On a personal level, I think that the more time we spend on this the better.  I found that in the classroom, every minute I spent on this kind of activity was worth it in the end.  WHy?  It just made it all smoother and easier and provided a heck of a lot of chance to foster a community.  If community is important to you or your school, be willing to take TIME and make it a priority.  Because then in May, you’re not going crazy, but you have that community to build toward a positive end on.