2022-2023 Academic Calendar

The annual school calendar in Czechland is determined by the Ministry of Education, Youth, and Sports.  

The dates are the same for all schools throughout the country except for the spring holidays which depend on the county, municipality or city district.

School principles have the ability to declare extra days off due to "serious organisational or technical reasons."  They usually do this to bridge public holidays with the weekend.

Teachers start the last week in August.  This is a preparation week for the teachers and school administrators.  Parents can make appointments to speak with teachers.  During this week, any students who failed any compulsory subjects are re-examined to determine their advancement in the upcoming school year.

Today, 1 September, is the start of the school year.  The first day of school pretty much lasts an hour.  

First grade students and their parents are officially welcomed and there is a meet-the-teacher ceremony.  Students in other grades have a 45-minute with their teacher and they have registration forms to fill out.  In the USA, the first day of school is a full day.

In Germany, all first-graders get a Schultüte, a personalised cone filled with school supplies.  I remember Claudia spending so much time putting Tünde's cone together.  I think that they do it in Austria too but I'm pretty sure that the tradition doesn't exist here in Czechland.

During the first two weeks of school, there is a meeting for parents and the classroom teacher.  The teacher explains how the school year is organised.  These meetings usually take place after school once the parents are off from work.  For the first six weeks, from September to mid-October, students are able to join after-school activities and clubs.  Many of the clubs are sponsored by organisations outside the school.

28 September is a public holiday for St. Wenceslas Day and Statehood Day.

This year, 26-27 October is the Autumn break for all public schools.  This break with the 28 October holiday for Independent Czechoslovak State Day, and the weekend, gives students a 5 day break.

Schools have open-door days from November to January.  These are for students, and their parents, to help decide which gymnázium, conservatories, or vocational school they will apply to.

17 November is the public holiday for Freedom and Democracy Day.

30 November is the deadline for students to submit their applications to schools that that specialise in art, drama, dance, music, language, or sports.

23 December - 2 January is the Winter/Christmas holiday.  Students return to school on 3 January.

By 1 January, schools have to list the criteria for secondary school applications on their websites.  

31 January marks the end of the first semester.  Students receive report cards.

3 February is a one-day school holiday to mark completion of the first semester.

1 March is the final day for students to submit applications to gymnáziums, specialised high schools, or vocational schools.  

Spring break is determined by region so not every student is off the same week across the country.  In Brno, Spring break will be 13-19 March.

6 - 10 April is the Easter holiday.  Students get Thursday off, plus Good Friday and Easter Monday.

In April, parents have to register their children for 1st grade and preschool (kindergarten).

1 May and 8 May are public holidays.

1 June is Children's Day.  It isn't a public holiday but many schools celebrate the day with cultural activities or field trips.

30 June is the last day of school and students receive their report cards.

Summer holiday runs from 1 July to 3 September.  The first day of school for the 2023-2024 year will be 4 September.