2025-26 school calendar first drafts

[Anonymous]

Being presented tomorrow at the Policy Management Committee meeting.

https://go.boarddocs.com/mabe/mcpsmd/Board.nsf/files/D8YSTU73B687/$file/2025-2026%20School%20Year%20Calendar%20PowerPoint.pdf

They're proposing having K, 6th, and 9th grade students have a transition day to their new schools on Monday Aug. 25th, while the first day of school for students is on Tuesday Aug. 26th.

[Anonymous]

Neighboring jurisdictions like Anne Arundel Co do a transition day. It’s good practice.

[Anonymous]

I've never heard of a transition day. What, exactly, does it entail?

[Anonymous]

Would it be any different than the half-day orientation that 6th and 9th graders have had on the Thursday before school starts?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Would it be any different than the half-day orientation that 6th and 9th graders have had on the Thursday before school starts?

Yeah. If it's the same, why change it? I imagine because the current model is optional and I guess this would be mandatory?

[Anonymous]

Sounds like what they always did but just a different day. Probably better for the teachers?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Would it be any different than the half-day orientation that 6th and 9th graders have had on the Thursday before school starts?

Yeah. If it's the same, why change it? I imagine because the current model is optional and I guess this would be mandatory?

NP - it could also be because some families are traveling that last week before school starts and this change would allow both travel and kids to attend the orientation. I'd welcome it, personally - if it means more kids attend orientation, so much the better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Would it be any different than the half-day orientation that 6th and 9th graders have had on the Thursday before school starts?

Yeah. If it's the same, why change it? I imagine because the current model is optional and I guess this would be mandatory?

NP - it could also be because some families are traveling that last week before school starts and this change would allow both travel and kids to attend the orientation. I'd welcome it, personally - if it means more kids attend orientation, so much the better.

To me that's a personal choice. Folks know when school starts and choose to travel instead of attending orientation. I say 1/2 day on the Friday before school starts for K, 6th and 9th. We need more 4 days weeks like a hole in the head.

[Anonymous]

Our ES did not have an orientation for kindergarten students specifically. There was an open house for kindergarten parents in the spring and there was an open house for all students (K-5) the week before school started that was fine but kind of chaotic.

I think having a transition day for K, 6th and 9th sounds great. I think I had that when I started HS in MCPS back in the day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Would it be any different than the half-day orientation that 6th and 9th graders have had on the Thursday before school starts?

Yeah. If it's the same, why change it? I imagine because the current model is optional and I guess this would be mandatory?

NP - it could also be because some families are traveling that last week before school starts and this change would allow both travel and kids to attend the orientation. I'd welcome it, personally - if it means more kids attend orientation, so much the better.

To me that's a personal choice. Folks know when school starts and choose to travel instead of attending orientation. I say 1/2 day on the Friday before school starts for K, 6th and 9th. We need more 4 days weeks like a hole in the head.

Yes but first week is school is typically not very substantive anyway, so this is a good time to have a short week. Ease back into it a little. I don’t feel strongly but I think this is fine. That Thursday orientation day was really irritating.

[Anonymous]

Would the transition day be counted as one of the required 180 instructional days, even if only 3 grades have school that day?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Would the transition day be counted as one of the required 180 instructional days, even if only 3 grades have school that day?

No, it's a non-instructional day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Would the transition day be counted as one of the required 180 instructional days, even if only 3 grades have school that day?

No, it's a non-instructional day.

If it doesn't count, then not all students will consider it a "real" day. And then schools will still have orientations. Just keep it as the first day of school for all and let the year end a day earlier in June.

[Anonymous]

The communication about the existing MS and HS orientations has been spotty, and K orientation has been non-existent. A lot of people who might want to send their kids have inadvertently scheduled end-of-summer vacation. I can see the value for moving the secondary orientations out of the pre-service week and making sure everyone gets the appropriate message.

[Anonymous]

I am not sure what a transitional day is but anything that makes the first week of school a bit shorter appeals to me. My kids are young; my second will be starting K next year. The first week is just a lot.