• 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. Please CLICK HERE for additional information on our quality early childhood programs.
    • Getting our youngest ¼â½ÐÊÓƵapp 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

  •  
    Children

    Typical Kindergarten Entry

    All children who are 5 years old by August 31, 2024 are eligible to enroll in kindergarten for the 2024-2025 school year. 

    If this is the case for your child, please follow this link to our enrollment page. 
    Early Kindergarten Entry
     
    Children who turn 5 between September 1 and January 1, 2025 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. 

    Children

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

     

    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

Expand All

  • TESTING REGISTRATION

  • SCHEDULE YOUR CHILD FOR TESTING

  • 30-DAY CLASSROOM OBSERVATION PERIOD

  • OPEN ENROLLMENT OPTION

  • Before & After School Care Program
     
    Early entry kindergarten students may enroll for the Before & After School Care Program once they have reached their 5th birthday. 

    Community Ed

     

     

     

    Please email giftedservices@dvusd.org if you have any questions.