D20 Finishes Week 1, D11 Week 2, D49 Week 4: How COS Families Are Settling In
This is the first Sunday of the 2026 school year with all three Colorado Springs school districts simultaneously in session — and the experience of "being back" looks quite different depending on which district your family is in.
D49 started August 3-4 and is now in its fourth week. D11 started August 12 and is completing week two. D20 started August 17-18 and just wrapped its first full week on Friday. Together, their enrollment spans tens of thousands of Colorado Springs students, and the staggered start dates mean families across the city are at very different points in the adjustment arc.
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D49 — Into Week Four
Academy School District 49, which covers the eastern portions of Colorado Springs and the surrounding communities, was the first to return this fall. Four weeks into the school year, most D49 families have navigated the early chaos and are settling into established routines.
This school year, D49 is also adjusting to significant structural changes following the Board of Education's August 17 vote on BOCES dissolution, affirmed by the state board on August 19. The Student Success Center is also opening this year across the district. For D49 families, week four means the school year is no longer new — but the district-level changes are still unfolding in real time.
D11 — Wrapping Week Two
Colorado Springs School District 11, the city's largest district, started August 12. The second week of school tends to be the one where the initial novelty has worn off but the routines aren't yet automatic — a phase that can produce some friction at home even in families that had a smooth first week.
D11 distributed free Edukit supply kits to more than 14,000 K-8 students at the start of the year, which eased some of the back-to-school supply pressure for many families. Week two marks the point where the supply situation stabilizes and the academic rhythm begins in earnest.
D20 — Finishing Week One
Academy School District 20, which covers much of the northern part of Colorado Springs, started August 17-18 — the most recent start among the three districts. If you're in D20, this past week was the full-immersion first week: the first time homework came home, the first time the bus schedule had to work in practice, the first full five-day span of the school year.
D20 is the largest of the three cohorts to start most recently, which means a significant number of Colorado Springs families are right now in the most intensive phase of back-to-school adjustment.
What Actually Helps This Week
Regardless of which district your family is in, a few consistent practices make the difference between a week that feels manageable and one that feels like barely surviving until Friday.
Establish the Homework Spot
A dedicated homework location — somewhere that isn't the couch, the bed, or in front of the television — has an outsized effect on both homework completion and the ease of transition from school mode to evening mode. It doesn't have to be elaborate: a kitchen table with supplies nearby works as well as a dedicated desk.
Make Contact with Teachers Early
A brief introductory email to your child's teacher in the first two weeks — not to raise a concern, just to introduce yourself and note anything relevant — establishes a communication channel that's much easier to use later when you actually need it. Teachers at all three COS districts manage large numbers of students; a brief early touchpoint helps your child be a recognized face rather than a name on a list.
Nail Down the Bus Timing
Bus timing tends to be the source of the most daily stress in the first weeks of school, particularly for families who haven't used the bus before or who have route changes from last year. Getting this dialed in now — knowing the exact stop location, the pickup window, and the backup plan — removes one daily variable from the morning routine.
Give the Adjustment Its Time
Pediatric guidance consistently notes that full school-year adjustment takes four to six weeks, not four to six days. If week one or two has been rocky — more emotional than expected, more resistance than anticipated, more exhaustion than seemed reasonable — that's normal. The pattern resolves as routine becomes automatic.
What's Next
Week two of the school year for D20 families begins Monday, August 25. For D11, it's week three. For D49, it's week five — approaching the point where the school year stops feeling new and starts feeling like simply how life is organized.
Labor Day weekend arrives in two weeks (August 29–September 1), giving families across all three districts a long weekend that serves as a natural midpoint check-in for how routines are holding. Use that weekend as a deliberate reset: a conversation about what's working, what's hard, and what one thing each person in the family wants to adjust going into the September stretch.
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