At a press conference held at 4pm today, Tues May 13, the Beijing Municipal Education Commission (BMEC) announced the latest round of class return dates, this time for Grades 11, 10, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, and Kindergarten. With high school seniors already back in class since Apr 27, and Grade 9 students back this Monday, May 11, the announcement provides further welcome news to Beijing parents of school-aged students.

The BMEC did not, however, announce when students of Grades 1-3 would be returning to class. The reason to delay the return dates of these grades is likely to prevent overcrowding on primary school campuses. Unlike at most international schools that range from K-12, most local public schools start from Grade 1, and kindergarten is located on an entirely separate campus. Furthermore, the commission announced that kindergartens may begin reopening on Jun 8.

Here is the most updated list of return-to-class dates for Beijing schools:

Grade 12 – already back at school, as of Apr 27
Grades 10 – 11  – Jun 1
Grade 9 – already back at school, as of May 11
Grade 8 – Jun 1
Grade 7  – Jun 1
Grade 6 – Jun 1
Grade 5 – Jun 8
Grade 4 – Jun 8
Grades 1-3 – to be announced at a later date
Kindergarten – Jun 8
After school training centers – to be announced at a later date

Very little was said about university education at today’s press conference, which likely means a return to campus is still a ways to go for college kids. However, the education commission did say that college seniors may return after June 6, though they are not compelled to do so. Since college seniors will typically take on internships in their final semester, and thus usually do not have classes; this may be a gesture to simply allow them back to pack up and say goodbye.

Please note that the announcement made by BMEC today was based on the local Chinese education system and grades, which can differ slightly from the grade names used at international schools. Please double-check with your child’s school directly if you are unsure when your child should prepare to return to school.

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Images: Element5 Digital (via Unsplash)