School starts at 38 degrees: heat surprise for students and teachers!

School starts at 38 degrees: heat surprise for students and teachers!

As always during the holiday season, things will be exciting for schoolchildren in Germany in 2025: Today, on August 11th, the new school year begins in Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia - and with a very strenuous challenge. The forecasts from the German Weather Service (DWD) predict temperatures of up to 38 degrees in the coming week. A hot start to the school routine, which for many children feels a bit like the start of a new adventure, while parents may be wondering how they will balance getting used to school life with the oppressive heat.

School starts the new season in different ways in Germany. Lower Saxony and Bremen are picking up the thread with a gradual return date on Thursday, August 14th. This will be followed by Saarland on August 16th, Hesse and Rhineland-Palatinate on August 18th and North Rhine-Westphalia on August 27th. Hamburg, Berlin and Brandenburg will wait until September 4th and 8th respectively, while the last wave from Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg will arrive on September 15th and 16th. This even causes tension and discussions about the holiday dates, especially since these topics will continue to shape the political agenda in the coming years.

Climate and school: A challenge

It is clear that the heat wave is not just a simple introduction to everyday school life, but also reflects the current situation with regard to climate change. After all, in 2015, Germany committed itself to promoting “Education for Sustainable Development” (ESD) by signing the United Nations Agenda. Nevertheless, there are major differences in the integration of climate-relevant topics into the curricula of the federal states. As a result, there is not enough space for dealing with climate change issues in all subjects, which poses major challenges not only for students but also for teachers.

The DWD also provides insight into seasonal climate forecasts, which help to better understand climatic conditions. These forecasts are based on complex climate models and take into account various aspects such as the atmosphere, soil and oceans. Their results not only help with short-term weather forecasting, but also with long-term trend predictions, which can be important for schools when it comes to planning and developing curricula.

School initiatives for climate protection

The then Education Senator from Berlin, Sandra Scheeres, took a step in the right direction in August 2021 by setting up an advisory board that also included representatives from “Fridays for Future”. The model template for climate agreements, which students should design themselves, received particular attention. With such projects, topics such as saving electricity, avoiding waste and the energy-efficient renovation of school buildings can be integrated into school practice.

And so the new school year begins not only with juicy weather, but also with the need to seriously and sustainably address the climate crisis. A look back at the past school holidays shows that the school landscape is facing a variety of challenges - the integration of education for sustainable development is just one of them, but one that is becoming all the more important. It remains to be seen how schools will turn around here, but the first steps have already been taken.

The coming weeks will show how well students, parents and teachers will deal with the heat and the questions about climate change - a start to school that will certainly bring many exciting moments.