It may be Wednesday, but students in the Deuel school district have just one day left in their school week. For the next two years, they're testing out four-day school weeks.

Unlike many districts changing their schedules, in Clear Lake it has nothing to do with funding.

Laptops in the classroom often mean a whole new way of teaching.

"I said we really need to create time for these teachers to get to know these laptops, develop lessons, to look at educating our students in a different way but we don't have the time to do it," Superintendent Dean Christensen said.

So the Deuel school district created a plan that allows class time Monday through Thursday class time and leaves Friday for planning.

Christensen says not having class on Friday, means $40,000 in savings each year. He calls that a bonus, but not the reason for the schedule change.

"That wasn't the real issue that pushed us into it. The real issue was how can we do the staff development things and how can we give our teachers uh the professional development time and treat them like professionals that we need to do it," Christensen said.

"I haven't heard any complaints about the four day week," senior Saundra Liechti said.

Liechti says of course students love the idea. But it's not only because they get three day weekends. Fridays are used for extra help and extra programs.

"We come on fridays to work on our yearbook and have meetings and activities instead of having them during school week," Liechti said.

Christensen says he even feels a four-day week will bring up grades and participation.

"The beginning of the year we sat down as an administrative team and said you know if we could get 50 percent of those students to show up, I think it would be a success.  We'd be pretty happy.  We're running right now between 65 and 75 percent of those students do come in on Fridays," Christensen said.

School now starts ten minutes earlier and ends ten minutes later. Christensen say the district is well above the state requirement of 962 and a half hours of school each year.