MARYSVILLE — No one batted an eye when Shoultes Elementary School Principal John Waldrop showed up for work on Saturday in a blue bathrobe and fleece pants.
Or when teachers wandered the halls in pink, fuzzy slippers or with curlers in their hair.
Or when pajama-clad students brought teddy bears, pillows, blankets and sleeping bags along with their backpacks.
The school’s student council thought the comfort of pajamas would draw students to the first of two Saturday school days brought on by the Marysville School District’s state record 49-day teachers strike last fall.
Soon after their recent election, the nine fifth-graders on the student council collected ideas from each class for what to do on Saturday.
Along with the suggestion of pajama day, they got hobo day, crazy hair day and the clever but unlikely recess day.
"I think maybe kids like the idea of not getting dressed in the morning," said student council member Caitlin Schauman, 11.
Caitlin and fellow council members Tyler Cratty, 10, and Jesika Bowman, 11, said none of them minded coming to school, because as a general rule they all like school.
Along with the fun of coming to class in pajamas, the teachers helped get students through the day with learning games, they said. There was also a sleep-in during lunch and recess.
"I was for the teachers strike, and I think going on a couple of Saturdays isn’t a problem," Jesika said. "It feels just like another Friday."
The district served about 67 percent of the hot lunches it normally does on a school day, district spokeswoman Judy Parker said.
She estimated that while student attendance districtwide was about 67 percent, teacher attendance was 94 percent.
About 75 percent of elementary students showed up, a number that decreased for older students. Only 50 percent of Marysville-Pilchuck High School students turned out, she said.
Parker said she was "quite impressed" with both student and teacher attendance, and heard nothing but positive feedback from the schools.
"It was a strong instructional day," she said. "I talked to quite a few principles, and staff and students were engaged and involved."
Some parents kept their children out of school for family or religious reasons, or due to previous engagements.
Marysville-Pilchuck junior Tiffany Nelms said she could only attend for a few periods on Saturday. She works at the Burger King on Fourth Street and was due for work at noon.
As she stood at the Burger King counter wiping a stack of food trays dry, Nelms said when she arrived at school, the normally packed student parking lot was nearly empty.
Teachers tried to get students to take Saturday seriously by promising important lessons and vital assignments, she said.
"I felt like I had to go to a couple of classes. But I didn’t want to," she said. "Teachers don’t really realize we have stuff going on."
She hopes they’ll understand she had to work.
"If I miss work, I can’t really pay for things I need to pay for," Nelms said. "There’s things we have to do."
The next Saturday school day will be June 5. The last day of school is set for July 19, giving students only about a month of summer vacation.
At Shoultes Elementary, Tyler, Jesika and Caitlin said that with pajamas, spending a rainy Saturday at school wasn’t bad at all.
"I like school," said Tyler, who could have been home playing his favorite Xbox games. "I think it’s good we can make up the days."
Jesika said she skipped her violin lessons to come to school.
And Caitlin, who normally monopolizes the family telephone on Saturdays?
"My mom said, ‘I want to go shopping — you’re going to school!" she said. "But as far as today being different, it was fun.
"It was not too much work, but not too much fun. Just right."
Reporter Jennifer Warnick: 425-339-3429 or jwarnick@heraldnet.com.
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