Why do infants finish at 2 o clock

does it drive anyone else crazy with different school finishing times
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Yes - I absolutely agree with you. I know of families where they make a 30 min trip to school (school of their ethos and choice before anyone starts arguing about why not a closer school) and the parent and younger child sit in the car for an hour waiting for the older child to come out.

Younger classes don't have to finish an hour earlier; it has become custom/practice but not a requirement.
 
Kildrought said:
Yes - I absolutely agree with you. I know of families where they make a 30 min trip to school (school of their ethos and choice before anyone starts arguing about why not a closer school) and the parent and younger child sit in the car for an hour waiting for the older child to come out.
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You've said it - "School of their ethos and choice"

All this is a matter of personal choice. Where you live. Location of school of choice. Age at which you send your child to school. Whether you take your child for a walk or to the park or sit in the car, etc.

What's best for the child?
 
I empathise with you Gailey and it's a reasonable question to ask- but it's obviously best asked of other working parents. People who aren't in the situation, with its emotional and financial frustrations- don't know what you're talking about- and often adopt a hardline stance. That said, the prevailing collect-them-regardless-of-age culture is suffocating on many levels.
 
Not sure of the others but I responded as one of two working parents with two kids. Not sure what hardline statements were mentioned by the posters but like everyone we are entitled to an opinion.

I guess my empathy would be with the children - I am always of the impression that their well-being comes first. Mine is a distance second and always will be.

I knew that such awkward occasions such as collecting kids at different times would crop up before the kids were born but we made our decision to have two kids knowing this. That was our choice. I'm sure there are lots of other conveniences to come along the way - I would not count collecting kids at different times amongst these by a long shot.
 
Marion said:
I would not send a child to school before the age of 6

Marion
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6 is way too old to start a child in school. The poor child would be bored off his brains! He would be alot more advanced than all the other children in his class - the majority being 4 year olds.

I'm a stay at home mom with two kids, my eldest is starting school next year. He will be four and 8 months. My second child will be starting in 3 years time and he'll have just turned 5. I don't agree with people sending their children to school when they've only just turned 4, i think it's too young. But on saying that, it all depends on the child! Some children are more advanced/mature than others.
 
For the record I also have 2 (now teenage) kids.

We are a two-income family (not counting babysitting money that the kids now earn :)) although for pretty much all of the kids' lives one of us has been working from the home, either part-time or full-time.

So no hardline stance - just the benefit of experience.

We opted for local schools. Thankfully there are good local schools around here, and that was one of the reasons we chose to live here with two young kids. The kids have always walked to and from school. The primary school was a five minute walk. The secondary school is a 20-minute walk.

If it's raining they sometimes get a lift. They're happy kids, they've always loved school and they've always done well.

We've been lucky. But I'd like to think we've made a good bit of that luck, by providing a secure home base, encouraging the kids to learn, taking part in school activities, helping them out, not mollycoddling them.

I've always felt the length of the school day was about right for the age of the child. Inconvenient at times? Sure - but the kids come first.
 
Took what i said out of context!
While a 4 yr old might be mature for his/her age and therefore ready to start school - they will hardly have the maturity of a 6 yr old!

Start a child in school at the age of 6 and you are stunting him of his true potential - all the other kids will have a year or two advantage. It's not fair.
 
purplealien said:
6 is way too old to start a child in school. The poor child would be bored off his brains! He would be alot more advanced than all the other children in his class - the majority being 4 year olds.

I'm a stay at home mom with two kids, my eldest is starting school next year. He will be four and 8 months. My second child will be starting in 3 years time and he'll have just turned 5. I don't agree with people sending their children to school when they've only just turned 4, i think it's too young. But on saying that, it all depends on the child! Some children are more advanced/mature than others.
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http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/mai...SFGGAVCBQ0IV0?xml=/news/2006/08/02/useven.xmlhttp://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/mai...g=yourview&xml=/news/2006/08/02/ublview02.xml

This article is about changing the school start age to seven to bring it in line with many EU countries. In Freakonomics Levitt discusses the fact that they, Norwegians, start school at seven and yet have one of the highest education standards in the world.
Is the real goal to educate the children or to provide childcare for the parents?
 
Marion I think your comments are simply silly.
You are not a parent so how do you know what you would do?

How do you think you would be doing a child any favours by singling them out as different from their peers by starting them in a school class of 4.5 to 5 year olds at he age of 6?

What would that achieve?

I agree with the OP that school times are organised purely to suit the school and the teachers with no consideration for parents or children.

Would car pooling be an option for you?
 
