Oyster River Kids Can Sleep In Beginning Next Year

Beginning next Fall, Oyster River High School and Middle School students can set their alarms a bit later.

The Oyster River School District voted to approve start times estimated to be about 45 minutes later for next year. These times affect the middle school and high school only.

According to research, most students get less than 8 1/2  hours of sleep, which is thought to be the best for for teenagers.

Bus routes, sports schedules, and other after school activities will all have to have their schedules adjusted in the coming months.

In an article at Fosters.com;

Under the proposal approved Wednesday on a 6-1 vote, the middle and high school day would begin around 8:15 a.m. and end at about 3 p.m. Currently, those students attend classes from 7:35 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

This is an issue that Portsmouth Schools are wrestling with and other districts may have to think about soon.

I am of the opinion that most teenagers will not use the later start time to get more sleep, but it does seem that starting school after 8 am seems a better choice.