Wrightsboro Traditional / Year Round Calendar

Principal Boni Hall, Wrightsboro Elementary
Traditional Calendar
Year-Round Balanced Calendar
Year Round /Traditional
Calendar
Instruction in School
9 months (185 days)

Breaks for Holidays
:
Thanksgiving (3 days)
Winter vacation (2 weeks)
Spring vacation (1 week)

Summer Break
(9 weeks)



Traditional Calendar vs.
Year-Round Calendar

Instruction in School
9 months (185 days)
45/15 design - school for 9 weeks then a 3 week break

Intercessions and Breaks for Holidays
:
Fall Intercession - 3 weeks

Thanksgiving - 3 days

Winter Intercession - 1 week
Winter vacation - 2 weeks

Spring Intercession - 1 week
Spring vacation - 2 weeks

Summer Break
- 4 weeks





Welcome Back to School!
Back to school sales...summer is over.
You know summer is coming to an end by the endless amounts of school supplies you begin to see at the front of stores. Advertisements are everywhere. Everyone knows that the long summer break is coming to an end. However, those students in year-round schools know nothing of this hustle and bustle of back to school after summer break.
Does a long break in the summer benefit children?

Or do several balanced breaks over the course of a year offer students a better chance at success?
New Hanover County
Year-Round Calendar Schools
History
Traditional School Calendar
Traditional school calendars were originally created for the planting and harvesting of crops.

Time in the summer for children to work on family farms
Benefits of
Year-round Calendar:
With a 15 day break after 45 days of instruction, students are able to recover and refresh.

Breaks often land near holidays

Opportunities for remediation at different times of the year.

More vacation opportunities

Reduce teacher burnout

Short term childcare
Benefits of
Year-round Balanced Calendar
Teach 45 - Break 15

Balanced calendar provides consistent teaching framework

Teachers may pre-teach concepts prior to the break to provide students with a preview of what they will learn when they return

More time is spent on teaching new material as opposed to reviewing old material because of summer loss
Benefits of Traditional Calendar :
Extended time for summer camps and travel

Traditional calendar aligns to middle and high school calendars

Disadvantages Traditional
School Calendar

Lost learning - "Summer Slide
"
Student data drops from the end of the year to the beginning of the year

Student Interest

lost interest in learning over the long summer break

Time Spent Reviewing
Teachers use more instructional time at the beginning of the year reviewing previously taught concepts after a long break
References:
-Bennecke, T. (2012). Yay summer! or not. Retrieved from http://www.redapplereading.com/blog/2012/07/
-Education Week. (2004). Year-round schooling. Retrieved fro,m http://www.edweek.org/ew//issues/year-round-schooling
-Harpaz, B. (2012). Year-round and traditional schools elicit debate. Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/12/debate
-Huebner, T. (2010). What research says about year-round schooling. Educational leadership, 67 (7), 83-84. Retrieved from http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational_leadersh.ip/apr10/vol67/num7/year-Round_Schooling.aspx
-Scholastic. (2013). The pros and cons of year round school. Parent and child, Retrieved fromhttp://www.scholastic.com/parents/resources/article/choosing-schools-programs/pros-and-cons-year-round-schools

What do we want for Wrightsboro's students?
Eaton Elementary
Codington Elementary
Sunset Park Elementary 2015-16
Snipes Elementary 2016-17

Interest Surveys in Progress
Gregory Elementary
Freeman Elementary
Virgo Middle School
Wrightsboro Elementary