If you have a kid in Northglenn, Thornton, Westminster, Federal Heights, or Broomfield, this is the page you need. Adams 12 Five Star Schools has published its full 2026-2027 academic calendar for Colorado families, and every date below comes straight from the district’s own PDF. We verified this directly from the Adams 12 Five Star Schools official website. The calendar was published by the district on November 3, 2025, and it is marked “subject to revision,” which matters more than people think.
Here is the short version. The Adams 12 Five Star Schools Calendar 26-27 opens with staff workdays in early August, brings students back on August 11, 2026, and closes the year on May 20, 2027. In between, you get a full week of fall break, a five-day Thanksgiving break, nearly two weeks off in December, and a spring break in late March. There are also nine scattered no-school staff workdays through the year, which are the days most parents forget and then scramble to cover.
This guide lays out the Adams 12 Five Star Schools Calendar 26-27 first day of school, every break, the quarter end dates, and a month-by-month breakdown. You will also find the Adams 12 Five Star Schools Calendar 26-27 printable link, a simple Adams 12 Five Star Schools Calendar 2026 27 template you can copy into your phone, and the Adams 12 Five Star Schools Calendar spring break 2027 dates that families search for hardest in February and March. Parents bookmark this page because childcare, work leave, and airfare all get booked around these dates — and it helps to have them in one clean place instead of pinch-zooming a PDF on your phone.
At-a-Glance Summary
- District: Adams 12 Five Star Schools (Adams County School District 12), Colorado
- Academic year: 2026-2027
- First day of school (all students): Tuesday, August 11, 2026
- Orientation – 6th & 9th graders: Monday, August 10, 2026 (does not apply to K-8 schools)
- Last day of school: Thursday, May 20, 2027
- Total school days: The district’s official calendar does not publish a total number of student instructional days. Individual schools and programs may vary slightly, so families should rely on the official calendar rather than an unofficial day count.
- Next upcoming holiday: Labor Day — Monday, September 7, 2026 (no school)
- Spring break 2027: March 22-26, 2027
- Longest break: Winter break, December 21, 2026 through January 1, 2027
- Calendar published by district: November 3, 2025 (subject to revision)
Key Dates Table — Adams 12 Five Star Schools Calendar 26-27
| Event | Start Date | End Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Staff Workdays | August 3, 2026 | August 7, 2026 | Staff only, no students |
| Orientation – 6th & 9th Graders | August 10, 2026 | August 10, 2026 | Does not apply to K-8 schools |
| First Day of School – All Students | August 11, 2026 | August 11, 2026 | Full district start |
| Labor Day | September 7, 2026 | September 7, 2026 | No school |
| Staff Workday | September 8, 2026 | September 8, 2026 | No school for students |
| Staff Workday | September 28, 2026 | September 28, 2026 | No school for students |
| End of Quarter 1 | October 9, 2026 | October 9, 2026 | Grading period closes |
| Fall Break | October 12, 2026 | October 16, 2026 | Full week off |
| Staff Workday | November 2, 2026 | November 2, 2026 | No school for students |
| Thanksgiving Break | November 23, 2026 | November 27, 2026 | Five weekdays off |
| End of Quarter 2 | December 17, 2026 | December 17, 2026 | Semester 1 closes |
| Staff Workday | December 18, 2026 | December 18, 2026 | No school for students |
| Winter Break | December 21, 2026 | January 1, 2027 | Longest break of the year |
| Staff Workday | January 4, 2027 | January 4, 2027 | No school for students |
| Martin Luther King Jr. Day | January 18, 2027 | January 18, 2027 | No school |
| President’s Day | February 15, 2027 | February 15, 2027 | No school |
| Staff Workday | February 16, 2027 | February 16, 2027 | Creates a four-day weekend |
| Staff Workday | March 8, 2027 | March 8, 2027 | No school for students |
| End of Quarter 3 | March 12, 2027 | March 12, 2027 | Grading period closes |
| Spring Break | March 22, 2027 | March 26, 2027 | Five weekdays off |
| Staff Workday | April 12, 2027 | April 12, 2027 | High schools may pick a different day in April |
| Staff Workday | May 3, 2027 | May 3, 2027 | High schools may pick a different day in May |
| Last Day of School / End of Quarter 4 | May 20, 2027 | May 20, 2027 | Year ends |
| Staff Last Day | May 21, 2027 | May 21, 2027 | Staff only |
| State testing dates (CMAS, PSAT, SAT) | Not listed | Not listed | The district’s 2026-27 calendar PDF does not print testing windows. Check your school’s site for exact test days. |
Source: Adams 12 Five Star Schools official calendar (published November 3, 2025).
