I would not have chosen to have school delayed the way it was this year. The unexpected devastation Irene left behind was not exactly what I would call a good way to extend our summer vacation.
Yet that is exactly what did happen and instead of relaxing and enjoying the last waning days of summer we were mopping, cleaning, hauling, chopping and raking. Not a great way to end summer!
Starting school after Labor Day is exactly how it should be, though. Summer is not over until Labor Day has come and gone and then it is officially time to put away the bikinis, towels, sand toys, and umbrellas and put the lazy days of summer behind us.
What do you think about starting school before Labor Day? When do you think school should start?
I wonder where the school administrators got the idea that it would be a good idea to end summer abruptly, put our children in classrooms that are mostly without air conditioning and then suddenly have a day off to celebrate Labor Day.
My opinion of the school year is a bit wishy-washy. I constantly waiver between the idea of starting school early and ending early or starting late and ending late. If we were to use the 2010-11 school year as a gauge it really wouldn’t have mattered when we started because the unprecedented snowy, cold winter and endless school closings extended our school year to an almost unbearable date.
I have to be completely honest, one of the reasons I wish the school year started later is that I absolutely love summer. I love being outside, enjoying the longer, sunny days. I love spending time with my children when there is no schedule, no homework, no serious obligations. I love being able to get away from it all with my family to enjoy the beach, ice cream for lunch, bike riding and just plain relaxing.
Fall brings cooler temperatures, apple picking, and leaves changing color. It is nice to get into a familiar routine of family dinners, homework, early to bed, early to rise and the big yellow school buses dotting the landscape.
One never outgrows the thrill of back to school shopping. Crisp clean binders, pristine notebooks, long, sharp pencils topped off with clean, pink erasers and new fall clothing. I can remember like it was yesterday buying my one new pair of school shoes at The Chapel Square Mall. For years I thought Macy’s and Malley’s was one department store!
What do you like best about sending your children back to school?
I still believe, though, that all that is wonderful about fall begins after Labor Day. Let’s add school to the list and let our kids enjoy every last ounce of what makes summer vacation so much fun!
