When does school start in Florida in 2024? Here are the dates

Samantha Neely and Cheryl McCloud, USA TODAY NETWORK - Florida
·3 min read

As these final weeks of school approach, students across Florida are powering through finals and lingering homework assignments while fantasying about their plans for summer vacation.

So obviously the last thing anyone wants to think about is when you go back to summer, right?

Get out a pencil and paper, or make a note in your phone's calendar, here's a roundup of when schools will resume.

When is the earliest date Florida schools can start?

HB733 stated the opening day of schools may not be any earlier than Saturday, Aug. 10.

When does school start in Florida for the 2024-2025 school year?

Almost every Florida school will start the 2024-2025 school year on the first possible date — Aug. 12 — after Aug. 10.

Here's when your county goes back to school:

How many days of school are required in Florida?

According to the National Center for Education Statistics, the minimum amount of instruction time for Florida students is 180 days.

That amount of time is typical across the country, although there are a few states requiring slightly fewer or more days.

Florida requires children in kindergarten through grade 3 to have instructional time of 720 hours. That time increases to 900 hours for students in grades 4 through 12, although school districts have the option to meet either minimum hours per school year or days per school year.

More than half the schools across the country require a minimum number of hours per school day. Florida does not.

When are later start times coming to Florida schools?

The later start times will be required by the 2026-2027 school year, according to legislation signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis back in May 2023.

DeSantis' law would require a later start time for middle and high schools throughout Florida. The law gave school districts three years to develop plans to implement the changes to the earlier times.

The law prevents middle schools from beginning the “instructional day” earlier than 8 a.m., while high schools will be barred from starting the school day before 8:30 a.m.

When is Florida's 'Back-to-School' sales tax holiday?

Jill Burden, right, looks on to select shoes with daughter, Skyler, 2, in the cart, Dawson, 8, left, selecting, and husband Darryl, talking with daughter Frankie, 5, as Sgt. Wayne Herrington, back, helps and Thursday, Dec. 7, 2023 at Walmart Supercenter in Yulee, Fla. A total of 150 local children from Bryceville Elementary, Callahan Intermediate and Callahan Elementary took part in the annual Nassau County Sheriffs Office (NCSO) “Shop with Cops” program. The event pairs children in need with local law enforcement to purchase holiday gifts. Each child is free to spend $75 on clothing and school supplies, and $75 on toys. The funds were raised through the NCSO Charities Inc. The hope is to give the youth a pleasant holiday while creating a positive relationship with law enforcement. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union]

A 14-day back-to-school sales tax holiday is proposed from Saturday, July 29 to Wednesday, Aug. 11 for:

  • Clothing, footwear, and backpacks costing $100 or less

  • School supplies costing $50 or less

  • Learning aids costing $30 or less

  • Personal computers or computer-related accessories, including non-recreational software, costing $1,500 or less

This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Florida schools: See when the 2024-2025 school years begins in state