What Time Do Elementary Schools Start? The bell rings at 8 a.m., and weary students shuffle into their first class of the day. Your kid isn’t a morning person, so you’re not surprised when she says she’s tired throughout the day and struggles to stay focused in class. It makes you wonder: What time do elementary schools start? And is an early start time beneficial for students? Here, we’ll explore these questions, plus how teachers and parents view school starting times more generally.
Schools across the country have varying start times
You may have heard that schools have different start times, but are wondering which time your child’s school starts. You’re not alone—many parents ask this question when the first day of school is approaching. Students across the country could be getting up at 7:30 in one state and 8:30 hours later in another state (or even 9:00 or 10:00). And because schools vary so much, there isn’t a simple answer to what time elementary schools start.
But we can tell you that most elementary schools start before 9 AM and end between 3 PM and 4 PM. With those parameters set, let’s dive into some specifics about how many hours apart from each other different states’ school years begin:
Science suggests that later school start times are better for students
There are many reasons why later school start times are good for students. For example, research shows that they’re more alert in the morning and less likely to be involved in car accidents. They also get enough sleep, which improves their academic performance and overall mood. In addition, later start times make it easier for students to be involved in sports or other activities outside of school hours.
These benefits may seem counter-intuitive since most people naturally feel more awake at 6 am than at 8:30 am (or even 9:00). However, there’s strong evidence that humans are actually wired this way—our bodies run on circadian rhythms that peak during certain times each day, but these natural peaks vary from person to person based on a number of factors including age and environmental exposure (i.e., proximity to sunlight).
According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, middle and high schools should start at 8:30 a.m. or later
According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, middle and high schools should start at 8:30 a.m. or later. The AAP recommends that elementary school-aged children (ages 5 – 12) should be in class by 9:30 a.m., while adolescents (13 – 18) should have an even later start time of 10:30 a.m., which gives them an extra hour of sleep each day on average.
Research shows it’s best if schools don’t start before 8:30 a.m
A study published by the American Academy of Pediatrics found that students who start school at 8:30 a.m. are more likely to get enough sleep and are less likely to be tired or sleepy during class. The study also suggests that students who start school at 8:00 a.m. or earlier tend to have lower standardized test scores than those who started later in the day, even when their socioeconomic status, race/ethnicity, gender and other factors were taken into account.
Research has shown that children are affected by sleep deprivation differently than adults because they’re still developing their circadian rhythms—the internal clock that regulates bodily functions such as temperature regulation, hunger pangs and wakefulness throughout each 24-hour period (known as our circadian cycle). In fact, studies show that after just one week with insufficient sleep patterns in children ages 5–12 years old—defined as less than 9 hours per night—they can experience cognitive deficits similar to those experienced by adults after one week without sleep.
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List Of Top Elementary Schools In USA
Harvard-Westlake School
Harvard-Westlake is a private school in Los Angeles that offers grades 7 through 12. Founded in 1927, it has become known as one of the best schools in the country. Harvard-Westlake is on par with some Ivy League colleges and is ranked by U.S News & World Report as one of the top 50 schools for students looking to attend an expensive college program later on down their academic career path.
The curriculum at Harvard Westlake starts off with an introductory course called Perspectives for freshmen which teaches them about what it means to be responsible adults and how they should conduct themselves at all times within this institution or outside of it if possible (which most likely will not happen).
This course then goes into depth about how each student can relate themselves to particular events that occur around them such as politics or world history etcetera through multiple perspectives so that they can make informed decisions based on their own values instead of just following others blindly without thinking rationally first before making any kind decisions whatsoever!
Ethical Culture Fieldston School
Ethical Culture Fieldston School is a private, co-educational, non-sectarian, independent school in Riverdale, New York. It is a member of the Ivy Preparatory School League and the National Association of Independent Schools. The school has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Secondary Schools since 1929.
The Ethical Culture movement was founded in 1876 by Felix Adler as an alternative to traditional religion-based education for children. It stressed intellectual development over religious training or indoctrination; it also had no prescribed curriculum but rather emphasized curiosity and thinking for oneself.
