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Early Entrance To Kindergarten

The Fall/Winter application window for the 2023-24 school year was open from Wednesday, September 14, 2022 until Thursday, December 8, 2022 at 5pm.

The Fall/Winter application is now closed. Please check back in Spring 2023 for the Spring/Summer application.

Early Entrance to Kindergarten is the admission of a student to Kindergarten who will reach the age of five years old between the dates of September 2nd and December 31st of the year in which they wish to enroll. In order to apply for Early Entrance to Kindergarten, the student must have attended at least one year of preschool. A testing fee of $50.00 will apply for Early Entrance to Kindergarten for city of Chicago residents; students who qualify for Free Lunch waivers are exempt from the testing fee.

Non-Chicago residents: Applicants who are not residents of the city of Chicago by the December 8, 2022 application deadline must pay a testing fee of $250.00.

Early Entrance to Kindergarten Information Sheet

English ESPAÑOL

Applicants must pass a development survey AND an academic and cognitive evaluation. Students who qualify for early entrance to kindergarten can enroll in the designated neighborhood school for their home address, or they can be considered for enrollment in Choice (magnet, magnet cluster or open enrollment) Schools or Selective Enrollment Elementary Schools (Classical Schools or Regional Gifted Centers). Note that Selective Enrollment schools require additional admissions testing; the results of Early Entrance to Kindergarten cannot be used as a substitute for Selective Enrollment testing.

The Chicago Public Schools takes seriously the decision for a child to enter school early. Accordingly, the criteria for early entry are rigorous. The evaluation process is designed to ensure that students are not hindered by the challenges of the instructional programs and the effect that early placement might have. Although a student may exhibit high ability, please be aware that they may not be ready for kindergarten. Other important factors to consider are social maturity, personal development and motor development. If a student is evaluated as a viable candidate for early entrance to kindergarten, it is important that all stakeholders are supportive of the decision. On average, about 10-15% of applicants end up passing this process and become eligible for kindergarten early.

Parents can either apply for Early Entrance to Kindergarten during the fall/winter or the spring/summer. Students can only be assessed once for the upcoming school year. Students applying during the fall/winter will participate in the assessment at an earlier age, but are able to be considered for a greater number of schools if they qualify for early entry. Students applying during the spring/summer will participate in the assessment at a later age, but can only be considered for schools that still have seats available at that time. Please see the Info Sheet above for more in-depth information about the process.

The following provides information about the 2023-2024 application period. Please contact the Office of Access and Enrollment at 773-553-2060 or GOCPS@CPS.EDU if you have any questions. For the 2023-2024 school year, the student must be born between September 2nd and December 31st, 2018 to be considered for Early Entrance to Kindergarten.

Follow the steps below to apply for Early Entrance to Kindergarten for the 2023-2024 school year.

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Early Entrance to Kindergarten FAQ's

Early Entrance To First Grade

The application window for applicants seeking to apply to Choice, Magnet, and/or Selective Enrollment programs for the 2023-24 school year will be open from Wednesday, September 14, 2022 until Thursday, December 8, 2022 at 5pm. For all applicants who miss the December 8, 2022 deadline, there will also be a process available for applicants who wish to enroll in the designated neighborhood school for their home address or apply for a school that still has seats remaining after the first round of offers. These families should reach out to the Office of Access and Enrollment directly at gocps@cps.edu if they missed the December 8, 2022 deadline and wish to apply for Early Entrance to First Grade.

The application is now closed. Please contact gocps@cps.edu or (773) 553-2060 if you are still interested in Early Entrance to First Grade for the 2023-24 school year.

Early Entrance to First Grade (previously known as the First-Grade Age Exception) is the admission of a student to first grade who will reach the age of six years old between the dates of September 2nd and December 31st of the year in which they wish to enroll. There are no changes to the district’s current policy related to the First Grade Age Exception. This is not a process by which a student can skip kindergarten. In order to apply for Early Entrance to First Grade, students must: (1) turn six years old between September 2nd and December 31st of the school year for which they are applying; (2) have attended preschool and kindergarten at the same non-CPS school (daycare centers do not qualify for this process); (3) have been taught in kindergarten by an appropriately certified teacher; and (4) be deemed ready by the non-CPS school to work at the first grade level.

