WOHMs and the public school calendar

[tmarie]

How do you make it work? There must be ways to make it work, right? My dd is about to enter kindergarten and I JUST started a new job (I have 30 days of PTO/yr). I am looking at the calendar for our public schools, and am shocked at how many vacations, teacher training, and half days they have scheduled.

Dh and I both have a little flexibility to work from home on occasion, but I'm getting nervous about how we'll swing it and still take a vacation, manage sick days, etc... We don't have family in the area.

tmarie

[octmom]

I won't lie, it's hard. My vacation days and DH's are planned around the school schedule. I have worked from home on snow days and days when the kids have been home sick. DH and I often split days when one or both of the kids are home so that we can each get in a half day in the office and we do a lot via e-mail when we are not at the office. I've found the pubic school schedule is really no worse than what we were already used to from the private preschool schedule we'd been dealing with for a couple of years. We have no family in our town, but my mom comes to visit a couple of times a year to help with childcare when one child is not in school and the other is. She'll watch DD for a week at the end of the summer between the time her summer camp program at her preschool ends and the school year begins. DS will already be back at school. His school year starts on August 25 and hers doesn't begin until September 7. Kids' schedules that don't match up is a PITA. I'm looking forward to DD and DS being on the same schedule beginning in Fall 2011.

[egoldber]

It's hard. If you are enrolled in our district's elementary school before or after care program, then they provide coverage for teacher work days and inservice days. They also do "camp" at winter, spring and summer breaks (for an additional cost).

Also, many places offer coverage for these days for a fee. Any place that offers preschool, daycare, or classes and camps for elementary age kids may offer coverage for these days.

Some people also hire part-time sitters or nannies.

But it is hard.

[randomkid]

We are facing this as well since DD will be entering K in the fall. I have friends at work that check the websites everyday waiting for the new school year calendar to come out. As soon as it is available, they submit their requests for days off for the entire year. We have a lot of Moms in our dept and if you aren't quick enough, then you likely won't get the time off. I'm already too late for this next year, so I am going to have to wing it.

I am fortunate that my parents are here and can help out, but they go to NC for 4-6 weeks, 2-3 times/year. My only option at this time is an in-home DCP that we used when DD was 2 and 3yo. She will take school age kids for a day or two and charge about $30/day. You could check the DCF website for registered or licensed in home DCPs in your area. Ours will list if they take school age children.

Our school's after care program does NOT provide care on teacher workdays/inservice days, etc.

What I'm *really* worried about is what to do with her next summer!

[JBaxter]

It's hard. If you are enrolled in our district's elementary school before or after care program, then they provide coverage for teacher work days and inservice days. They also do "camp" at winter, spring and summer breaks (for an additional cost).

Also, many places offer coverage for these days for a fee. Any place that offers preschool, daycare, or classes and camps for elementary age kids may offer coverage for these days.


Thats pretty much what we did. The YMCA actually handled the after school program ( the elem started at 735 so no before care). They did 1/2 days at no extra but full days off you dropped them at the YMCA for kids day out. They also did Y "camp" in the summer. Its a great program in our area

[ncat]

DD just finished K. Her afterschool program (not associated with her school) provided coverage for most of the school holidays that DH or I did not get off from work. They also provide coverage for snow days when there is no emergency.

[octmom]

DD just finished K. Her afterschool program (not associated with her school) provided coverage for most of the school holidays that DH or I did not get off from work. They also provide coverage for snow days when there is no emergency.

That's really nice. Our district provides care on some of the teacher work days/ vacation days, but only at one school for the whole district. It wasn't DS's school and he wouldn't know a soul there, so we chose not to use it and just cover it on our own. When debating summer programs for this year, I e-mailed the parents from his K class to ask about their plans, thinking it would be nice to sign up DS for something with a friend. Only one other child was really doing summer camp for most of the summer. The others were doing camps for a few hours or a week once in a while. There are lots of kids with SAHMs at DS's school. I didn't realize quite how many until I asked about summer plans.

[LD92599]

We utilize a combination of things, mostly staggering our days off, a playdate some afternoons and i'll take DS with me to work in the AM's, etc.

Fortunately DH gets more of the fed. holidays than i do which helps w/ the school days off. On the 1/2 days the aftercare (Y run) is in place; they also have camps scheduled on the school breaks which we've used a few times.

For a typical spring break i took one day off and then worked from home one day; DH took one day off; we used the Y camp for one and then DS spent another of the days w/ a classmate.

I was VERY happy to see that for 2010/2011 our district did away w/ the weeklong winter break!

For the summer i hired a sitter last year to pick him up at 1pm from our town camp and she was fantastic! We're using her again this summer and she was able to watch him the 2 days after school let out (last week) and will start with him today after camp is finished.

Of course now w/ 1 more on the way and in day care w/ a daycare schedule, we'll see how this goes!