Back to Work!

And so ends another summer. Ahh, it was a good time. Outings with family and friends included Six Flags, picnics, boat rides, Navy Pier, an NFL training camp, a camping trip, road trips, and beach days. There still may be some revelry, but as of tomorrow, it's back to work. I guess I'm ready. There will always be more to do. There will be friends I didn't visit, but wanted to. There will be appointments that must be made and kept that would have been much easier to schedule if there weren't work added to the mix. However, I am grateful for the time I did have. Not many other professions have so much time for rejuvenation built into the regular work hours. It is not a perk; it is a necessity, my friends.
A superintendents group in Minnesota wants to add more school days to the year so as to have teachers work a schedule that more closely resembles the work schedule of most other people. How about this? Let's give the other professions MORE time off, not take some away from the teachers. Who wouldn't support more time for vacations, relaxing, spending time with family and friends? The governor, so far, is supportive of the proposal. Where are this governor's advisors? Doesn't he know that teachers are a powerful voting block? Good luck to this guy in the next election! Yes, there are advantages to children spending more time in school. I just ask two things: 1) If you want the children to spend more time in school, do not add more learning standards. Let the students master the ones you've already given them. 2)If the lawmakers decide to increase the number of working days for teachers, can they also extend the work calendar for legislators? That seems fair to me.