Quarter End Dates
| Quarter | End Date |
|---|---|
| Quarter 1 | October 9, 2026 |
| Quarter 2 | December 17, 2026 |
| Quarter 3 | March 12, 2027 |
| Quarter 4 / Last Day of School | May 20, 2027 |
Report cards and grade checks follow these four dates. Quarter 2 ending on December 17 means semester grades are locked before winter break, so any last-minute grade fixing has to happen in the first half of December.
Month-by-Month Breakdown
| Month | Approx. Student Days | Key Dates |
|---|---|---|
| August 2026 | 15 | Aug 3-7 staff workdays; Aug 10 orientation (6th & 9th); Aug 11 first day of school |
| September 2026 | 19 | Sep 7 Labor Day; Sep 8 staff workday; Sep 28 staff workday |
| October 2026 | 17 | Oct 9 end of Quarter 1; Oct 12-16 fall break |
| November 2026 | 15 | Nov 2 staff workday; Nov 23-27 Thanksgiving break |
| December 2026 | 13 | Dec 17 end of Quarter 2; Dec 18 staff workday; Dec 21-31 winter break |
| January 2027 | 18 | Jan 1 winter break ends; Jan 4 staff workday; Jan 18 MLK Jr. Day |
| February 2027 | 18 | Feb 15 President’s Day; Feb 16 staff workday |
| March 2027 | 17 | Mar 8 staff workday; Mar 12 end of Quarter 3; Mar 22-26 spring break |
| April 2027 | 21 | Apr 12 staff workday (high schools may pick another April date) |
| May 2027 | 13 | May 3 staff workday (high schools may pick another May date); May 20 last day; May 21 staff last day |
Student day counts are calculated from the official calendar dates and exclude weekends, holidays and staff workdays. Individual schools may vary.
Download the Official Adams 12 Five Star Schools Calendar 26-27 Printable PDF
Want the one-page version on your fridge? Grab it straight from the district:
Download the official Adams 12 Five Star Schools Calendar 2026-2027: Printable Calendar Download
Print it in color if you can. The district marks end-of-quarter days with a circle symbol on the printable, which is easy to miss in black and white. District staff should also check the staff portal at staff.adams12.org/calendars for their own schedules, since staff dates and student dates are not identical.
Always double-check the calendar against the official district website before you book anything. This calendar is marked “subject to revision,” and revisions do happen — a workday can shift, and high schools have written permission to move their April and May workdays.
See also: What Happens If School Is Cancelled Due to Weather?
About Adams 12 Five Star Schools
Adams 12 Five Star Schools, formally Adams County School District 12, serves western Adams County and parts of Broomfield, covering Northglenn, Thornton, Westminster and Federal Heights. The district includes 54 schools and roughly 35,000 students, spanning preschool through grade 12. It operates 29 elementary schools, seven comprehensive middle schools and three K-8 schools, plus high schools, options schools and the Five Star Online Academy. Superintendent Chris Gdowski has led the district since November 2009. Through a 2024 bond, the district is expanding career and technical education, preschool, and safety and security. STEM and career pathway programs are a well-known strength here.
What Parents in Adams County Should Know This Year
Two things stand out on this calendar.
First, the workdays. There are nine separate no-school staff workdays sprinkled across the year, on top of the usual holidays. September alone has two of them, on September 8 and September 28. February pairs a staff workday on February 16 with President’s Day on February 15, which turns that weekend into four days off. If you work a standard schedule, put all nine of these in your phone now.
Second, the high school flexibility. The April 12, 2027 and May 3, 2027 workdays carry an asterisk: high schools may pick a different day in April and a different day in May. That means a household with a middle schooler and a high schooler may have two different days off that spring. Confirm those two dates with your high school directly.
There is also bigger context worth knowing. The district has announced plans to close five to seven schools by August 2027 after a decade of enrollment decline. Enrollment has dropped by more than 6,000 students over the past decade. That does not change the 2026-27 dates, but it does mean district announcements are worth reading this year rather than skimming.
