Early Entrance 

Overview

Skokie School District 68 complies with Illinois law which specifies that, to enter kindergarten or first grade, children must be five years of age by September 1st of their kindergarten year, or six years of age, by September 1st of their first grade year (105 ILCS 5/34-19, Sec. 34-19). However, Public Act 100-0421 provides exceptions to this law for children whose potential and skills are in the very superior range when compared with their peers.
 
District 68 has identified early entrance to kindergarten and first grade as whole grade acceleration, appropriate for those students who are significantly intellectually and socially advanced. Whole grade acceleration occurs when a student is advanced into a higher grade for all subject areas.  A student for whom this occurs has very advanced academic skills, and other reasonable enrichment opportunities have been attempted and judged by the school and district to be insufficient to meet the student’s needs. The decision to allow a student early entrance is solely at the discretion of the Strategy Development school team.
 
Early Entrance Requirements and Process

1. Pre-requisite Paperwork: The child must be registered with Skokie School District 68 and provide proof of residency at the time of application.   
2. The child must turn 5 years of age by December 31 of that school year for early entrance into kindergarten and 6 years of age by December 31 of that school year for early entrance into first grade. 
3. If the child meets the age requirements stated above, parents/guardians must contact their building principal, submit the Acceleration Request - Early Entrance form and submit any outside data for consideration. The application deadline is August 1 for that upcoming school year.  No applications will be accepted after that date. 
4. The building principal will schedule an appointment which shall include the child’s parents/guardians and the school psychologist.  The parent must ensure that the school has received the Acceleration Request form and any accompanying data prior to the appointment.  A review of these records will determine what additional readiness assessments will be necessary. 
5. An appointment will be scheduled for administration of readiness assessments.  The child must be made available for testing prior to the start of the school year so that appropriate placement can be made for the school year.  If the district is unable to test the child and determine placement prior to the week before the start of school, the child will not be grade accelerated for that school year. 
6. The principal will confer with the Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction and will then contact the child’s parents to convey the decision made.  This decision is final. 

Acceleration Request - Early Entrance