Doha, Qatar: From classrooms and school zones to transport networks, health campaigns and family shopping, Qatar has completed wide-ranging preparations for the 2026-2027 academic year as students return to schools tomorrow.
Around 419,373 students are expected to be welcomed across 649 schools and kindergartens, following months of preparations covering educational facilities, curricula, transportation, school safety and student services.
The return to classrooms on August 30 will bring back the familiar morning movement of students, parents and school buses across the country, but preparations have extended well beyond school gates.
Government entities have worked on road safety and transport readiness, health authorities are launching a nationwide school health campaign, while retailers and families have been preparing everything from stationery and lunch boxes to sleeping schedules and study routines.
Schools ready to welcome students
The Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MoEHE) said preparations have been completed for the new academic year, with work continuing throughout the summer to prepare educational facilities for students.
Administrative and teaching staff returned to government schools on August 23 to complete academic, administrative and organisational preparations ahead of students' return.
The new year will also see the opening of six government schools, expanding capacity in the public education system.
Preparations have not been limited to buildings and classrooms.
The Ministry launched its Back to School 2026-2027 campaign with activities targeting students, parents, teachers and school leaders.
Among the initiatives introduced this year is "First Step," which targets approximately 10,700 newly enrolled Grade 1 students across public schools and is designed to support children as they begin their school journey.
The Ministry's Annual Educational Meeting also brought together education leaders, teachers and partners, with this year's priorities focusing on student wellbeing, educational quality, national identity and the use of digital technology in education.
Safer roads around schools
Outside the classroom, considerable attention has been directed towards the roads students will use every day.
The Public Works Authority (Ashghal) announced that traffic safety measures have been completed around 674 schools across Qatar ahead of the new academic year.
The wider School Zone Traffic Safety Programme has assessed and upgraded areas surrounding 675 schools since its launch in 2013.
Measures around school zones include a maximum speed limit of 30km/h, speed humps, renewed road markings and pedestrian crossings, red road surfacing to alert approaching motorists and cyclists, wider sidewalks and protective barriers.
Dedicated ramps have also been provided to facilitate access for students with disabilities.
Ashghal has urged motorists to reduce speed when approaching schools, particularly during morning arrival and afternoon dismissal periods, and to give pedestrians priority at crossings.
Transport network prepared for daily school journeys
The Ministry of Transport said today that Qatar's integrated transport network and infrastructure are ready to support the return to schools, helping students reach their destinations safely and efficiently.
The Ministry has encouraged families to plan school journeys, identify appropriate routes and choose suitable departure times to avoid congestion.
It has also called on parents to teach children safe behaviour when using school buses and public transport and to encourage responsible and sustainable travel habits from an early age.
The preparations reflect the scale of the daily movement generated by the education sector, with students, teachers, school employees and parents travelling across the country at similar times each morning.
Health begins before the first lesson
Health authorities are also using the start of the academic year to encourage families to restore routines that may have changed during the summer holiday.
The Primary Health Care Corporation (PHCC) will launch its 2026-2027 Back-to-School campaign tomorrow under the slogan "Healthy Bodies Build Strong Nations."
Running until September 10 across public schools and kindergartens, the campaign will focus on healthy sleep, reducing excessive screen time, drinking sufficient water, healthy nutrition, physical activity, self-regulation, mental and emotional wellbeing and positive social behaviour at school.
The Ministry of Municipality has meanwhile issued practical guidance for preparing children's school meals.
Families have been advised to prepare meals in the morning rather than the previous night, use clean and safe lunch boxes and select food that can withstand the heat.
The Ministry also recommended balanced meals containing fruits, vegetables, protein sources and whole grains, appropriate portion sizes to reduce food waste and reusable water bottles.
Back-to-school shopping underway
For many families, preparation has also meant returning to stationery aisles, bookshops and hypermarkets to complete school lists before classes begin.
The availability of school supplies across dedicated stationery stores, neighbourhood shops, shopping centres and hypermarkets gives families several options for buying notebooks, pens, bags, lunch boxes and other school essentials.
Major retail destinations have also been running back-to-school activities and promotions during August, combining shopping with children's educational activities.
For parents, having school and household necessities available in the same locations can make the final days before school considerably easier.
Abdulhamid, a father shopping for stationery with his children, said the range of outlets across Qatar meant his family did not have to travel far to complete their school list.
"The good thing is that you have many choices. You can go to a stationery shop, a hypermarket or one of the smaller shops near home. We managed to find almost everything the children needed without having to visit many places," he said.
Samer, another parent, said he prefers completing most of the family's back-to-school shopping at a hypermarket because school supplies can be bought alongside groceries and lunch-box essentials.
"It saves us time. You can buy notebooks, pens and other school items and then do the weekly grocery shopping in the same place. During the back-to-school period, the offers also help when you are buying for more than one child," he said.
For Sahar, preparation is not only about what goes into the school bag.
She said her family had begun gradually returning the children to earlier sleeping and waking times while setting aside periods for reading and revisiting material from the previous academic year.
"We don't want the first school morning to feel like a sudden change after the holiday," she said. "We started with reading and some simple activities and reviewing a few things they studied last year. The idea is to get them used to concentrating again."
Magdy said he had taken a similar approach with his children, using the final days of the holiday for light revision rather than intensive studying.
"They have enjoyed their summer, so we don't want to turn the last week into exams at home. We just want them to read, remember some of what they learned last year and start thinking about school again," he said.
The approach is consistent with advice highlighted ahead of the new academic year, with families encouraged to gradually restore children's sleeping and eating schedules and prepare them mentally and socially for returning to school.
The Ministry of Social Development and Family has also launched its "Walk Your Kids to School" campaign, emphasising parental involvement during the return to school and encouraging parents to use the journey as an opportunity to talk and listen to their children.
Qatar National Library has similarly organised "Ready for School" workshops addressing children's social and emotional preparedness, the role of parents as children's first teachers and skills needed for independent learning.
With schools prepared, road-safety measures in place, transport networks gearing up for heavier morning movement and families completing their final preparations, attention now turns to tomorrow morning, when students across Qatar begin another academic year.
The first days will also test how quickly families settle back into the daily rhythm of early mornings, school journeys, lessons, homework and activities after the summer break.
