English proficiency: Of the nearly 260,000 children who took the statewide English-language learner proficiency exam, which measures listening, reading, writing and speaking skills, 43,425 are proficient, according to a Florida Department of Education report. Gradebook.

Day 1: School buses in Palm Beach County arrived on time and most classes started on time on what the district is calling a very smooth first day. But a near-tragedy was reported. A middle-school student was hit by a car near the Egret Lake Elementary School bus loop. He was taken to a hospital and is not seriously injured. Sun-Sentinel. Palm Beach Post. Another student falls into the path of a bus at Braden River Middle School in Manatee County, but narrowly avoids injury. Bradenton Herald. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Other districts also reported few problems on opening day. Florida Times-Union. Pensacola News Journal. Florida Today. Naples Daily News. Gainesville Sun. Daytona Beach News-Journal. Orlando Sentinel. Lakeland Ledger. TCPalm. Tallahassee Democrat. Northwest Florida Daily News. Every teacher and administrator in Titusville and Mims receives a back-to-school rose and a thank-you note from florists Dawn and John Acklin. Florida Today. The St. Johns County School District school enrollment is up 5.3 percent over last year. St. Augustine Record.

Surprise closing: Zellwood's Little Red School House shut down without notice Monday, leaving students in the private K-12 school scrambling to find an alternative on what should have been its first day. The school apparently lost its lease in a dispute with its landlord, Rolling Hills Community Church. WFTV.

Chronic absenteeism: The Marion County School District's "Attendance Matters" program has helped cut down slightly on chronic absenteeism and tardiness. The district's attendance rate was up from 93.25 percent in 2014-2015 to 93.88 percent in 2015-2016. The state average is 94.3 percent. Ocala Star Banner. (more…)