short school day ? (San Diego, Santa Rosa, Vallejo: crimes, home, school districts)

[sarasen]

Hi,
I think I heard all schools in california (especially bay area, sonoma, novato etc) where I am thinking of moving, have short school day EVERY Wednesday. My question is ... how do working parents manage this? IS this something they like? Is there aftercare those days? what sort of costs are we looking at for aftercare for the week in the area for public schools?
We are 2 working parents, and although I work from home right now while the kids are young ( i will look for a nanny to help), but as they get a little older and if i were to lose my nice at home gig, i would imagine i have to venture out to work. Just concerned about this - not to mention, this goes on till 6th grade! what are the schools thinking short changing the kids on education. Back in the day, it made sense to have a short day, because USUALLY moms stayed home with the kids, so it was to bond with kids, for them to have fun, but these days, very few do, they are 2 person households... I'm from east coast (NY area)

[butercup]

Yes, this is very common. I think the rationale is that it gives the teachers time for meetings, seminars, that sort of thing. As far as the school hours are concerned, the other days are longer (for instance, I'm from FL where the elementary day is a consistent 6 hours per day 5 days a week - 30 hours total. In CA my son attended 825-310 4 days a week and 825-1220 on Wednesdays, - 31 hours total.) If your kids are in aftercare, it will cover those hours. If not, you will cobble together something like everyone else does.

Just a warning, this is the tip of the iceberg as far as school-related pain. CA is amazing at not giving a crap about the hardships that their policies cause. In FL, again, which is by no means a state with good schools, they at least are realistic. In CA most schools don't have nearly enough aftercare spots to meet demand. There are almost no school buses and many districts are so impacted that your kid can end up in a school across the district with no transportation provided. During teacher conferences twice a year, the kids have half days for a week straight - again, if you won one of the coveted afterschool slots, you're covered but if not, too bad. It's remarkable.

[sarasen]

Wow! That is remarkable. I am looking at one public school (grant) in petaluma, and thier hours are short! kinder: 1:40 dismissal,1-3rd grade is 2:20 dismissal, and 4,5,6 is 2:35 dismissal (on non Wednesdays). all start at 8:05.
This is approx 2 hours short from your son (who had 8:25 to 3:10) .

So how do people "cobble" something - external help, like babysitters and nannies? neighbors? People who have family nearby do not count - i'm talking about those that have no one, and are working parents with the 9-5 (or linger jobs).

By the way, here's an article i just googled, which talks about cali short day, being a symptom of budget issues - not surprised.

https://www.sfgate.com/opinion/artic...t-11088520.php

Except from the article :
"The state requires only half-day kindergarten, which amounts to just three hours and 20 minutes, about the length of a pro football game. And the full day for higher grades doesn’t equate to a full work shift for parents and other caregivers. First- through third-graders are required to have only four hours and 40 minutes per day. It’s five hours for grades four to eight, and six hours for high schoolers."

amazing... and sad.

butercup - where in california did your son have the 6 hour elementary school, if you odn't mind sharing?

[allison7]

I hate to say it, but California schools are not the best, but there are pockets of good school districts throughout the Bay Area. You would have to do your research on a specific district you are considering, if private schools are out of the question. What you won't find in Sonoma are gang problems like you will find in other school districts.

[artemis78]

Yes, it is very common. California schools have requirements for the total number of instructional minutes per year, so while you will find that different school schedules add up to that over the course of the year, they may do it with four longer days and one shorter day, or with days all the same length and more days off for teacher professional development. Many working parents prefer the shorter day once a week with fewer days off overall, since after-school programs cover that time. (Many also cover days off, but it depends on the program.) Virtually all working families enroll their children in after-school programs, which is how they manage it. Those typically run until 6 or 6:30 pm, and families that can't pick up by that time sometimes hire babysitters to cover the time until they get home from work.

[gone down south]

Same as anywhere else - pay for aftercare or have friends/family take care of them.

[capoeira]

Originally Posted by sarasen

So how do people "cobble" something - external help, like babysitters and nannies? neighbors? People who have family nearby do not count - i'm talking about those that have no one, and are working parents with the 9-5 (or linger jobs).

