Early Entrance Requests

CCSD21 follows Illinois law which specifies that, to enter kindergarten or first grade, children must be five years of age by Sept. 1 of their kindergarten year or six years of age by Sept. 1 of their first grade year. However, CCSD21 has an acceleration policy that addresses exceptions for children whose potential and skills are in the very superior range when compared with their peers.

CCSD21 has identified early entrance to kindergarten and first grade as full-grade acceleration, appropriate only for those students who demonstrate compelling evidence that they are intellectually and socially advanced. The decision to allow a student early entrance is solely at the discretion of the school district based on a comprehensive assessment conducted by the school district.

Please Consider

The decision for a child to enter school early can have a profound effect on his or her academic and social performance for the remainder of the child’s school career. It is a decision that needs to be taken very seriously. Academic readiness, academic potential, and social emotional maturity are all equally important considerations. Parents requesting Early Entrance should be aware that very few children screened meet the criteria to enter kindergarten or first grade early.

Criteria for Early Admission to Kindergarten

Assessments will be completed in June of the year before through Oct. 1 of the current school year you would like the child to be considered for Kindergarten. After this time, only new students transferring into District 21 will be considered for Early Admission.

Children eligible for Early Entrance to Kindergarten must turn five years of age during the current school year.

Children eligible for Early Admission to Kindergarten must score at the 90th percentile or above in the areas of Motor, Concepts, Language, Self-Help and Social-Emotional Development on the DIAL-4 assessment.

Month of Testing	90th percentile comparison age group for Motor, Concepts and Language*
May to September	5.0 (5 years, 0 months)
October	5.1 (5 years, 1 month)

* Development of Motor, Concepts and Language are assessed through the administration of the DIAL-4 by the CCSD21 evaluation team.

Kindergarten Early Entrance Protocol

Criteria for Early Admission to First Grade

Assessments will be completed in June of the year before through Oct. 1 of the current school year you would like the child to be considered for First Grade. After this time, only new students transferring into District 21 will be considered for Early Admission.

Children eligible for Early Admission to First Grade must score a Total Achievement Composite of at least 130 (High) on the Wechsler Individual Achievement Test 4th edition.

This includes subtests in the areas of:

Word Reading
Reading Comprehension
Spelling
Alphabet Writing Fluency
Math Problem Solving
Numerical Operations
Listening Comprehension
Oral Expression
Phonemic Proficiency

This assessment will be administered by the CCSD21 evaluation team

1st Grade Early Entrance Protocol

Requesting Early Entrance

Parents/guardians wishing to apply for early entrance to kindergarten or first grade for their child must submit the Request for Early Entrance Form no later than May 15 of the prior school year. Applications received after this date will be considered after the start of the 2024-2025 school year. Students will be placed with their age-appropriate peers until any further review and placement determination can be made.

Please view the CCSD21 boundary map to confirm you within our service area.