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Early Entry/Kindergarten Testing

Welcome to Kindergarten at Creighton Elementary School District!

An exciting year awaits, filled with adventurous learning designed to enhance your child's growth and development. This very important year promises to be one filled with discovery and joy as your child works and plays in an environment that is warm, safe, and challenging. Creighton offers FREE full-day kindergarten to our families. Our full day program provides a deeper understanding of language arts, with a focus on the literacy elements of phonics, vocabulary, comprehension, science and social studies.

Qualifications and Registration

To register for Kindergarten, your child must turn 5 by August 31. To register, you will need:

1. Immunization records
2. Birth certificate
3. Proof of Residence
4. Parent Identification

Kindergarten registration is open! Stop by your neighborhood school to fill out a registration packet and take a tour of the school. You can also register your child online by clicking this link: Click here for the online registration link.

Early Entry Kindergarten Testing

Any child turning 5 years old between September 1 - December 31 qualifies to take the early entry test. The student must be tested within the first 30 days of school.

Testing is offered at the Creighton Family Resource Center starting June 1 - September 13 of the current school year. Call to schedule your appointment.

Creighton Family Resource Center
2052 N. 36th Street, Phoenix, AZ 85008
(602)381-4605
Email: FamilyResourceCenter@Creightonschools.org

Kindergarten Readiness

What skills your child should have when entering into kindergarten (written by scholastic parents). For the online article click here.

Use this guide to learn which skills your child should have at the start of the school year, and what skills they will likely have built at the end.

Kindergarten is an exciting time of exploration for your child. As her motor coordination increases, so too will her sense of independence, self-reliance, and self-confidence. As the year progresses, she’ll be expected to complete assignments with less outside help, accept more responsibilities, and follow rules more closely.

Skills Required at the Beginning of Kindergarten
Skills Acquired During Kindergarten

Skills Required at the Beginning of Kindergarten

You may want to review this list and see if there is anything else you would like to teach your child before those first days of school. Keep in mind that this is just a guideline; the exact expectations may vary from program to program.

Identify some letters of the alphabet
Grip a pencil, crayon, or marker correctly (with the thumb and forefinger supporting the tip)
Use scissors, glue, paint, and other art materials with relative ease
Write his first name using upper- and lowercase letters, if possible
Count to 10
Bounce a ball
Classify objects according to their size, shape, and quantity
Speak using complete sentences
Recognize some common sight words, like “stop”
Identify rhyming words
Repeat his full name, address, phone number, and birthday
Play independently or focus on one activity with a friend for up to ten minutes
Manage bathroom needs
Dress himself
Follow directions
Clean up after himself
Listen to a story without interrupting
Separate from parents easily

Don’t panic if your child hasn’t nailed everything on the list — she’ll learn a lot in kindergarten. What’s more important is to wean her from relying on you to do things she could do herself, such as zipping her jacket or tying her shoes. Give her the chance to show you what she can do — you might be in for a few surprises!

Skills Acquired During Kindergarten

Although the curriculum may vary from school to school, general goals focus on children building strong pre-reading skills, practicing letter formation, enhancing listening and communication skills, getting an introduction to basic math concepts, and acquiring an active interest in the world. Generally speaking, your child will be expected to have these skills listed out in the sections below.

Language Arts

Recognize and write all of the letters of the alphabet in upper- and lowercase forms
Write his first and last name
Learning sounds corresponding to vowels and consonants
Use initial consonant sounds and sound patterns to read words (for example, f + an = fan; r + an = ran)
Identify several sight words, including names of colors
Recognize and use rhyming words
Retell a story including details
Put the events of a story in order
Write simple sentences using sight words and phonics skills

Listening & Communication

Math

Sort and classify objects using one or more attributes
Recognize and write numbers to 30
Count orally by ones, five, and tens
Name ordinal numbers first through tenth
Add and subtract using manipulatives (Cheerios, candy, etc.)
Understanding spatial relationships (top/bottom, near/far, ahead/behind)
Compare quantities by estimating, weighing, and measuring
Use graphs to gather information
Recognize patterns and shapes
Tell time to the nearest hour
Count coins
Recite the days of the week and months of the year

McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act

Information for families:

The 2002 reauthorization requires that children and youths experiencing homelessness are immediately enrolled in school and have educational opportunities equal to those of their non-homeless peers. The statute requires every public school district and charter holder to designate a Homeless Liaison to ensure that homeless students are identified and their needs are being met. (Arizona Department of Education)

If your family lives in any of the following situations:

In a shelter, motel, vehicle, or campground
On the street
In an abandoned building, trailer, or other inadequate accommodations
Doubled-up with friends or relatives because you cannot find or afford housing

Then your preschool-aged and school-aged children have certain rights or protections under the McKinney Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act.

Your Rights
Resources

Your Rights

Go to school, no matter where you live or how long you have lived there
Continue in the school you attended before you become homeless or the school you last attended
Receive transportation to the school you attended before you became homeless
Enroll in school without giving a permanent address
Enroll and attend classes while the school arranges for the transfer of school records and/or immunization records

If your family lives in any of the above conditions, you may be eligible for assistance under the McKinney-Vento Act. Please contact us in determining your eligibility for our programs.

