New UAE weekend: Public school timings revealed

The Emirates Schools Establishment released the new school timings for public schools in the UAE to align with the country’s 4.5-day workweek starting from January 1, 2022.

Under the new guidelines, schools are given the option to cancel the morning assembly and the minibreaks between classes for students from grade 1 to 12.

School can follow the regular 45-minute class system or the hour-based system as long as they meet the total weekly class hours set for each school level.

The total weekly school hours are 26 hours for kindergarten students, 35 hours for students from grade 1-4, and 40 hours for students from grade 5-12.

The guidelines give schools the flexibility to adjust the class schedule to the new workweek and adopt the academic model that fits their curriculum requirements, as long as the approved academic plan laid out by the Ministry of Education is implemented.

For schools, the official working days will be Monday to Thursday, with Friday being a half-day that ends early afternoon. Saturday and Sunday will form the new weekend.

School timings for grades 1-4

Under the 45-minute class system, 35 classes must be carried out per week including three extracurricular lessons (sports, arts, music, etc.).

Schools have two options of school timings to follow for students from grades 1-4:

First option: Classes to begin from 7.15am to 1.35pm Monday-Thursday, and from 7.15am to 11am on Friday.

Second option: Classes to begin from 8am to 2.20pm Monday-Thursday, and from 8am to 11.45pm on Friday.

Break time: 35 minutes a day that can be split throughout the day, with a maximum of 20 minutes per break.

Under the hour-based system for grades 1-4, schools must meet a daily six hours and 50 minutes from Monday-Thursday, and three hours and 45 minutes on Friday with the assembly and break time.

Two options for school timings are:

First option: Classes to begin from 7.15am to 2.50pm from Monday-Thursday, and from 7.15am to 11am on Friday.

Second option: Classes to begin from 8am to 2.50pm from Monday-Thursday, and from 8am to 11.20am on Friday.

Extracurricular classes can be held as part of classes or after school in accordance with the school’s requirements.

Break time: 40 minutes a day that can be split throughout the day, at a maximum of 20 minutes per break.

School timings for grades 5-12:

Under the 45-minute class system, schools must carry out 40 classes a week, including four extracurricular lessons for students from grade 5-12.

School timings are:

sherouk@khaleejtimes.com