Learning Loss Mitigation
Students attending school on a balanced calendar do as well or slightly better in academic achievement than students on traditional schedules.
Summer Slide Prevention
One of the goals of a balanced school calendar is to prevent the summer slide and spend less instruction time on review. Ideally, students won’t be so “rusty” when they return to school due to the shorter summer break duration.
More Frequent Breaks from School
Though summer vacation may be shorter, there is more time throughout the year with a balanced school calendar. This is helpful in preventing burnout in both students and teachers. Teachers have more personal time throughout the year to schedule appointments, take trips, complete projects at home, and simply relax. Teachers are no longer waiting months at a time for a significant break.
More Enrichment & Professional Development Opportunities
With more breaks from instruction throughout the year, P.K. Yonge can schedule enrichment activities for students and professional development training for teachers more easily. P.K. Yonge will also provide additional instruction and tutoring during breaks to help struggling students catch up on lessons. Students and teachers can continue to learn and improve even while on a break.
Research-Based School Mission
As the developmental research school, P.K. Yonge has a mission to provide educational research. This pilot meets our mission by allowing P.K. Yonge to be the test site for the rest of Florida and provide peer-reviewed research to show the effects of balanced school calendars.
New Balanced Calendar
In 2025–2026, school will begin approximately two (2) weeks earlier and will include a two-week intersession after the first nine weeks of school.
View 25-26 CalendarIntersession Weeks
Intersession weeks will be built into the calendar for the next school year as we gradually implement to a full balanced calendar. In 2025–2026, the intersession weeks will be September 29–October 10.
The purpose of these weeks is to provide intensive instruction or enrichment opportunities for students, as well as an intentional break in schedule for both students and faculty.
Planning has already begun for the Fall 2025 intercession weeks. A committee is working on logistics for camps to be offered by P.K. Yonge and reaching out to community partners for other camp opportunities.
P.K. Yonge will provide intercession week camps.
- Intensive camps will provide intense instruction for students who may need more help. In the past, we have offered SAIL, AIM, and Wayfinders during the summer—and will continue to do so—and the intersession intensive camps will be a shortened version of those.
- Enrichment camps will provide students with faculty-led camps that are something fun and different from normal school instruction.
P.K. Yonge partners will also provide intersession week camps at both on- and off-campus locations. These will include Blue Wave After School and other local youth agencies and programs.
Athletics is also working on a plan for how practices and games will operate during intersession weeks.
More information and a full list of camps will be provided by the late spring semester.
Extended Summers & Breaks Still Available
We want to be clear that this is not a year-round calendar but a balanced calendar. Extended summers will still be available for students. The proposed breaks as we gradually implement are below.
2025–2026
- 8.5 weeks of Summer 2025
- 2-week Fall Intersession
- 1-week Thanksgiving Break
- 2.5-week Winter Break
- 1-week Spring Break
2026–2027
- 7.5 weeks of Summer 2026
- 2-week Fall Intersession
- 1-week Thanksgiving Break
- 2.5-week Winter Break
- 1-week Intersession Spring next to spring break
- 1-week Spring Break
2027–2028
- 7.5 weeks of Summer 2027
- 2-week Fall Intersession
- 1-week Thanksgiving Break
- 1-week Winter Intersession next to winter break
- 2.5-week Winter Break
- 1-week Intersession Spring next to spring break
- 1-week Spring Break
2028–2029
- 7 weeks of Summer 2028
- 2-week Fall Intersession
- 1-week Thanksgiving Break
- 1-week Winter Intersession next to winter break
- 2.5-week Winter Break
- 1-week Intersession Spring next to spring break
- 1-week Spring Break
- 1-week Summer Intersession at end of school year
Questions
Please submit your questions about the 2025–2026 calendar and balanced calendar here. We will be working on an FAQ document to answer questions.