Early Entry Kindergarten

Kindergarten Requirements

According to the Arizona Education Code 15-821 (C), “a child is eligible for admission to kindergarten if the child is five years of age. A child is deemed five years of age if the child reached the age of five before September 1 of the current school year… The governing board may admit children who have not reached the required age as prescribed by this subsection if it is determined to be in the best interest of the children. Such children must reach the required age of five for kindergarten…by January 1 of the current school year.”

Preschool

Deer Valley has many options available for your student!

Preschool & Pre-K Options

If your student does not meet the kindergarten readiness requirements, we recommend considering one of our district's preschool or prekindergarten options. Learn more about preschool and Pre-K options here.

Getting our youngest DVUSD students off to a great start is one of our most treasured responsibilities. We are excited to offer a variety of programs and services.

For further information or assistance, please call the following:
Community Education for general education preschool/ prekindergarten at (623) 376-3979

-OR-

Early Childhood for Developmental and Head Start programs at (602) 467-6013

EARLY ENTRY KINDERGARTEN/ TYPICAL ENTRY KINDERGARTEN

	Typical Kindergarten Entry All children who are 5 years old by August 31, 2025 are eligible to enroll in kindergarten for the 2025-2026 school year. If this is the case for your child, you can enroll your child here.
Early Kindergarten Entry Children who turn 5 between September 1 and January 1, 2026 may be assessed to determine readiness for early entrance into kindergarten. The intent of early entrance is to identify highly capable children who miss the regular September 1 cutoff for kindergarten entrance. Early entry is specifically geared for children whose curriculum achievement level far exceeds the norm and who are ready for a full day of school. Note: Early Entrance Testing is not used to identify or place a child into gifted programming. Parents interested in pursuing the Gifted Pre-K Academy should contact Gifted Services for testing information at 623.445.5588.

Typical Kindergarten Entry

All children who are 5 years old by August 31, 2025 are eligible to enroll in kindergarten for the 2025-2026 school year.

If this is the case for your child, you can enroll your child here.

Early Kindergarten Entry

Children who turn 5 between September 1 and January 1, 2026 may be assessed to determine readiness for early entrance into kindergarten. The intent of early entrance is to identify highly capable children who miss the regular September 1 cutoff for kindergarten entrance. Early entry is specifically geared for children whose curriculum achievement level far exceeds the norm and who are ready for a full day of school.

Note: Early Entrance Testing is not used to identify or place a child into gifted programming. Parents interested in pursuing the Gifted Pre-K Academy should contact Gifted Services for testing information at 623.445.5588.

EARLY ENTRY KINDERGARTEN INFORMATION

In order to be considered for early entrance acceptance, the child must exhibit advanced skills (in relation to their grade level peers) in language arts, mathematics, social-emotional, and motor development as measured by tests administered by the Deer Valley Unified School District.

About Early Entrance Kindergarten

Screening Information

In order for children to qualify for early entrance into our kindergarten program, students must be able to demonstrate the following basic skills. Please note that the list below describes general concepts that are tested during kindergarten readiness testing. Due to the testing being a secure document, we are unable to list individual test concepts or questions.

Social and Emotional Skills	Academic Skills	Fine/Gross Motor Skills
Communicate clearly and answer questions in complete sentences Separate easily from parents/caregivers without getting upset Interact appropriately with adults Follow simple instructions with 2 to 3-step directions. Know personal information (name, age, gender) Pay attention to a single task for an extended period of time	Literacy skills include: Identify upper and lowercase letter names and sounds Identify the sounds in words Math skills include: Numeracy skills and number reasoning Number fluency and comparisons Count to 20 in sequence and identify numbers Identify numbers in (and out) of sequence Other academic skills: Identify colors and shapes Write his/her own name Express ideas and thoughts verbally	Use proper grip while using pencil, crayons, and scissors Cut with scissors

Social and Emotional Skills

Academic Skills

Fine/Gross Motor Skills

Communicate clearly and answer questions in complete sentences
Separate easily from parents/caregivers without getting upset
Interact appropriately with adults
Follow simple instructions with 2 to 3-step directions.
Know personal information (name, age, gender)
Pay attention to a single task for an extended period of time

Literacy skills include:

Identify upper and lowercase letter names and sounds
Identify the sounds in words

Math skills include:

Numeracy skills and number reasoning
Number fluency and comparisons
Count to 20 in sequence
and identify numbers
Identify numbers in (and out) of sequence

Other academic skills:

Identify colors and shapes
Write his/her own name
Express ideas and thoughts verbally

Use proper grip while using pencil, crayons, and scissors
Cut with scissors

In addition to testing results, the following key indicators will be considered:

Early entrance into kindergarten is intended for children who excel in meeting the kindergarten readiness standards -AND- are capable of working independently in a classroom setting with children who are up to 13 months older.
The needs of the whole child are considered, including social-emotional and physical.
A child should exhibit a level of intellectual, physical, social, and emotional maturity that is commensurate with that of a child who is up to 13 months older.

Early Entry Kindergarten Information

TESTING REGISTRATION

Online registration:

(A $75 non-refundable testing fee is due at the time of registration.)

Test Dates:

May 13, 21, 22,

June 3, 4,

Testing will take place at the DVUSD District Office Governing Board Room, 20402 N. 15^th Avenue, Phoenix, Arizona 85027. Please arrive 20 minutes early and allow 1 ½ hours for the testing. The testing is individually administered by early education teachers. Due to FERPA laws, the test results CANNOT be released via phone. Test results will be emailed within two weeks of the test date. All results are final and retesting is not permitted. Parents can then enroll their child in kindergarten by presenting the acceptance letter stating the student has passed the Kindergarten Readiness Test to the home school registrar.

No age exceptions will be granted after the start of the first day of the school year unless unique circumstances exist with children transferring from another school, state, or country. In these unique circumstances, all rules and procedures described above will be followed. No screenings from other districts will be accepted.

SCHEDULE YOUR CHILD FOR TESTING

- Parents may enroll their child in one of the available test time slots and pay the non-refundable $75.00 registration fee.
- On the test date/time, bring the original birth certificate and a paper copy of your receipt to the DVUSD District Office Governing Board Room, 20402 N. 15th Ave., Phoenix, AZ 85027. Note: Your child will not be permitted to test unless these documents are received and verified at the time of your child's test appointment.
  For additional questions regarding registration, contact our Gifted Services office at giftedservices@dvusd.org .

30-DAY CLASSROOM OBSERVATION PERIOD

Thirty-Day Classroom Observation Period

The kindergarten teacher will observe the early-enrolled student's work habits and maturity in the classroom setting during the first thirty (30) calendar days enrolled. The classroom teacher will also monitor students' academic and kindergarten readiness during this time. The administrator and the teacher will meet to discuss the appropriateness of placement at the end of the 30 days. If it is determined that the child is struggling academically, socially, and/or behaviorally, a meeting will be scheduled with the family. The principal will make a determination about the continuation of placement in kindergarten after reviewing all the data. The administrator’s decision is final.

OPEN ENROLLMENT OPTION

Open Enrollment Option

If your child meets the criteria for placement in kindergarten and you are interested in your student attending a school that is not in your attendance boundary, you will need to complete an online Open Enrollment Application after you receive the acceptance letter for early entrance into kindergarten. Note: This qualifying letter will need to be uploaded to the online Open Enrollment Application.

Before & After School Care Program

Early entry kindergarten students may enroll for the Before & After School Care Program once they have reached

their 5^th birthday. Learn more at the Community Education department's web page.

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