Block vs. Period Scheduling

Overview

There are two kinds of schedules that a school can have: Period Scheduling and Block Scheduling. Veracross supports both, but the Schedule Builder can only work with Block Scheduling.

Block Scheduling

Block Scheduling is when a class meets for only one block per rotation, and is our preferred method of scheduling.

For example:

• Block A meets Monday at 8:00AM, Tuesday at 2:00PM, and Thursday at 9:30AM.
• Math 101 is scheduled for Block A. Therefore, it meets on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday during Block A’s schedule.
• Any other classes that meet during Block A all have exactly the same schedule as Math 101 (some exceptions are possible).

You can describe this schedule in a single sentence:

• Math 101 meets during Semester 1 in Block A.

Another way to think of it is that the blocks move around during the rotation, but the class’s schedule remains constant. Note that a class will usually meet every day the block meets, but this is not a hard requirement.

Block scheduling is much simpler to set up and maintain. The Scheduler Builder only supports block scheduling.

Adding a New Block

To create a new block for the school year, navigate to the System homepage, click Add, and select the Blocks option. When initially entering the block, the only fields that are required are the description and the abbreviation. Prior to fully creating the block, the school may also set the color in which the block will appear on schedules, and the days and times the blocks will meet. Click Add Block to create the block. Once the page reloads, there will be options to set up for the block:

• Block group – the school year or term that can be added.
• Alternate Schedules – displays what alternate schedules the block is a part of. This may not be adjusted here, but can be from the Alternate Schedules option on the System homepage.
• School levels – select which school level this block should be an option for.
• Grade levels – select which grade level this block should be available for.
• Campuses – selecy any applicable campuses.
• Scheduled classes – displays the classes that occur during this block (as set on the class record page).

Period Scheduling

Period scheduling is when classes can meet in different periods on different days of the rotation.

For example:

• Period 1 meets every day at 8:00AM.
• Period 2 meets Mondays and Wednesdays at 9:30AM.
• Period 3 meets Tuesdays at 11:30AM and Thursdays at 2:00PM.
• Math 101 is scheduled for Period 2 on Wednesday, Period 3 on Thursday, and Period 1 on Friday.
• Two classes meeting in the same Period on the same day do not necessarily share the same full schedule.

You need multiple sentences to describe this schedule:

• Math 101 meets during Semester 1 in Period 2 on Wednesday
• Math 101 meets during Semester 1 in Period 3 on Thursday
• Math 101 meets during Semester 1 in Period 1 on Friday

Another way to say this is that the class moves around during the rotation, but the periods stay the same. This is harder to maintain because the number of schedule records required is much greater than that of Block Scheduling.

The Scheduler Builder does not support Period Scheduling, but Veracross does support loading and managing Period Schedules.

Hybrid

Hybrid Scheduling is basically when a school is doing Block Scheduling, but a few classes have exceptions. For example, an independent study meets Block A on Monday and Block D on Wednesday. This would generally still be considered Block Scheduling.

The Schedule Builder supports Hybrid Scheduling when the exceptions are handled manually.