| Event | Date(s) | Status |
|---|---|---|
| First Day of School | August 11, 2025 (Mon) | School Opens |
| Labor Day | September 1, 2025 (Mon) | No School |
| Veterans Day | November 11, 2025 (Tue) | No School |
| Thanksgiving Break | November 24, 2025 - November 28, 2025 | No School |
| Winter Break | December 22, 2025 - January 6, 2026 | No School |
| Martin Luther King Jr. Day | January 19, 2026 (Mon) | No School |
| Presidents' Day | February 16, 2026 (Mon) | No School |
| Spring Break | March 16, 2026 - March 20, 2026 | No School |
| Memorial Day | May 25, 2026 (Mon) | No School |
| Last Day of School | May 28, 2026 (Thu) | School Closes |
Complete month-by-month calendar for Polk County Public Schools. Every day is color-coded so you can see school days, holidays, and breaks at a glance.
Polk County Public Schools serves approximately 115,000 students in Lakeland, Winter Haven, Bartow, Haines City, and surrounding Central Florida communities. Polk County Public Schools is the sixth-largest district in Florida, serving students across a diverse mix of urban and rural communities in the heart of the state. The district operates over 150 schools and offers extensive choice and magnet programs, including STEM academies, International Baccalaureate (IB), and career and technical education.
Polk County also operates the Chain of Lakes Collegiate High School in partnership with Polk State College, where students can earn an Associate's degree alongside their high school diploma. The district observes an extended Thanksgiving Break starting November 22.
County context: Polk County Public Schools serves families in Lakeland, Winter Haven, Bartow, Haines City, and surrounding Central Florida communities. For 2025-2026, students are scheduled to start on August 11, 2025 and finish on May 28, 2026. The main family planning blocks are Thanksgiving Break (November 24, 2025 - November 28, 2025), Winter Break (December 22, 2025 - January 6, 2026), and Spring Break (March 16, 2026 - March 20, 2026). Parents can use this view for travel windows, shared-custody exchanges, childcare coverage, after-school activities, and comparing district days off with work schedules.
What to watch: The most important local differences from a generic statewide calendar are the district's own break placement, board-approved student holidays, and any campus-facing schedule notes published by the district. No recurring early-release entry is listed in the student-facing data used for this page. Teacher planning days and student holidays are separated from regular school days whenever the official source identifies them. Weather or makeup-day language is preserved in the page notes when the district publishes it, which matters for hurricane-season planning and emergency childcare coverage.
Official-source handling: This calendar is compiled from the official Polk County Public Schools academic calendar published on polkschoolsfl.com. We manually review first-party district material, screen it for student-facing dates, and organize it into key dates, calendar grids, downloadable files, and printable summaries. Because this page is marked official, families can use it as the main planning view while still checking the district source for late revisions. User-submitted corrections are checked against official district sources before this page is updated.
The first day of school for all Polk County students is August 11, 2025.
Spring Break runs from March 16, 2026 through March 20, 2026. Students return the following Monday.
The last day of school for the 2025-2026 year is May 28, 2026.
Polk County Public Schools has designated makeup days built into the calendar. If schools are closed due to tropical weather, the district may convert Teacher Planning Days or extend the school year. Parents should follow the district's official website for real-time updates.
Florida's FAST assessments are administered in three windows: fall (September), midyear (January), and spring (April–May). Polk County Public Schools follows the statewide testing calendar set by the Florida Department of Education.
Polk County Public Schools is the sixth-largest district in Florida, serving approximately 115,000 students across over 150 schools in Lakeland, Winter Haven, Bartow, Haines City, and surrounding communities.
Yes. Polk County partners with Polk State College for dual enrollment. The district also operates the Chain of Lakes Collegiate High School, where students can earn an Associate's degree alongside their high school diploma.
Data Source: This calendar is compiled from the official Polk County Public Schools academic calendar published on polkschoolsfl.com.
Official Source: Visit the Polk County official calendar source.
How we adapt the calendar: FL School Calendar converts district calendar documents into a parent-friendly view focused on student attendance, holidays, breaks, teacher planning days, early releases, downloadable calendar files, and printable summaries.
Disclaimer: This website is not affiliated with Polk County Public Schools or the Florida Department of Education. While we strive for accuracy, always verify important dates with the official district website before making travel, childcare, work, or attendance plans.
Last updated: March 18, 2026