I live in a very rural area- the nearest school isn't in walking distance- there is a school bus. Both myself and my husband work full time. Although neither of our two are in school yet, looking ahead we will simply have to somehow either cut our working hours ( seems unlikely to be feasible but who knows what the next few years will bring) or employ someone to pick them up from school and mind them until we come home. When they are both going to school and leaving at different times, the same will apply. I'm not hardline on the issue, but feel that the best thing for our children would be if either Mr.V or I could mind them ourselves. Since that doesn't seem likely the options are 1. After school care in the school or nearby with lots of other children, 2. minded by a childminder in their home or 3. minded by a childminder in our home. 3 is hard to come by. As for 1 or 2- which is the best? I really don't know.
 
DirtyH2O said:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/mai...SFGGAVCBQ0IV0?xml=/news/2006/08/02/useven.xml

This article is about changing the school start age to seven to bring it in line with many EU countries.
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I'd have no problem with that - that would mean every child starts at the same age.

If there was a set age for children to start school, it would be ideal. That would eliminate situations whereby a 6 yr old is in the same class as a 4 yr old, bored to death because he is not being mentally challenged.
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Bamhan said:
Marion I think your comments are simply silly.
You are not a parent so how do you know what you would do?

How do you think you would be doing a child any favours by singling them out as different from their peers by starting them in a school class of 4.5 to 5 year olds at he age of 6?

What would that achieve?
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Thank you Bamhan - at last someone with a bit of sense.
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while i don't have children i do understand the OP's frustrations. As an Aunty (like marion) my nieces and nephews were all in school at 4.5 - 5 yrs and wreaked when they came home for the first few days. As time passed they loved it and were begging to stay on for ladybirds / football etc - in "seniors" infants. Integration into the school day does not take them 2 years surely.
IMO it was devised to suit childrens needs but teachers are using it - when I attended primary Junior infants were collected at 2 or waited in class playing together at whatever while their teacher did her own work so that they went home wth big sisters and brothers - why is that option now gone? where is the teacher now? nobody said it was childminding it is supervision - same as when teachers are off for sick days etc and children work away themselves drawing or whatever under the supervision of another teacher.

For all the "Well my children come first..." there are many ways to put your children first and having a frazzled mother when you get home is often not the best way to start off your homework.

I suppose this is from one who does not see having children as a luxary that you decide can you afford and will have to work while they do in school to pay off a mortgage - house nothin fancy just a roof. Sure then again i am startin off as a bad wannabe mother:eek:
 
For all the "Well my children come first..." there are many ways to put your children first and having a frazzled mother when you get home is often not the best way to start off your homework.
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Well said nelly.
 
purplealien said:
I'd have no problem with that - that would mean every child starts at the same age.

If there was a set age for children to start school, it would be ideal. That would eliminate situations whereby a 6 yr old is in the same class as a 4 yr old, bored to death because he is not being mentally challenged.
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Totally agree with you on consistency.
Although there are plenty of examples where two kids the same age starting school and one is reading for one or two years while the other is still pre alphabet, almost an incentive not to have them reading to ensure they don't get bored and detached at such an early age.
Kids born in April\May are unlucky too as they are either the oldest or youngest in their year depending on when you decide to send them. These are bigger issues when the class size is big, I've heard of fifty kids packed together. What's the point in sending them in to that kind of chaos?
Do some schools not still offer the after school service, I thought it was an insurance issue that was rectified by having 24\7 cover instead of school hours only.
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Give your kids a break. I have one in Junior infants & one in 1st class, so I am looking a 2 years of it. That day is plenty long for the kids, regardless on whan anyone will say about their kids/neice/nephews etc. Lord knows their day in schooling will get much longer as they go through their education. Fight the battle regarding the synchronising the school holidays, as not synchronising is just stupid on so many levels.
 
nelly said:
For all the "Well my children come first..." there are many ways to put your children first and having a frazzled mother when you get home is often not the best way to start off your homework.
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I suppose if the source of the "frazzlement" is the kids getting off school too early an attitude adjustment is needed, in the interest of the kids?
 
extopia said:
in the interest of the kids?
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no goats here,

as a child who waited the hour i can say it did no harm to me at all - whats the problem to leave them playing away for an hour - better than sitting infront fo a box when they get home surely. I and many of my friends came out unscathed, it seems to me the school system was far more flexible then and this seems to be an element of the issue.
 
I'll be in this boat soon.

Why primary schools cannot just split the difference to say 2.30.
Folks with 3+ kids doing a 2,3,4 pick up is mad, at least make the 2 and 3 pick-up the same, I don't feel a half hour would have that much of an effect.

Walk - someone somewhere is assuming paths on every road in Ireland
Cycle - please, the amount of mad drivers etc and narrow roads, not my children
Bus, with our safety record, I had a look at buses bring other children to our school, reg from the 80's and falling apart

So, up to primary 2.30
Thereafter 4, decent time break
 
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