Is your child ready for kindergarten?

A child’s readiness for kindergarten is based on a child’s current development and not on their intelligence or your parenting. 

Starting kindergarten directly relates to the age they will start at primary school. 

If your child’s birthday is between January and April, it is recommended that you carefully consider whether your child is ready to start 3-year-old kindergarten in the year they are eligible or whether they would benefit from starting the following year.  

Some children benefit from a delayed start to kindergarten to allow more time to gain skills for a positive start to their learning journey.

When thinking about readiness for 3-year-old kindergarten, some things to consider are:

Does your child:

• Become greatly distressed without you?
• Have a foundational understanding of sharing with others and turn taking?
• Understand and follow simple instructions?
• Have a way to communicate that is mostly understood?
• Ask for help when they need it?
• Positively engage with other children in a group?
• Use or shows interest in using a toilet?
• Feeding themselves ?
• Help pack up after themselve?
• Have gross and fine motor skills?
• Child tire easily?
• Need a daytime sleep?

When your child starts 3-year-old kindergarten, their Educators will work with you to support their transition to kindergarten and creating a positive experience for your child.

The Victorian Government funds one year of 3-year-old kindergarten, and one year of 4-year-old kindergarten. 

For a child to repeat 3 or 4-year-old (Pre-Prep) kindergarten they will need to be assessed for eligibility to have a second year approved.   

Children can go to kindergarten when they're 6 years old if they have a disability, developmental delay or under special circumstances.

You can find out more about eligibility and what you need to do to apply for a school exemption. Going to kindergarten if your child is 6 years old

There are some of the benefits of deferring a child’s start to kindergarten which include:

• Increased confidence and social skills
• More time to develop skills
• Able to better manage the transition
• Increased understanding of instructions and following directions.

If you decide to defer your child’s start to kindergarten there are activities you can do in the meantime which may help build their confidence and skills including:

• attending childcare
• attending occasional care
• regular playdates
• joining a playgroup
• library storytime sessions
• preschool sports and dance programs like Kindagym, dance/movement classes.

Thinking about enrolling your child in kindergarten and unsure if they are ready for kindergarten?

Watch a recording of our Kindergarten Information and Readiness session.