WCSD Adds 20 Minutes to the Days of 1-3rd Graders

As Walnut Creek School District managers and teachers increase for all district staff, they also agreed to add 20 minutes to the school day for first through third graders.

The additional 20 minutes will go into effect in the 2011-12 school year, and grades 1 through 5 will end school at the same time, said Superintendent Patricia Wool. She said that the additional minutes of instruction time will benefit the younger kids. 

"WCSD is excited about the additional minutes which will support students and staff," she said. "We know that there is much to teach during the day, and these additional minutes will support our mission to provide the strongest education possible."

Wool also acknowledged that this change can benefit some parents who have kids in grades 1-3 and then in 4-5 and who have had to negotiate different pickup times.

On the other hand, the new time for class dismissal could mean more parents--and vehicles--jockeying for space to pick up their kids in the school parking lots and in the streets in front of campuses. 

"We also know that the pick up of students at the end of the day may be an issue at elementary schools, so we hope that each principal will work with the parent community to devise plans for pick up of students during the next school year," Wool said.