Friday, October 27, 2006

a great big field trip

The Vancouver Olympic Organizing Committee thinks schools should be closed for 2 weeks during the 2010 Olympics so students and their families can volunteer and attend the games.

Do they have any idea how many students that is? I sure hope there'll be enough seats and free tickets of course. Won't it be fun to take all of the kindergarteners to watch the bobsled races? Well, maybe they can all watch it on TV.

And all of those moms and dads taking vacation for 2 weeks to look after their kids who are out of school. We'll probably also have to close most of the banks and stores and even the hospitals and police station.

Let's all go to the Olympics. YAY!

question: does this sound silly to you too?

mompoet - okay, enough cynicism. I have some sewing to do

3 comments:

Muhd Imran said...

Sounds wonderful, though 2 weeks is a long time to do without daily conveniences.

Hopefully the supermarket and fast-food joints are open. Some jobs are still crucial to be operational, so some people will still be needed to report for work.

Watching the games with the family will be such an unforgettable treat! Lucky you.

Anonymous said...

That's a long break. Maybe they can make it up in regular vacation time.

mompoet said...

Imran, thank you for seeing the positive side of the situation. My kids will be out of school by 2010, so maybe they'll go on their own. I think most families won't be able to afford to travel to the venues or to buy tickets, thus my comment about watching it on TV. Youth sport and arts organizations will be involved in performances and celebrations around the Olympics, and young adults (like our kids will be by then)may volunteer. But I think the average family will feel like the Olympics are close but far away.

The school break thing worries me, Pearl. It looks like the decision to close schools will be left to individual boards of school trustees. These boards are bound by the School Act, which specifies the number of days of instruction. The thought of robbing Spring or Winter Break or Summer Vacation is an interesting one. I guess with enough advance notice, families could work around it.

I'd rather see parents choose to pull their kids out for a day or more if they are fortunate enough to get event tickets. Most students will be better off in school, I think.

mp