Is it better to start school midweek or on a Monday? That is the question I’m currently pondering.
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This week, on Wednesday, a bunch of schools started back including Lake Travis, Bastrop, Liberty Hill, Wimberley and Lago Vista. The next wave came on Thursday with Round Rock, Leander, Pflugerville and Georgetown joining them.
Parents and children stand in line at Deep Wood Elementary School on the first day of school to take photos. Round Rock ISD started classes on Thursday. Henry Huey for Round Rock Leader.
On Monday, Austin ISD, Manor and Burnet return to class. Followed by Dripping Springs, Hutto and Smithville on Tuesday, and Eanes, Elgin and Marble Falls next Wednesday.
Bringing up the rear on Aug. 27, is Hays Consolidated, San Marcos Consolidated and Del Valle.
So, is it better to start mid-week or on a Monday?
That’s like asking: do you rip off the bandage in one jerky move or do you peel it away millimeter by millimeter?
A long time ago… like when my now senior in high school was in kindergarten … Austin ISD did start on a Thursday. At the time I thought, “That’s just crazy!” Why a Thursday?
Now I get it. There are pluses and minuses.
Pro mid-week:
You get a gradual ease in. For those anxious kids, it’s just a few days and then a weekend break. Whew!
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You have two days to pick up school supplies before the next class, rather than one night. If you have a middle-schooler or high-schooler, you know what I’m talking about. The first time your kid goes to a class, they get a list of supplies they need. If you have a kid on an A-day/B-day schedule, it takes two days to see all of their teachers. If you start on a Monday, your kid doesn’t get their complete list until Tuesday.
Next Tuesday night, I and all the other frustrated parents of Austin ISD kids will be in the Walmart or Target scrounging for supplies that are no longer there.
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One year, I tried to out-guess the teachers and pre-buy supplies. I ended up with a bunch of stuff that neither one of my kids needed. Now I buy basics: notebook paper, pencils, composition books, pens. That’s it and wait until we get the list.
That means I’m with all of you desperate and irritated parents at the big box store. One year, my kid needed a certain kind of dry erase marker that I checked five different stores to find and finally located it in the CVS of all places. And then my kid transferred out of that class two weeks later. The time spent, the pressure around finding items, is crazy-making.
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Teachers get a weekend between the first few days of school and the first full week to get their classrooms back in order. (And yes, we know you’re not supposed to be working on the weekend, but we also realize that you do.)
Pro-Monday start date:
Teachers get a weekend between Meet the Teacher and the first day of school. They have time to touch base with parents who had questions at Meet the Teacher. They can put away all the supplies the kids brought to Meet the Teacher. They can follow up with the parents who weren’t able to make it.
Parents don’t have to find a half-week camp for their kids or take off a couple of days because they can’t find a camp for those two or three days.
High-schooler and middle-schoolers really get a sense of their whole schedule that first week. There’s no delay in figuring out if the course load is too crazy.
The transition could be easier if you have a kid who likes routine. Bedtime and wake-up time routines get established quickly. It feels like school has begun.
What do you think? Are you Pro Midweek Start or Pro Monday Start? Share your thoughts in the comments.
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