My magical time comes early, before the sun breaks over the horizon. I used to get up at 5 or even 4 A.M. when I was in college. But I am a true morning person.

Most children are not. We have a fair amount of research suggesting that our kids should start school around 10 A.M. if we want them to perform at their best. That late morning start will never happen. Bus schedules, parent work schedules, and long-established tradition make potent arguments against changing the current system. Our dislike for school days ending after dark alone would prevent this switch, I’m sure.

But we can still fiddle with the school timetable sometimes. If you have schedule flexibility, I suggest putting the most important activities into that midmorning slot. Do your math and language arts from 9:30 to 11:30 when possible. Move less vital lessons into the late afternoon, when students are tired and squirrelly. All other things being equal, midmorning classes will always have more attentive, awake students than midafternoon classes. It’s worth keeping this fact in mind when scheduling the day’s activities.

Time to go teach … I hope readers are having a great September.