Children who reach their fifth birthday on or before December 1st of the year of matriculation are entitled to attend school and may be admitted to kindergarten. Proof of age must be presented in the form of a birth certificate, baptismal certificate, or passport.
The Superintendent or his/her designees are authorized to make exceptions to the entrance date, based on a comprehensive evaluation of the child’s readiness for kindergarten.
In rare cases, a child who has not met the age-eligibility to enroll in kindergarten may be granted early entrance. Early entrance is determined only after a thorough review of documentation which supports the child’s exceptionality and advanced levels of readiness for schooling.
Only children who will reach the age of five (5) by January 31st of the year for which parents are requesting early entrance will be considered.
All inquiries for consideration for early entrance must be received by the Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction no later than April 1st annually for consideration for the upcoming school year. By May 1st, parents/guardians must supply the following supporting documents:
- Results of individual tests of cognitive ability and achievement that were administered by an independent psychologist. The student must obtain scores in the very superior range (a standard score of 130 or greater) on measures of both cognitive ability and achievement. It is recommended that for tests of cognitive ability the most current edition of Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence, the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale, or the Differential Ability Scales (DAS) be administered. The most current Test of Early Reading Ability and Test of Early Math Ability are recommended as tests of achievement.
- Reports from the child’s preschool experience. Reports should include a description of the student’s social-emotional functioning and classroom behavior detailed by the preschool teacher, and/or a social-emotional evaluation from an independent evaluator. The description or evaluation must detail the student’s social problem solving skills (competence in social decision making and problem solving) including self-control skills, social awareness and group participation skills, and social decision making skills.
Once the request and supporting documentation has been received by the Assistant Superintendent, the Assistant Superintendent will:
- Notify the principal of the potential school of record of the request.
- Convene a committee, facilitated by the Assistant Superintendent, to review the student’s evaluation and reports to determine if early entrance to kindergarten is appropriate. If submitted materials preliminarily support the readiness of the student to enter Kindergarten, the Assistant Superintendent will proceed to steps three and four.
- Make arrangements for the student to be screened by school personnel using additional criteria for readiness (engagement, ability to follow directions, use of age appropriate materials, separation from parents, etc.)
- Make arrangements for a Guilderland School Psychologist and/or other school personnel to observe the child in a natural setting with his or her peers.
The Assistant Superintendent will notify the school principal and parent no later than June 15th of the decision regarding early entrance to kindergarten.
A child who has regularly attended and satisfactorily completed a year’s work in a kindergarten which is duly registered with the State Education Department will be enrolled in the first grade.
The Board of Education authorizes the Superintendent of Schools to establish any and all rules, regulations, and procedures necessary to implement and maintain this policy.
A student who has not attended kindergarten and who will be six years of age on or before December 1st of the year of entrance may be admitted to grade one in September of the entrance year upon the recommendation of a local screening team composed of the school psychologist, the Building Principal, and other appropriate personnel. However, the district may request that such student enter at the kindergarten level.
Ref: Education Law ”709; 1712; 2503; 2514; 2555; 3202; 3205; 3210
Adopted November 28, 2006
Adopted March 6, 2012
Adopted April 12, 2016
Revised, Adopted March 6, 2018