By MAUREEN DOHERTY
NORTH READING — With the hazy, lazy days of summer now in the rearview mirror, the town’s public school students are preparing for the start of a new school year next week.
North Reading has maintained the tradition of starting school after Labor Day, which is Monday, Sept. 1. This means all students in grades 1-12 will report to school next Thursday, September 4 for their first full day of classes of the 2025-26 school year.
Children in pre-kindergarten and kindergarten will attend orientation sessions at their assigned elementary schools on Thursday and Friday, September 4 and 5, and their first official day of school is Monday, September 8.
The North Reading Public Schools will hold a Professional Development Day on Tuesday, September 2 and a Staff Orientation Day on Wednesday, September 3.
Inside today’s Transcript you will find a complete Back-to-School section which includes all school bus routes, the school calendar, FAQs on school bus pass rules and costs, and information on universal free meals for grades 1-12. Although meals are free for all students regardless of income, families who believe they would have been income-eligible for either free- or reduced-priced meals under the former guidelines should still submit an application because doing so serves as a qualifier for several other types of financial assistance to help with other school-related expenses. Help may be available to assist families with various user fees and bus fees, for instance. The latest federal income chart and tips on how to apply for these benefits are included in the Back-to-School section. Assistance is also available on a rolling basis throughout the school year if a family’s financial circumstances change.
SCHOOL START TIMES
Elementary students in grades 1-5 at all three schools – Batchelder, Hood and Little – start their school day at 8 a.m. and end their school day at 2:15 p.m. Gone are the days of the “late” and “early” elementary school assignments, much to the relief of parents. Early release day dismissal time at the elementary schools for grades 1-5 as well as all half-day and full-day kindergarten students is 11:30 a.m.
Kindergarten half day sessions run from 8 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. while full day kindergarten sessions run from 8 a.m. to 2:15 p.m., the same as grades 1-5.
The Pre-K half day sessions at the Hood run from 8:15 a.m. to 11:15 a.m. for the morning session and 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. for the afternoon session. The full day Pre-K sessions at the Little School run from 8:30 a.m. to 2:45 p.m. No classes are held for any Pre-K students on days when their school has early release.
Secondary school students in grades 6-12 continue to have the same start time and dismissal time, which enables them to share the same school buses. Students in grades 6-12 attend classes from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. On early release days they are dismissed at noon.
Report cards for elementary students are issued on a trimester basis. During the 2025-26 school year the trimesters end on Dec. 5, March 19 and June 25.
Report cards for students at both the middle school and high school are issued on a quarterly basis. During the 2025-26 school year the quarters end on Nov. 7, Jan. 23, April 3 and June 25.
BACK TO SCHOOL NIGHTS
Back to School Night at all three elementary schools is Thursday, September 11 while Back to School Night at the High School is Thursday, September 18. The Middle School will host its Back to School Night on Thursday, September 25.
High School graduation for the North Reading Hornets is Friday, June 5, 2026. If five snow days are needed during the 2025-26 school year, the last day of school would be Thursday, June 25. If no snow days are used during the school year the 180th day (and last) day of school would be Wednesday, June 17.