Kindergarten Information
Kindergarten
The Litchfield Elementary School District #79 offers free full day kindergarten for students.
Students must be age 5 by August 31 of the school year they will be attending.
Getting to know your Kindergartner
Coming Spring 2025! The Litchfield Elementary School District will ask you to sign-up and bring your child up to a Getting To Know Your Kindergartner summer session at the end of July. During this session, your child will meet one-on-one with a kindergarten teacher at your child's school campus. The teacher will take some time to get to know your child and gather some academic and social information. This information will be used to help the school appropriately place your child with the teacher that will best meet their needs.
Getting to know your Kindergartener
Schedule an appointment
*If you have submitted an Open Enrollment application, please wait until you have received notice of acceptance before signing up for an appointment.*
Early Entrance Kindergarten
The Litchfield Elementary School District #79 offers early entrance kindergarten exception for children if it is determined to be in the best interest of the child. Early kindergarten entrance is available for children who live within the LESD district boundaries ONLY. This also applies to employees of the district.
General Information
Children who turn five years old between September 1 and December 31 of the school year that you are wanting your child to start Kindergarten can be evaluated for early kindergarten entrance during a specific time frame in the summer of that year. No early kindergarten requests are granted after the school year starts.
The Early Kindergarten Acceptance Process
All applicants for early kindergarten entrance that are received in the time frame specified each year will be assessed to determine their maturity level and readiness for learning. Normally applications become available on April 1 for the next school year. Each parent who turns in the completed Early Kindergarten Entrance Request Form by the due date on the application form will be contacted to set up an assessment for their child. The assessment will take place in June and will last approximately 30 minutes. LESD School Officials will then determine if early entrance for kindergarten is in the best interest of the child. Early entrance will be approved for students who demonstrate exceptional social and emotional maturity, and whose learning needs are advanced. These students should perform similarly in respect to behavior, social, emotional, and academic skills to their older classmates in order to meet the challenges of the LESD kindergarten curriculum. We will admit students early if we feel confident that they can be successful during their kindergarten year and move on to first grade with the necessary skills, maturity, and confidence. The decision of our School Officials is final. There is no appeals process.