• Getting Started
• Summary of Services
• Your Child's Development
• Transition to Kindergarten
• Contacts

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Preschool: Transition to Kindergarten

Any student receiving preschool special education services who will turn 5 by September 30 and thus will be of Kindergarten age for the following school year is considered to be a transitioning preschool student. For most transitioning preschool students, a re-evaluation will be completed to determine an area of eligibility other than Developmental Delay (DD). The transition process begin in the fall, when many schools host Preschool Transition Information sessions. At that time a preschool teacher, school psychologist, school social worker and other specialists will review the transition process and answer any questions parents may have. Beginning in the winter, schools begin to schedule initiation of re-evaluations for preschool students. In February, preschool teachers usually meet with school age program special education teachers to share information and receive updates on the transition process. In the spring, teachers usually begin holding transition IEPs. There are almost always held at your neighborhood school with representatives from various programs present at the meeting. At the time of the IEP, goals will be reviewed, along with accommodations, progress towards meeting IEP goals, present levels of performance and service delivery options to determine the most appropriate school age services for the child. Services are provided on a continuum. Some children may participate in a general education kindergarten class with some resource support, while others may need some additional support in a small-group environment for portions of the day, while others may require a self-contained classroom for all or most of the day. Children do not need to be “ready” to transition to kindergarten , as their program will be designed to meet their individual needs.