Establishing elementary school boundaries in Lawrence is a never-ending puzzle, but it’s important for officials to understand that the real pieces of that puzzle are thousands of young school children.

It may serve the district’s purpose to relieve crowding at Deerfield School by moving children to Pinckney School, but it’s the right priority to avoid a second move for children who attended Riverside School before it closed last year. Children are resilient, but the move to a new school calls for a certain amount of adjustment for both children and families. They shouldn’t be asked to make that adjustment twice in two years if there is any way to avoid it.

Congratulations to the Lawrence school board for rejecting that option and opting to seek other ways to balance enrollment at the district’s elementary schools.