Kindergarten

To enter kindergarten, your student must be five years old on or before August 31.

As of July 28, 2019, a new state law removes the personal and philosophical option to exempt children from the MMR vaccine required for school and child care attendance. Learn more...

Registration

Kindergarten registration begins at your local school. Additional information on registering for kindergarten and forms can be found on the Register for Kindergarten page.

Philosophy

The kindergarten program in the Northshore School District provides children a foundation for academic success and develops an enthusiasm for life-long learning. Student outcomes are standards-based and focus on the whole child:  academically, socially, emotionally, and physically.  

Before school begins, kindergarten teachers will meet with families to get to know the students, their families, and their stories. Additionally, teachers evaluate students in many areas to determine students' strengths. This helps teachers plan a program based on the needs of the children.

The developmentally appropriate learning environment provides substantial opportunities to learn through purposeful play that honors student choice and provides teacher-guided, interactive small-group, and large group experiences. The kindergarten school year is an important time to provide students with rich, relevant learning experiences that allow them to reach goals that are both challenging and achievable regardless of their varied experiences and backgrounds upon entering kindergarten.

 

Kindergarten Readiness

 

Highly Capable Process for Kindergarten

The kindergarten eligibility process incorporates two steps--screening AND assessment. All kindergarten students will be automatically screened for potential highly capable eligibility.

Students meeting the criteria threshold on the screening tool will move on to assessment. Parents of students moving on to the assessment level will be notified. Per Washington state law, parent permission is required to assess a student. Assessments will occur during the school day and will be administered by trained proctors.

Visit the Highly Capable web page to learn more.

 

Early Entrance to Kindergarten

Although Northshore does not encourage early entry for the vast majority of students, application for testing for early entrance is available at parent expense for students who turn 5 between September 1 and November 30. Students who turn 5 on December 1 and beyond will enter kindergarten age appropriately.

  • Please read the Early Entrance to Kindergarten FAQs before completing the application.
  • Additional early entrance information is available through the Office of Elementary Education, 425.408.7705.

For registration, please contact our registrar:

425-408-5603

District Kindergarten Page