Steamboat Pilot & Today

Get ready parents, because Hayden students soon will have Fridays off from school.

Students will have four-day school weeks between Thanks--giving and spring break, which may leave some parents scrambling to find child care or activities during the 14 Fridays their children won't be in the classroom.

The Totally Kids program is offering a Friday day camp for students ages 5 to 12.

The camp will be from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. and will include morning visits to the Hayden Public Library. Afternoon activities will include swimming at the Steamboat Springs Health and Recreation Center, ice skating at Howelsen Hill, sledding, going to the movies, cross-country skiing and learning how to make pottery.

There also are plans to offer Spanish classes to interested students.

Program fees will help pay for entry costs, staff salaries and transportation expenses. A grant from Yampa Valley Electric Association's Caring Consumers program helped keep costs down for students, Totally Kids director Carolyn Gregory said.

At least 10 students need to sign up each day for the activities to be cost-effective. Interest in the program has been minimal so far, Gregory said.

Child care was among parents' concerns when the Hayden School Board decided last spring to proceed with a four-day school week for part of the school year. The board's goal was to provide teachers more collaboration and planning time on Fridays.

However, only three of the 25 children who attend Totally Kids after-school programs have signed up for the Friday camp.

Some parents apparently have arranged to have Fridays off from work or will be taking their children to daycare, Gregory said.

There will be a table set up during parent-teacher conferences today and Thursday at Hayden Valley Elementary School with information about the camp. Thursday is the deadline to register.

There may be other options for children on Fridays. The Hayden School District is working with the Hayden Parks and Recreation Department to arrange activities, Superintendent Mike Luppes said.

The district also is arranging for a job fair for high school students to explore winter job prospects.