Unlike other areas of the country, school districts do not provide school buses in many areas of California. The parents also have to transport the kids to/from school.

Originally Posted by allison7

What you won't find in Sonoma are gang problems like you will find in other school districts.

There are plenty of gang members in Sonoma.

https://gauchogazette.com/3553/featu...s-an-overview/

"Just in Sonoma County, there are approximately 1,600 members. Multiple Norteño gang-related crimes have occurred within Sonoma County

https://patch.com/california/sonomav...-in-the-valley

[davdaven]

California schools are not the best. Minimum days are common throughout the state, but each district handles it differently. I grew up in a suburb or San Diego, and there were minimum days every Thursday for K-6 students, while grade 7-12 students didn't have them. It's probably gotten worse by now, as I graduated in 2001 before funding took a huge hit.

School buses are not too common these days, but they are around. Many cities actually provide school bus service in the form of supplemental service on the regular public transit system. This is how Petaluma does it, and Petaluma Transit has a whole section of its website dedicated to school service: Petaluma Transit | Schools - Petaluma Transit

[allison7]

Originally Posted by capoeira

Unlike other areas of the country, school districts do not provide school buses in many areas of California. The parents also have to transport the kids to/from school.



There are plenty of gang members in Sonoma.

https://gauchogazette.com/3553/featu...s-an-overview/

"Just in Sonoma County, there are approximately 1,600 members. Multiple Norteño gang-related crimes have occurred within Sonoma County

https://patch.com/california/sonomav...-in-the-valley

Oh no! That's Sonoma County, I was talking about Sonoma. You have to live here to understand the difference. You are referring to all of Sonoma County, and the gang problems in the whole county are centered mostly in Santa Rosa, like the population. Cities like Windsor, Sonoma, Sebastapol, Cotati and the like are not going to have the same kind of problems with gangs or crimes, and it's not even close! It's not to say there is no crime, but it just doesn't compare. Graffiti is very rare except maybe sometimes in some of the very old developments in the old established section of town. Compare that to Vacaville, Fairfield, or Vallejo or just about anywhere else in the Bay Area, and there is no way a comparison.

[butercup]

Wow! That is remarkable. I am looking at one public school (grant) in petaluma, and thier hours are short! kinder: 1:40 dismissal,1-3rd grade is 2:20 dismissal, and 4,5,6 is 2:35 dismissal (on non Wednesdays). all start at 8:05.
This is approx 2 hours short from your son (who had 8:25 to 3:10) .

I was being lazy, but that is similar - in our district in San Mateo County, K gets out very early, 1-3 get out at 235, and 4th and 5th get out at 3:10. Also fun, picking up one younger grade and then sitting around waiting for your older child for half an hour. Like I said, CA amazes me.

So how do people "cobble" something - external help, like babysitters and nannies? neighbors? People who have family nearby do not count - i'm talking about those that have no one, and are working parents with the 9-5 (or linger jobs).


It varies -mostly not neighbors. There are a lot of people in our area in Silicon Valley with flexible schedules or work -from - home options. Like I said, the aftercare is hard to get into and many districts require full-time aftercare - I was lucky that we slid into a spot in Wednesday aftercare a few months into the school year. A lot of people use college students or part-time nannies, that's a common ask on local message boards. In our area a lot of the kids by 4th-5th grade are walking home and letting themselves in.


Finally, regarding the school buses - I know of no district in our area which provides ANY transportation for elementary - again, because of the impacted schools (if a school is full, CA does not throw up a portable, they require the child to go to another school in the district and let you figure out how to get there) you can easily end up miles away from your school. Happened to us. I have heard Berkeley does have school buses.

We do have the county bus system that another poster mentioned for middle and high, but it is also hilarious - buses are standing room crammed full, you have to pay fare, and when they have these random short weeks for conferences, they don't change the bus schedule. Apparently because of some weird state law thing they are not allowed to vary their route so those two weeks a year, the middle and high schoolers are screwed. I'm telling you, it's bizarre. Welcome to California!