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Early Entrance To First Grade

The application window for applicants seeking to apply to Choice, Magnet, and/or Selective Enrollment programs for the 2023-24 school year will be open from Wednesday, September 14, 2022 until Thursday, December 8, 2022 at 5pm. For all applicants who miss the December 8, 2022 deadline, there will also be a process available for applicants who wish to enroll in the designated neighborhood school for their home address or apply for a school that still has seats remaining after the first round of offers. These families should reach out to the Office of Access and Enrollment directly at gocps@cps.edu if they missed the December 8, 2022 deadline and wish to apply for Early Entrance to First Grade.

The application is now closed. Please contact gocps@cps.edu or (773) 553-2060 if you are still interested in Early Entrance to First Grade for the 2023-24 school year.

Early Entrance to First Grade (previously known as the First-Grade Age Exception) is the admission of a student to first grade who will reach the age of six years old between the dates of September 2nd and December 31st of the year in which they wish to enroll. There are no changes to the district’s current policy related to the First Grade Age Exception. This is not a process by which a student can skip kindergarten. In order to apply for Early Entrance to First Grade, students must: (1) turn six years old between September 2nd and December 31st of the school year for which they are applying; (2) have attended preschool and kindergarten at the same non-CPS school (daycare centers do not qualify for this process); (3) have been taught in kindergarten by an appropriately certified teacher; and (4) be deemed ready by the non-CPS school to work at the first grade level.

Early Entrance to First grade Information Sheet

English ESPAÑOL

Follow the steps below to apply for Early Entrance to First Grade for the 2023-2024 school year:

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Early Entrance To First Grade FAQ's

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Whole-Grade Acceleration

The application window for the 2023-2024 school year was open from September 14, 2022 until December 8, 2022 at 5pm

The application for the 2023-24 school year is closed.

Whole-grade acceleration (also known as grade skipping) is the full-time admission of a student who meets the criteria set forth by the district to a higher grade level than is typical given the student’s age, for the purpose of providing access to appropriately challenging learning opportunities. Per the Interim Accelerated Placement Policy approved for adoption by the Board on August 24, 2022, applicants for Whole-Grade Acceleration must be currently enrolled in 4th-6th grade. Students can only apply for Whole-Grade Acceleration for the school in which they are currently enrolled. A testing fee of $250.00 will apply for whole-grade acceleration; students who qualify for Free Lunch waivers are exempt from the testing fee.

Whole Grade acceleration Info Sheet

English ESPAÑOL

Follow the steps below to apply for Whole-Grade Acceleration for the 2023-2024 school year:

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Single-Subject Acceleration

The application window for the 2023-2024 school year was open from September 14, 2022 until December 8, 2022 at 5pm

The application for the 2023-24 school year is closed.

Single-subject acceleration is the admission of assigning a student to math and/or reading at the next higher grade level than is typical given the student’s age for the purpose of providing access to appropriately challenging learning opportunities. Per the Interim Accelerated Placement Policy approved for adoption by the Board on August 24, 2022, applicants for Single-Subject Acceleration must be currently enrolled in 4th-6th grade. Students can only apply for Single-Grade Acceleration for the school in which they are currently enrolled; the outcome of the Single-Subject Acceleration process cannot be applied to a different school to which the student may apply. A testing fee of $35.00 will apply to single-subject acceleration; students who qualify for Free Lunch waivers are exempt from the testing fee.

image of students in engineering lab

Single-Subject Acceleration

The application window for the 2023-2024 school year was open from September 14, 2022 until December 8, 2022 at 5pm

The application for the 2023-24 school year is closed.

Single-subject acceleration is the admission of assigning a student to math and/or reading at the next higher grade level than is typical given the student’s age for the purpose of providing access to appropriately challenging learning opportunities. Per the Interim Accelerated Placement Policy approved for adoption by the Board on August 24, 2022, applicants for Single-Subject Acceleration must be currently enrolled in 4th-6th grade. Students can only apply for Single-Grade Acceleration for the school in which they are currently enrolled; the outcome of the Single-Subject Acceleration process cannot be applied to a different school to which the student may apply. A testing fee of $35.00 will apply to single-subject acceleration; students who qualify for Free Lunch waivers are exempt from the testing fee.

Single subject acceleration Info Sheet

English ESPAÑOL

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Contact Info Office of Access & Enrollment

773-553-2060
gocps@cps.edu


Chicago Public Schools
42 W. Madison St, 3rd Floor
Chicago, IL 60602

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