Get Ready for Kindergarten
Age Requirements
- Children must be five years old by December 1 in order to enter Junior Kindergarten
- Children must be five years old by August 1 in order to enter Kindergarten.
- Children must be six years old by August 1 in order to enter first grade.
Get Ready for Kindergarten
Do you have a preschool or Kindergarten-aged child? Are you looking for some ideas to help them get ready for preschool or Kindergarten? Here's an information article from the National Association for the Education of Young Children that provides some valuable tips and activities for helping your child be ready to navigate Kindergarten.
naeyc.org-Ready or Not Kindergarten Here We Come.pdf
You can also find a several useful activities in these preschool curricular resources found by following this link:
Preschool Curricular Resources
Brigance Assessment
Students who apply for Kindergarten will complete the Brigance Kindergarten Readiness Assessment.
The Brigance assessment measures readiness in multiple areas:
- knows personal information (name, age, birthday, phone number, address)
- academic/ cognitive (alphabet, shapes, numbers, etc.)
- language development (verbal fluency and articulation)
- physical development (gross and fine motor skills)
A staff member will contact you to schedule. Assessments are one on one with a certified proctor and last approximately 30 minutes.
Early Admission to Kindergarten
Kindergarten for Archdiocese of Louisville begins with students who turn age 5 on or before August 1 for the 2026-2027 school year. In accordance with KRS 158.031(6), Archdiocese of Louisville has established criteria for early admission into kindergarten, for students who have mastered established benchmarks and if the child has above-average skill levels before age 5.
Students who turn 5 years old between August 2 and October 1 may be eligible to enroll provided that the student meets or exceeds predetermined physical, behavioral, academic, and social/emotional criteria established by the Archdiocese of Louisville and St. Gabriel School. Only children that meet or exceed this criteria will be considered for early admission to Kindergarten.
The application to petition for early admission will be open between November 1, 2025, and March 1, 2026, for those that feel their child has above-average ability levels and wish to petition for early admission to kindergarten. After the March 1, 2026 deadline, there will not be any opportunities to petition the school for early admission to kindergarten for the 2026-2027 school year.
Criteria for Early Admission (per section 5114.1 of Archdiocese of Louisville Handbook for Catholic Schools)
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Child must turn 5 between August 2 and October 1 of the admission year; and
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Child must score at or above the 80th percentile on the BRIGANCE Kindergarten Screen Three core assessments, self-help, and social-emotional scales; and
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Child must meet the admission criteria of the local Catholic school
Students born between August 2 and October 1 of the admission year who do not score at the 80% or above on the BRIGANCE Kindergarten Screen Three may be considered for admission to junior kindergarten or preschool for no additional fee.
Early Admission to Kindergarten Petition Process
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Parent/guardian will complete the online application as the initial step for petitioning for early entrance to kindergarten.
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The admissions team will review the application.
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Once an application is approved, the parent/guardian will be contacted by school staff to set up an appointment for a screening.
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The student will be screened by qualified St. Gabriel staff.
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Parents will be notified of their child’s screening results within two weeks of the screening.
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The decision based on screening results is final. There is no appeal process. If a child does not meet the criteria there will be no opportunities to rescreen or appeal the findings
Note: Being prepared for kindergarten is more than just mastering basic academic skills. A child must be prepared academically, socially-emotionally, and physically. Research shows that children are more likely to transition to kindergarten if they are the same age as their peers. An extended period of early childhood play yields mental health and social development.
