Schedules are even known to vary within a school district.

Sometimes the grammar schools have different days for conferences, meaning half days. Sometimes the older kids -- high school kids -- go longer due to exams, or get out sooner. When Ben was in grammar school and Jake was in middle school, they always had the same big holidays off (winter vacation, etc.), but there were a lot of times one would have a half day and the other wouldn't.

Why?

Year round schooling is the usual culprit. This is the first google result I found describing it a bit [link] This one is more concise , but particular to the school district in question [link]

different days for conferences, meaning half days

Doesn't that drive the parents with more than one kid insane?

Thanks, sara. We have nothing like this.

Doesn't that drive the parents with more than one kid insane?

According to every single parent I know, yes. Also seems to drive the teachers batty.

My kids will all get out on the same day (well, actually, Christopher will be out a day earlier, because kindergarten is only a half day in our town, but the last day of school is a half day, so there's no kindergarten). I've never seen it vary within a school district around here. However, the last day of school is usually unsettled until well after winter has passed, because they have to make up any days missed on account of snow. This year, they'll be out a week from Friday. However, they don't start until September. The first Monday in September is always the "Labor Day" holiday in the U.S. In our area, school starts up on the Wednesday after Labor Day.

According to every single parent I know, yes. Also seems to drive the teachers batty.

It's a fine line. Most of us are insane already, as are the teachers. The kids are the carriers.

Doesn't that drive the parents with more than one kid insane?

That would be a resounding yes. And it made it really tough for working parents.

In Israel, all schools (that aren't universities) start on the 1st of September. They all have the same vacations (around the Jewish holidays). Obviously, we don't have troubles like plenty of snow days to take care of.

Like I said, all schools under highschool end on a certain day, 10 days after the end of highschools. It's like that on each and every single year. People plan moving and vacations according to these dates (the prices drop off right afterwards, and the like). What an interesting difference.

What an interesting difference.

Yep. The state university in my hometown (a major employer) doesn't even have the same schedule as the local public schools. They try to keep it close, but since the local schools are always tweaking the schedule, it isn't hard and fast.

They try to keep it close

What universities here do is attempting to avoid colliding with the holiday season of the automn. There's nearly a month of holidays, going on according to the Jewish calendar, so its beginning can move from early September to early October.

The schools start on the 1st of September no matter what (which, yes, can sometime cause the craziness of going to school for a week and then throwing the whole schedule into vacation days spread all over the place, again). The universities wait until well after the ending of the holidays in order to begin their school year (so, yeah, their summers are longer, long enough to enable a summer semester if they want to).

I find it so interesting that here, with the combination of Jewish and general calendars, things are still in more order than what you describe.