Implementing Year-Round Education, means revising the traditional nine-month agrarian calendar into a year-round calendar that allows for continuous education with a shorter summer vacation and more frequent breaks during the periods of instruction. For a comparison of how the two calendars apportion the year, click here. This restructuring provides better learning conditions for students and better working conditions for teachers.
Throughout history the year-round calendar has taken many forms, all designed to take advantage of, or adapt to various community conditions. In general, there are two basic forms of year-round calendars: Single Track and Multi-track.
Single Track YRE
Single Track provides a balanced calendar for a more continuous period of instruction. Students and all school personnel follow the same instructional and vacation schedule. Single-track does not reduce class size, nor does it allow a school to accommodate more students. The long summer vacation is shortened with additional vacation days distributed throughout the school year into periods called "intersessions." Intersessions allow time for remediation and enrichment throughout the school year. The most common types of single-track calendars are 45-15, 60-20 and 90-30.
Click on the links below for examples of each.
45 - 15 Calendar
Click here for a copy of the 45-15 single track calendar being used in Beaufort County, SC
60 - 20 Calendar
Click here to view a PDF copy of the 60-20 calendar being used in Fairfield Suisun, CA
45 - 10 Calendar
Click here to view a PDF copy of the 45-10 calendar being used in Haywood County, NC
Multi Track YRE
Multi-Track is used primarily to alleviate overcrowding, although it also incorporates the educational values of single-track YRE, including intersessions. It was designed specifically for schools with a shortage of classroom space. Multi-track is used to avoid double sessions, building new schools and temporary structures. It not only saves on capital construction costs, but on the ongoing costs that are part of operating a new school.
Example: implementing a four-track year-round calendar extends the capacity of a school by 33%. A school with the capacity of 750 students can accommodate 1,000 students, as only three tracks of 250 would be in school at the same time; there would always be one track on vacation or intersession every day of the school year. A five track model (60-15) allows for a 25% gain in capacity.
Click on the links below to see popular examples of multi-track calendars.
45 - 15 Calendar (4 Tracks)
Click here to view a PDF copy of the 45-15 calendar being used in Wake County, NC
60 - 20 Calendar (4 Tracks)
Click here to view a PDF copy of the 60-20 calendar being used in Fairfield Suisun, CA
60 - 15 Calendar (5 Tracks)
Click here to view a PDF copy of the 60-15 calendar being used in Clark County, NV
90 - 30 Calendar (4 Tracks)
Click here to view a PDF copy of the 90-30 calendar being used in Los Angeles, CA
View Full Article
Reprinted with the permission of the National Association for Year-Round Education.
photo by:
Avolore 
10 Ways to Spice Up Your Barbecue
Summer Reading
Happy Graduation
Add your own comment