Compulsory education (escolaridad obligatoria), also called ‘basic general education’ (enseñanza básica or EGB), begins at the age of six in a primary school (escuela primaria) and lasts for eight years.
Primary school is split into two cycles and each cycle is split into different levels called niveles básicos or N.B: First cycle (primer ciclo/ciclo I) years 1 to 4 and second cycle (segundo ciclo/Ciclo II), years 5 to 8.
The primary curriculum includes eleven compulsory areas:
Language and communication
Indigenous language (compulsory in the schools with high density of indigenous students)
Foreign languages (compulsory in Ciclo II)
Mathematics
Natural sciences
History
Geography and social sciences
Technology
Art
Physical education
Orientation and religion, which needs to be offered by the school but it’s optional for the students.