School Start Dates
How the world celebratesThere is no single back-to-school date: Japan's school year runs from 1 April to 31 March, Taiwan's administrative year starts on 1 August while pupils usually return in early September, and mainland China sets the autumn start through local calendars in late August or early September.
Quick answers
| Place | When is it? | How the date is set |
|---|---|---|
| United States | Date to be confirmed | Everyday topic |
| Brazil | Date to be confirmed | Everyday topic |
| China | Date to be confirmed | Everyday topic |
| Indonesia | Date to be confirmed | Everyday topic |
| India | Date to be confirmed | Everyday topic |
| Japan | Date to be confirmed | Everyday topic |
| Taiwan | Date to be confirmed | Everyday topic |
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For the 🇹🇼 中文(台灣) community
At what age do kids in Taiwan start going to school on their own?
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Near you
Thompson School District
The public school district covering Loveland. Its site serves pre-kindergarten through grade 12 students and families, and its own calendar sets the start-of-year date families in this market follow.
DirectionsOld Town Library, Poudre River Public Library District
The main branch of the local public library district. Its site runs a dedicated back-to-school homework-help resource for kindergarten through fifth grade, alongside year-round learning databases.
DirectionsFort Collins Museum of Discovery
A hands-on science and history museum in Fort Collins. Its own site notes that school field trips pick up once the academic year starts, and suggests families visit in the afternoon to avoid busier mornings.
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How the world celebrates
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How is it done in Brazil?
Brazil's school year is defined by Article 24 of the Law of Guidelines and Bases of National Education as a minimum standard: at least 800 hours a year for basic education, spread over at least 200 days of actual school work, excluding time set aside for final exams. The calendar itself is arranged by state and municipal education systems, most starting in February and ending in December, cut into four bimesters. So in Brazil what the law fixes is the *quantity* of schooling in a year, not the dates — each place arranges its own, as long as the 200 days are there. The school year straddles two calendar years, opening in February and closing in December, with a mid-year break in July cutting it in half.
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How is it done in China?
Mainland China has no single national rule fixing the first day of term; school calendars are issued each year by local education bureaus. In practice the autumn term starts between late August and early September, and even within one city the dates split by year group — graduating classes often return several weeks earlier than the rest. The same calendar notices carry a second function: they explicitly forbid collective make-up classes, or anything disguised as them, on public holidays, winter and summer breaks, and weekends. The school calendar here is not only a timetable but a constraint. The nationally broadcast first lesson on the first of September is a fixed arrangement, so the start of term is also a synchronised national broadcast slot.
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How is it done in Indonesia?
Indonesia's new academic year is set by the education ministry to begin in the third week of July, covering early-childhood, basic and secondary education, with provincial calendars allowed to differ slightly. The ministry has made a point of saying that the start of the school year does not mean learning happens only in school — a message aimed at the idea that going back to school means handing the child over. Uniforms, books and registration fees all arrive in July, making it a clearly marked spending peak in the family year. The year usually starts in mid-July, and the orientation days before it are governed by written rules that forbid hazing of any kind.
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How is it done in India?
India's academic session mostly runs from April to March, in line with the Central Board of Secondary Education; but states and individual schools may set their own, with Kerala among those opening in June and schools in mountain regions adjusting to climate. So 'back to school' in India is not one nationally synchronised day but a window stretching from April into June. Uniforms, textbooks and the new year's fees fall through that window, and for many families the real pressure point is the cost of books rather than the date. The academic year begins differently by state: most start between April and June, while hill schools reschedule around a long winter break.
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How is it done in Japan?
Japan's school year is set in Article 59 of the Enforcement Regulations of the School Education Act: the elementary school year begins on 1 April and ends on 31 March of the following year, with Article 79 applying the same rule to lower secondary schools. Entrance ceremonies, term start, staff transfers and the fiscal year therefore all align on April — cherry blossom arriving with the new term is not a coincidence but a consequence of putting them in the same week by regulation. At home the preparation is uniform, school bag and supplies, plus the class duties and cleaning rotas that are reassigned each April. The entrance ceremony falls in early April during the cherry blossom, and the photograph at the school gate is all but a required step.
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How is it done in Taiwan?
Taiwan's school year is fixed by regulation as running from 1 August to 31 July of the following year, and may only be shifted with the education authority's approval. So the first day of class sits in the middle of an administrative year rather than at its start: the year opens on 1 August, pupils walk in around early September, and the month between is for administration and lesson preparation. At home the preparation is uniforms, supplies, routines and transport, with the exact first day set by each school's calendar. Besides the first day there is a line parents watch more closely: registration payment and textbook collection, usually set in the week before term.
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How is it done in United States?
The United States has no national rule for the school year; the first day is decided by each state and school district, so it lands anywhere from late July to early September. That also makes 'back to school' a retail concept in the United States rather than an administrative one: supply lists come from teachers, buying comes from families, and the store season starts earlier than any calendar. Within a single metropolitan area, two districts opening two or three weeks apart is normal. The start date is set by each school district, two neighbouring districts in one state can differ by a fortnight, and there is no single national day.
Sources and dates
Dates follow local time zones, calendars, and official notices. Check the source when a date is estimated or locally variable.