time.

 

[Gretchen]

1) Don't be a lemming following the crowd, stand up for what you want.
Sometimes you can win when you fight city hall.
2) Don't let school get in the way of your child's education.

#2 came from my DD's school principal.
Gretchen