As parents heave a collective sigh of relief and kids a collective groan it must be back-to-school time already.

With the new academic year just around the corner, parents and children are preparing for the start of school.

Government Information Services, (GIS) said this week that an orientation session will be held at the Grand Cayman Marriott Beach Resort next week Wednesday, 30 August, beginning at 9:00 am, for all new education staff members, teachers as well as administrators from all the schools on Grand Cayman.

Orientation for staff on Cayman Brac will be managed by the Teacher's Centre.

On Friday, 1 September, "School Planning Day" at all Government schools on Grand Cayman and Cayman Brac will see teachers, administrators and other staff getting together to make final preparations for the start of the 2006/7 school year.

Government schools will resume during the first week of September.

School starts on Monday 4 September for new primary school students on Grand Cayman with a half-day orientation session and GIS said parents are encouraged to accompany new students to their classrooms.

The new-student orientation session ends at 12:30 pm, when all students should be collected from respective schools. From then on schools close at 3:00 pm for all public schools. New Cayman Brac students will be informed of their school orientation times.

For Grand Cayman's primary school students years one to six, the new Year Seven of George Hicks School and the new Year Ten of John Gray High School, classes commence on Tuesday, 5 September and all other students should be in school on Wednesday, 6 September.

On Cayman Brac, all primary school students in Years One to Six should report for classes on Tuesday, 5 September.  Cayman Brac High School resumes on Wednesday, 6 September. Cayman Brac parents will be contacted directly regarding the date for student orientation and placement examination.

Once the first-day orientation programmes are over in early September, students at primary and high schools have a full and varied calendar in store for them GIS said.

Events on this year's Schools' calendars include the Inter-Primary School Netball and Football competitions in early October; Spelling Bee Preliminaries beginning in late October, with the finals in November; the annual Reading Day on Thursday, 30 November; the National Education Conference on Friday, 1 December; and the annual Book Fair on Saturday, 2 December.

All students in the Cayman Islands are expected to participate in the various activities of National Education Week - 26 November to 2 December.

Parents are also asked to support their children's involvement in these and other events while overseeing students' efforts in homework and special assignments.

With the start of the new school year, as well as being asked to participate actively overall in their children's education they are asked to ensure that school uniforms adhere to the rules.

A focus point for the Ministry of Education, which has warned parents that children who come to school in uniforms that do not conform will be sent home.

Recently Hon Alden McLaughlin, Minister for Education, said youngsters coming to school with fitting blouses to baggy-pants, tongues flapping out of shoes among other uniform discrepancies will not be tolerated.

He explained that the uniform policy was part of a larger, more comprehensive, approach to security and discipline in Government schools and said that the Security and Discipline Task Force - created late last year - had constructed the new guidelines.

Mr McLaughlin said there will be no acceptable excuses and students in incorrect, or ill-fitting uniforms would be sent home until they can come in the correct uniform.

"And, if the children are away from school for too long, then we are going to take steps against the parents because the children are bound to being in school," said the Minister.

Parents are encouraged to work closely with their children's teachers and school principals, the Education Department and the PTA/HSA groups in the respective schools.

Other items of note on schools' calendars for the 2006/7 school year are the two-day Midterm Break on 26 and 27 October, and the Remembrance Day Public Holiday on 13 November.

Schools will also be closed on 14 November, which is a Professional Staff Development Training day.  Schools will close for Christmas vacation on 15 December.