Baltimore County Releasing More Details on Upcoming School Year Schedules

Now that each school district’s reopening plans are in the state’s hands, districts wait for them to be reviewed and approved.

In Baltimore County, more details are being released. Every parent should be getting a phone call by Friday with what classes will look like for their child this fall.

Schedules will vary from school to school.

Principals for the county middle and high schools are releasing the schedules Friday. All schools will go from 8 am to 3 pm, but schools have some flexibility on how many classes students take a semester and how long they are.

Baltimore County students head back to class September 8th.

“We already have a work space set up in our house where they can both connect to their computes and be able to log in,” says mom Laura Showalter.

She has a fifth grader and a seventh grader both getting ready, but she’s not sure what to expect.

“I just keep thinking they’re going to release some more information as we get closer, but now we’re three weeks away and I’m not sure,” she says.

Parents should be hearing from school principals by today with what schedules look like.

“What is expected today is the decision about the schedules, then more information will be coming,” says Baltimore County school board member Julie Henn. “We expect information about supply list. The student schedules themselves, in terms of what classes students are registered to take, will be posted to BCPS One within a few days. Parents should expect a lot of information over the next week or so."

Middle and high schools have three schedules to choose from. Students will either take four classes a semester or 7 classes on an A/B rotation or 8 classes on an A/B rotation.

“I don’t know what any of that means,” Showalter laughs.

Parents should be getting clarification soon.

The school day will run from 8 am to 3 pm.

Class times depend on how many each school will have. No matter what, all classes will be on a bell schedule.

“It’s structured. It has a set time for each class,” Henn says.

“I'm hoping now they’re going to provide online instruction and with this structured bell schedule that would alleviate me basically having to be his teacher a little bit because I was never meant to be a teacher,” Showalter says.

For students entering sixth and ninth grades, each school will be having an orientation.

“Of course since we are all virtual, those will look different this year,” Henn says. “Parents can expect to get this from schools and what that will look like may vary by school."

Elementary students who don’t have computers will be getting on from the county. Henn says schools will be sending information on when and how to get those shortly.