Dalton School
- Dalton School is a private college preparatory school for boys located on Manhattan’s Upper East Side.
- It was founded in 1920 by Helen Parkhurst, a teacher who believed in creating a school that would prepare students for the real world.
The Spence School
The Spence School is a private, independent, non-sectarian, co-educational day school for students in pre-kindergarten through grade 12. The school was founded in 1917 by Margaret Olivia Slocum Sage, a philanthropist and mother of three daughters.
The school’s current campus is located on East 91st Street between Park Avenue and Madison Avenue in Manhattan. It has been housed at this location since 1935 and occupies six floors of an 11-story building built around 1929 (known as the “Twin Towers”).
Dwight School
Dwight School is a private, non-sectarian, coeducational day school in New York City. Dwight School is a member of the Ivy Preparatory School League and the Global Online Academy.
Dwight School was founded in 1919 by Roger Baldwin and Edwin Doak Mead as an alternative to traditional secondary education for boys who were unable to complete their high school studies due to the First World War. Its inaugural class consisted of five students and one teacher; since then it has grown into a diverse community with over 600 students from nursery through grade 12 on two campuses: at Battery Park City (BPC) and East Side Manhattan (ESM). The Dwight Lower School provides early childhood education through fifth grade; middle school at BPC teaches sixth through eighth grades; while Upper School at ESM houses ninth through twelfth grades.
Collegiate School
Collegiate School is a private, non-profit, coeducational day school located in New York City. The school was founded in 1754 and is a member of the Ivy Preparatory School League. Collegiate School serves approximately 800 students from nursery through 12th grade and employs approximately 150 faculty members.
Hackley School
Hackley School is a private, non-denominational, co-educational day school located in Tarrytown, New York, United States, serving students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade. Hackley offers an intensive and diversified academic program that emphasizes critical thinking, communication skills and creativity. The school offers a full range of activities including athletics (baseball/softball), arts (visual arts; theater), music (strings orchestral group called Symphonic Strings; band), clubs and community service opportunities.
Hackley was founded by Dr Charles A. Hackley as an all-boys preparatory school on the banks of the Hudson River in Dobbs Ferry NY in 1883. In 1903 Mr Rufus Crosby built his own campus adjacent to Hackley’s property which he named “Crosby Hall”.
It was there that his son George H Crosby first began teaching English at age 16 before returning home after completing his degree at Amherst College where he studied with future Nobel Prize winner Toni Morrison who taught him how to read poetry aloud without stumbling over words too quickly during class discussions about texts like William Shakespeare’s Sonnets 101 thru 150.”
Columbia Grammar & Preparatory School
Columbia Grammar and Preparatory School, also known as Columbia Grammar or CGS, is an independent, coeducational, college preparatory school located in New York City. Founded in 1764 by a group of churches interested in educating poor children who were not receiving schooling otherwise.
The school was named King’s College Grammar School after its first benefactor: King George III of England. The first headmaster was Reverend Samuel Johnson who held the position from 1768 to 1775.
In 1865 it moved from the campus of Columbia College (which later became Columbia University) to its own building on West 119th Street between Amsterdam Avenue and Morningside Drive where it remained until 1940 when it moved into an estate formerly owned by Robert Moses called “Highland Terrace.”
Chapin School
Chapin School is a private day school located in New York City. It pre-kindergarten through grade 12 and was founded in 1900. The school’s campus is located on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, just east of Central Park.
Chapin School offers programs for students with learning disabilities and students who have been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), dysgraphia, dyslexia, and autism spectrum disorders. There are also separate programs for children with Asperger syndrome or high-functioning autism who do not need special education services but may benefit from specialized instruction.
Conclusion
As you can see, there is no set time for how early a school should start. Some schools start as early as 7:30 or 8:00 a.m., while others start at 9:30 a.m. The best way to find out what time your child’s school starts is to check the school calendar or website for information about this topic.