How Adams 12 Compares to Neighboring Districts
Adams 12 starts early by Front Range standards. Students are back on August 11, 2026. Jeffco Public Schools lists its first day for all students as August 19, over a week later, and Jeffco wraps up in late May as well. Denver Public Schools starts later still, in the second half of August, and finishes in late May or early June depending on the school. So Adams 12 families get their summer back sooner in August, and also finish sooner in May.
Where the metro area lines up is spring break. Adams 12 and Jeffco both take the March 22-26, 2027 week, while Denver’s spring break falls on a different week. Thanksgiving break, November 23-27, 2026, is a full week across most metro districts. Because start and end dates shift year to year, check each neighboring district’s own published calendar before assuming your cousins in Arvada or Denver are off the same week.
Planning a Family Trip? Best Times to Travel in Adams County
Winter break is the clear winner for length. December 21, 2026 through January 1, 2027 gives you a straight run of days off, and with the December 18 staff workday sitting right in front of it, the break effectively begins the weekend of December 18. That is a genuine two-week window. The catch is price — holiday airfare out of DIA is at its peak.
Fall break, October 12-16, 2026, is the smart pick. It is a full school week, it lands right after Quarter 1 ends on October 9, and October is a cheaper travel month. Mountain lodging and national park trips are far easier to book that week.
Spring break, March 22-26, 2027, is the other strong option, with a bonus: Adams 12’s spring break falls before the week Denver takes, so Front Range ski resorts are slightly less jammed on the front end. If flexibility matters more than length, the February 15-16 double day off makes a tidy four-day weekend for a short trip.
See also: St. Tammany Parish Schools Calendar 2026-2027 | Printable PDF
School Closings History in Adams County
Snow closures are part of life in Adams County, but they are not frequent. In most winters the district uses only a small handful of full closure days, and it leans on one-hour delayed starts instead of full closures whenever roads allow. The district’s stated reasoning is that delayed starts protect instructional time while giving crews extra time to clear roads, sidewalks and parking lots. Full district closures do happen in major storms — the March 2019 blizzard shut Adams 12, Jeffco and Boulder Valley on the same day. Decisions are announced by 5:30 a.m., and families only get an alert if schools are closed or on a delay. This calendar does not pre-schedule snow makeup days, so if closures pile up, watch for district announcements about calendar adjustments.
FAQs
Q: When does school start in Adams 12 Five Star Schools for 2026-2027?
A: The first day of school for all students is Tuesday, August 11, 2026. Sixth and ninth graders have orientation the day before, on August 10, 2026, though that does not apply to K-8 schools. Staff report earlier, for workdays running August 3-7, 2026.
Q: When is the last day of school for Adams 12 Five Star Schools?
A: The last day of school for students is Thursday, May 20, 2027, which is also the end of Quarter 4. Staff work one additional day, ending May 21, 2027. Keep in mind the calendar is marked subject to revision.
Q: When is spring break for Adams 12 Five Star Schools in 2027?
A: Spring break runs Monday, March 22 through Friday, March 26, 2027. Students return the following Monday. Quarter 3 ends earlier that month, on March 12, 2027, so grades close before the break.
Q: How many school days does Adams 12 have this year?
A: The district’s official calendar does not publish a total number of student instructional days. Individual schools and programs may vary slightly, so families should rely on the official calendar rather than an unofficial day count.
Q: Are there any school closings or delays I should know about?
A: Weather closures and one-hour delayed starts are decided day by day, with an announcement target of 5:30 a.m. You will only receive an alert if schools are closed or delayed, so no alert means a normal schedule. Check adams12.org or the district’s closure line for real-time updates during storms.
Final Word
Bookmark this page and check back before you commit to any travel, especially in the weeks leading up to spring break, when March dates get searched hardest. Every date here comes from the official Adams 12 Five Star Schools calendar published November 3, 2025, and the district labels it subject to revision — so treat adams12.org as the final word, particularly for real-time snow closures and delayed starts. If you have a high schooler, confirm the April and May staff workdays with your school, since high schools can move them. Print the PDF, put it on the fridge, and you are set for the year.
The PublicSchoolsCalendar.com Team compiles and verifies public school calendar data for districts across all 50 US states, drawing on official district websites and published family calendars to keep every page accurate and up to date.
