Tuesday's news about an outstate school district "killing" spring break from its calendar has generated some lively comments from readers about the pros and cons of such a week off. An agitated "Morg" offered the following comment:

Setting aside the hyperbole -- and the inference that workshops are somehow sunny vacation days for teachers -- the comment reminded me of an eye-opening presentation earlier this month. The U of M's Kent Pekel spoke to a group of early childhood leaders Jan. 11 about the need to restructure how education and childcare is organized. Among his points was the relative brevity of the school year. Here is the full calendar:

And here is the school calendar when you take out the summer break:

And here is the school calendar when you take out weekends and major holidays:

And here is the school calendar when you take out professional development days and conferences:

And here is the school calendar when you take out other common holidays and spring break:

And lastly, here is the school calendar when you also subtract days for state and standardized testing:

Yikes! As a parent of kids who are 10 and 8, I don't think about this as much through the lens of whether the school calendar needs to change or whether spring break goes away. This is their reality. My bigger question: what am I doing as a parent to supplement the apparently limited time in which my kids are at school to learn? Parents, I'd love to see your strategies in the comments below. In what ways are you trying to supplement your kids' education!!!