Resources

Ivan Carvajal
Community Education Director
(602)381-6132
icarvajal@creightonschools.org

Open Enrollment

Creighton School District offers many choices in education. We welcome open-enrollment students from other Creighton schools and other Arizona districts.

To open enroll please visit: https://az-crsd.edupoint.com/PXP2_OEN_Login.aspx

Arizona students may attend public schools outside their attendance areas or their districts based on capacity. If no excess capacity exists, the school will place you on a waiting list and inform you when space is available. The school may reject open enrollment if the student has been or is in the process of being expelled from another school district or other educational institution.

General Education Capacity

This table indicates which schools in Creighton have open enrollment capacity for each grade level. This information is updated every six weeks. Therefore, it is possible that there have been changes. Please work with the front office staff at the school of your choice for the most up-to-date data. “Open” indicates that we are accepting open enrollment at the time of the last data update. “Wait List” indicates we are unable to accept open enrollment for the particular grade level at the school and, therefore, the child can be added to a wait list.

Special Education Capacity

If you scroll down on the same sheet with the tables the second page indicates which schools in Creighton have open enrollment capacity for special education students based on programs. If a student needs both academic placement and speech services, there must be capacity in both programs at the program site. This information is updated every six weeks. Therefore, it is possible that there have been changes. Please work with the front office staff at the school of your choice for the most up-to-date data. “Open” indicates that we are accepting open enrollment at the time of the last data update. “Wait List” indicates we are unable to accept open enrollment for the particular special education program at the school and, therefore, the child can be added to a wait list.

Foster Care Education

Who Are Students in Foster Care?

As of March 2020, there were 13,319 Arizona children and young people, ages from birth to 18, removed from their homes by the Department of Child Safety (DCS) due to the existence of neglect or abuse. The intention of foster care is to provide temporary respite and safety for struggling families, with the goal of safely reunifying (after the family has met certain conditions). If that is not possible, alternative forms of permanency are sought, including searching for an adoptive family or a placement with a permanent legal guardian.

Foster Care Education Point of Contact

Ivan Carvajal
Community Education & Outreach Director
(602)381-6132
icarvajal@creightonschools.org

The Importance of Education for Students in Foster Care

All children and young people should receive a quality education. For most students, their parents are their primary champions, making sure their child’s needs are met at every step along their educational journey. For students who experience foster care, successfully navigating the path to educational success becomes more challenging. Their families have been disrupted; they have been removed from their homes and the Arizona Department of Child Safety (DCS) has assumed responsibility for their safety, health and well-being, including their education. The competing priorities of system-involvement, such as housing, medical and behavioral health services, visitations, parenting plans, long term permanency, can make it difficult for parents, caregivers and students to feel informed and empowered about their educational needs and rights.

Education is often the last thing to get addressed when a student is in foster care and their academic
progress can fall out of focus. For many students in foster care, too often the opportunity to learn has been interrupted by home and school moves. When students in foster care experience frequent school changes, they lose the critical connections and relational support needed to thrive in adolescence and adulthood. They miss out on the normalcy of experiences like playing sports and joining clubs.

Despite this, hope lives! Leaders across the country and in Arizona and young people and their adult allies, have united to develop new laws, policies, practices and investments to support the educational success of students in foster care.

Guaranteeing An Education

Under Arizona law, children and youth in foster care have the right to “go to school and receive an education that fits the child’s age and individual needs.” School can provide students with critical connections to friends, caring adult allies and a sense of normalcy in an otherwise unpredictable time. The benefits for students in foster care and their communities, when they receive a continuous, high-quality education, are limitless.

Provisions of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA)

Federal educational protections under ESSA and Fostering Connections apply to students who are in “foster care.” “Foster care” means 24-hour substitute care for children placed away from their parents or guardians and for whom the child welfare agency has placement and care responsibility. This includes, but is not limited to, placements in foster family homes, foster homes of relatives, group homes, emergency shelters, residential facilities, childcare institutions, and pre-adoptive homes. An adapted summary of the key provisions of ESSA is below.

Right to Remain in School of Origin
Under ESSA, the Arizona Department of Education (ADE) must take steps to coordinate with the Arizona Department of Child Safety (DCS) to ensure school stability for children and young people in foster care. This includes making sure that students enroll or remain in their “schools of origin” unless it is not in their best interest to do so. “School of origin” is the school in which a child is enrolled at the time of placement in foster care. If a child’s foster care placement changes, the school of origin would then be considered the school in which the child is enrolled at the time of the placement change.
Immediate Enrollment
When it’s in the best interest of a student to change schools, ADE must ensure immediate enrollment in a new school, even if the student or caregiver cannot produce normally required enrollment documents (such as transcripts and vaccination records). Additionally, the new school must immediately contact the former school to obtain any relevant academic or educational-related documents.
Transfer of School Records, Regular Attendance, and Participation
Additionally, when a student in foster care does transfer schools, the new school must immediately contact the former school to obtain any relevant academic or educational related documents. Schools must also ensure students are regularly attending, fully participating, and their needs are met.
School Transportation When Necessary
Schools that receive Title I funds (most public schools, including charter schools) must collaborate with DCS to develop clear written policies and procedures governing how transportation to ensure school stability will be provided, arranged for and funded during the time the student is in foster care (in a cost effective manner and in accordance with child welfare law that permits the use of certain, federal Title IV-E funds for school stability).

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