Wake County Public Schools Calendar 2026-27: Winter Break Dec. 21-Jan. 1, Spring Break Mar. 29-Apr. 2

The Wake County Public School System (WCPSS) traditional calendar has winter break from Monday, Dec. 21, 2026 to Friday, Jan. 1, 2027, and spring break from Monday to Friday, Mar. 29 to Apr. 2, 2027, according to its “2026-2027 Traditional Calendar” (PDF). Students start on Monday, Aug. 24, 2026 and finish on Tuesday, June 8, 2027. The next no-school day is Tuesday, Nov. 3, a teacher workday.

When are WCPSS traditional schools closed in 2026-27?

The calendar codes each day off with a letter: H for holiday, W for teacher workday and V for vacation day. The H days carry no printed names on the PDF. The names below are the standard holidays for those dates, and the calendar marks each one “H”.

Date	Day	Code and standard holiday
Sept. 7, 2026	Monday	H, Labor Day
Sept. 21, 2026	Monday	W
Oct. 12, 2026	Monday	W, also a weather make-up day
Nov. 3, 2026	Tuesday	W
Nov. 11, 2026	Wednesday	H, Veterans Day
Nov. 25, 2026	Wednesday	V
Nov. 26-27, 2026	Thursday-Friday	H, Thanksgiving
Dec. 21-22, 2026	Monday-Tuesday	W
Dec. 23, 2026	Wednesday	V
Dec. 24-25, 2026	Thursday-Friday	H
Dec. 28, 2026	Monday	H
Dec. 29-31, 2026	Tuesday-Thursday	V
Jan. 1, 2027	Friday	H, New Year’s Day
Jan. 18, 2027	Monday	H, Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Jan. 19, 2027	Tuesday	W
Feb. 15, 2027	Monday	W, also a weather make-up day
Mar. 10, 2027	Wednesday	W
Mar. 26, 2027	Friday	H, Good Friday
Mar. 29 to Apr. 2, 2027	Monday-Friday	V, spring break
Apr. 5, 2027	Monday	W, also a weather make-up day
May 31, 2027	Monday	H, Memorial Day

Teacher workdays on Aug. 17-21, 2026 come before the first day for students. Our free printable puts every one of these days on one page, and its source note is the same WCPSS calendar. For the whole year on paper, use the printable school-year calendar.

How many school days off does the calendar count?

The weekday counts are ours, computed from the dates in the table, from the first day for students to the last. They add up to 30 weekdays without students.

Code	Meaning	Weekdays
H	Holiday	11
W	Teacher workday	9
V	Vacation day	10

The 11 H days are Sept. 7, Nov. 11, Nov. 26 and 27, Dec. 24, 25 and 28, Jan. 1, Jan. 18, Mar. 26 and May 31. The 10 V days are Nov. 25, Dec. 23, Dec. 29-31 and the five days of spring break. The 9 W days are Sept. 21, Oct. 12, Nov. 3, Dec. 21-22, Jan. 19, Feb. 15, Mar. 10 and Apr. 5.

When is WCPSS winter break 2026?

Students are off from Monday, Dec. 21, 2026 through Friday, Jan. 1, 2027. That is 10 weekdays: two W days (Dec. 21-22), V on Dec. 23, H on Dec. 24-25 and Dec. 28, V on Dec. 29-31, and H on Jan. 1. The calendar does not mark a return day; the next weekday is Monday, Jan. 4, 2027. Plan the weeks on the December 2026 calendar, and compare other districts in our winter break 2026 roundup.

When is Wake County spring break 2027?

Spring break is Monday, Mar. 29 to Friday, Apr. 2, 2027, five weekdays marked V. Good Friday, Mar. 26, is an H day the week before, and Monday, Apr. 5 is a W day with no students. Counting those, students are off for seven weekdays between Friday, Mar. 26 and Monday, Apr. 5. The calendar does not mark a return day; the next weekday after Apr. 5 is Tuesday, Apr. 6. See the April 2027 calendar for the week.

In our spring break 2027 roundup, five of 10 large districts are off Mar. 22-26. The WCPSS week is the one after that. Fairfax County, Virginia, is among those five; see the Fairfax County Public Schools calendar.

Which days could be used for weather make-up?

Three of the W days carry a second note on the calendar as weather make-up days: Monday, Oct. 12, 2026, Monday, Feb. 15, 2027 and Monday, Apr. 5, 2027. If the district needs them, students could attend on those days instead of staying home.

The calendar’s weather note reads “6 Banked Days and 5 Remote Instruction Days - District Leadership will determine the order.” The PDF does not say how or when the district will pick between them. Check the district’s notices before treating Oct. 12, Feb. 15 or Apr. 5 as a sure day off.

Does the calendar have early release days?

The legend lists first and last days, H, W and V. It does not list early release days. Wake County also runs year-round tracks with their own calendars, which are on the WCPSS calendars page.

When was the calendar approved?

The district’s board post says the Board of Education approved the 2026-27 instructional calendars for year-round, leadership academies and early college schools at its April 7 meeting. The post does not name the traditional calendar, so we give no approval date for it.

When does the school year start and end?

Monday, Aug. 24, 2026 is the first day for students, and Tuesday, June 8, 2027 is the last day. Teacher workdays run Aug. 17-21, 2026.