The early entrance to kindergarten process identifies exceptions to the state-mandated age of entry for children whose curriculum achievement level far exceeds the norm. The intent of Early Entrance to Kindergarten is to identify highly able children born between September 2nd and October 16th, missing the September 1st cutoff. Applications for consideration must be submitted by 4pm May 31st.

• Review the video detailing Early Entrance to Kindergarten
• Review Regulation 400-89, Kindergarten - Early Entrance

• Access and complete the application.
• Download and save the application. Submit completed application as an attachment to earlyentrance@fcps.org, by the deadline date, or mail to Early Childhood Education, Attention: Early Entrance, 191 South East St. Frederick, MD 21701. 
• Expect a confirmation email of the received application.

Students applying for early entrance to kindergarten will be screened to assess Kindergarten readiness. The screening process will take approximately 20-30 minutes and will be administered by a trained examiner. The assessment is administered only 1 time to each child.  Retesting will not occur for any reason. The assessment includes a variety of activities that measure each child’s ability in the following domains: Reading/Language Arts, Mathematical Thinking, Personal and Social Emotional Development. It is not necessary to study or prepare for the early entry assessment. Resources regarding kindergarten readiness can be found in the Resources tab below. 

• Receive an email to schedule the assessment at FCPS Central Office, 191 East Street Frederick, MD 21701 
• Provide consent for testing by reading the Early Entrance to Kindergarten Testing/Authorization Waiver in advance and signing the document at the time of assessment. 

Parents/legal guardians will be notified about the approval or denial of their request for early admission to kindergarten, via email. Students assessed by May 31st, can expect to receive communication no later than Friday, June 7th, 2024. Students assessed after May 31st can expect to receive communication within 10 business days of assessment. Students are expected to demonstrate proficiency in language arts and mathematics, achieving a score of 70% or above in these domains, to be eligible for early entrance to kindergarten. Parents/legal guardians may appeal the decision, within 10 days, as outlined in the email notification. 

• Students approved for early entrance to kindergarten, may proceed with the kindergarten enrollment process, as detailed in the next step. 
• Students denied early entrance to kindergarten may enroll when they are age eligible, the following year. 
• If you’d like to discuss your child’s assessment results, please contact the early childhood office.

Enrollment

Upon acceptance to early entrance to kindergarten, parent/legal guardian(s) may enroll their child in Kindergarten. The enrollment form and information will be included within the acceptance notification. 

45-Day Probationary Period

Per Regulation 400-89, there will be a 45 instructional day probation period. If there are concerns about the child’s academic progress, either by the parent/guardian or by school personnel, a re-evaluation will occur prior to the end of the probation period. The child will be expected to meet grade level expectations for Quarter 1 and will have shown academic progress since entry. If the child is not meeting these expectations, school personnel and/or the parent/guardian may decide to withdraw the child. However, if the parent/guardian disagrees with the decision of school personnel to withdraw the child the parent/guardian may follow the same appeal process as outlined above.