Abbott Elementary season 4 moves fast and stays focused on the school. It runs 22 episodes and builds one clear line. A messy golf-course tie-up triggers an ethics audit. Ava gets fired in Audit. The teachers get together in Rally, while Gregory fills in as interim principal and finds his feet. The year ends at Philadelphia’s Please Touch Museum. Janine finally meets Gregory’s dad, Martin, and learns he is strict for a reason.
That closes the loop on a season about work, rules, and care. It also sets up Abbott Elementary season 5, which began on Wednesday, October 1, 2025, at 8:30 p.m. ET on ABC. Episodes stream the next day on Hulu. The season is planned for 22 episodes. Early talk mentions a new fourth-grade teacher named Dominic Clark, played by Luke Tennie, and a live episode at a Phillies game. This recap lays out what to rewatch and why it matters, so new viewers can jump into season 5 ready.
Abbott Elementary season 4 at a glance: The big shifts at Abbott
Abbott Elementary season 4 opens with loose threads and ties them off through the school’s daily grind. Girard Creek invites the staff to a fancy preview day, and the tone is clear. The golf club wants faces for marketing, not real inclusion. Janine and Jacob spot a staged moment and push back. Mr. Johnson cracks a joke that captures the mood. Mr. Johnson said:
“pull Michael Jordan out of a golf hole.”
Which frames the trip as a gag for optics, not care. Gregory also hits a wall with food nerves on a date setup, which the show uses to soften him and grow the Janine story. The visit plants the seed for the later audit when a lawyer becomes the middleman for “gifts.”
Abbott Elementary season 4 pivots hard at Strike. A real-world style transit stoppage empties classrooms. Janine refuses to drop her solar system lesson. She turns Ava’s party bus into a ride so kids can reach school. That keeps the show in the classroom and not only in meetings. The episode also gives two clean lines of dialogue that sum up the stakes. Ava remarked:
“I hate bosses. That’s why I became a principal, so I don’t have any.”
In the same recap, a parent said:
“Lady, this city tried to murk Santa Claus, they aren’t meeting anybody anywhere.”
Those lines lock the episode to the city and to power.
Abbott Elementary season 4 then builds the audit through small choices. The Science Fair shows how competition warps the room. Books and Karaoke show stress leaking sideways. In Audit, the district walks in early. The staff hides the computers and the scoreboard in a rush. A supplier blows the cover and calls himself a “supply fairy.” The district threatens suspensions. Ava takes the blame and gets fired. Ava’s last line to the camera before leaving is plain. She stated:
“it’s never too late to be a sugar baby.”
That is the show using a joke to cut the tension as the team loses its leader. Abbott Elementary season 4 resets in Ava Fest: Tokyo Drift. The team turns the open house into a car wash. It is a small plan that keeps the lights on. In Rally, the staff and students speak up at the district. Gregory finds his interim principal voice. By the episode, Please Touch Museum, the season can move a couple of stories without losing the school lens. Janine tries to impress Martin. She wears a grey blazer and plays it serious. Then she drops the act and chooses her real classroom style.
Martin earlier said:
"Mad Libs promote insubordination."
By the end, he joins Janine’s games on the trip. The final image is the school together with small jokes and a clean table set for season 5.
Abbott Elementary season 5: schedule, new faces, early teases
Abbott Elementary season 4 hands season 5 a clear start point. The new year began on Wednesday, October 1, 2025, at 8:30 p.m. ET on ABC. Episodes stream the next day on Hulu. The plan is for 22 episodes with normal holiday pauses.
A new fourth-grade teacher named Dominic Clark arrives, played by Luke Tennie. Early talk points to a live episode at a Phillies game and a midseason change that affects the school.
Stay tuned for more updates.
(L-R) Chris Perfetti, Tyler James Williams, Sheryl Lee Ralph, Quinta Brunson, Lisa Ann Walter, Janelle James and William Stanford Davis attend ABC's "Abbott Elementary" Official Emmy FYC and Finale at Academy Museum of Motion Pictures on April 15, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Emma McIntyre/Getty Images)