Advice for the Move to Four Days

Paul Hill and Georgia Heyward of the Center on Reinventing Public Education developed these recommendations, based on the experiences of school leaders who’ve already made this transition.

MAKE A PLAN.

» Align your goals for the four-day schedule with the goals in your district’s strategic plan.

» Carefully consider which day will be your fifth day. Some districts adjust the schedule on a week-by-week basis. When a federal or state holiday falls on a Monday, the district will not take off Friday. Other districts choose the day that coincides with the most absences. We recommend using a day that is not Monday or Friday to avoid problems associated with the three-day weekend.

ADDRESS STUDENT NEEDS.

» Be attentive to fatigue that the longer day may cause for younger or struggling students. Some districts plan core content courses in the morning. Others have short assemblies to re-engage students on Mondays after a three-day weekend.

» Consider shortening the school day for elementary students by moving breakfast to the classroom.

» Send a backpack of food home on the day before the fifth day to address the needs of families who rely on school-provided breakfast and lunch.

» Plan for the learning loss of a three-day weekend. Use digital learning, additional homework and fifth-day programming. 

FOCUS ON INSTRUCTION.

» Change schools’ curriculum and instructional practice intentionally. Some districts have instituted block scheduling to take advantage of the longer days.

» Move all special programming, such as assemblies, to the fifth day. 

» Incorporate digital learning and flipped classroom models. 

» Adjust the schedule as needed. Some schools operate five days a week for the month prior to state assessments. 

WORK WITH THE COMMUNITY. 

» Use community resources to provide child care for those who need it. 

» Work with the community to plan educational fifth-day programming. 

» Gain assurances from the community that businesses will not shift to a four-day model as well. If local businesses adopt a four-day week, it will make returning to a five-day school week nearly impossible. 

USE THE FIFTH DAY EFFECTIVELY.

» Use the fifth day for students. Assess fifth-day programs to see if they are achieving their intended purposes. Implement intervention programs; social programming for English language learners; and College Fridays, internships and vocational training for high school students.

» Consider busing students to school for intervention programs to make sure the students who need the help will get it. 

» Use the fifth day for additional teacher professional development and collaborative planning. 

» Make sure funding streams for fifth-day programming are sustainable. 

» Write the fifth day into teacher contracts so that enrichment or intervention services provided by teachers and paraprofessionals are included in their compensation. 

LOOK FOR ALTERNATIVES.

» Instead of moving to a four-day week, use strategic budgeting. Cut spending by consolidating and selling off additional buildings or reducing central-office spending.

» Use early release half-days instead of moving to a four-day week to have time for professional development, student enrichment or sports travel time.

» Consider four-day weeks only during the winter months or implement a four-day week combined with a year-round schedule.