5112C - APPEAL FOR EARLY ENTRANCE TO KINDERGARTEN OR FIRST GRADE
Children of legal settlement who have not attained the age of five (5) by August 1st shall not be eligible for entrance into the kindergarten program nor shall a child who is not six (6) years old be eligible for entrance into first grade, unless the parents submit an appeal.
Such an appeal is to be submitted to the Curriculum Office by no later than October 1 and shall include the following information:
name of the child
birthdate
name and address of any kindergarten or preschool program the child has attended
narrative history related to attendance at another kindergarten or preschool program
Prior to making any decision on early entrance, the child will participate in a screening program to determine the child’s developmental readiness.
During the screening, the parents are to be interviewed in order to develop an adequate case history on the child and advised of the nature of the kindergarten (or first grade) program. No indication is to be communicated to the parents during the screening process. They should be told that the evaluation and viewpoints of the staff and parents will be presented to the Curriculum Office who shall make the final decision.
After the necessary data has been obtained, the decision whether or not to approve the appeal and enroll the child in the kindergarten (or first grade) program will be made by the Curriculum Office.
If the appeal is approved, the parents are informed of the decision, to counsel them about their child's particular strengths and weaknesses, and to complete the enrollment procedures for entrance into the kindergarten (or first grade) program.
If the appeal is not approved, the Curriculum Office is to contact the parents and explain the reasons why their child will not be eligible and to inform them of the enrollment procedures when their child meets the age requirements.