When to Enroll

If you have some schools in mind, go ahead and visit them. Take the tour and ask lots and lots of questions. During your visit, they should be able to give you an idea of their expected enrollment and anticipated vacancies.

1 mom found this helpful

Every school is different so just phone the ones you are interested in now to get a feel for it. And when you do find ones you like put your name in even if they seem full because you never know when a spot might open up.
Good luck.

Hi K.
I enrolled my son (whose birthday is 9/2) when he JUST turned 3...he was absolutely ready for a school setting and he adapted very well and loved it. Depending on if they change the cut off dates, he may be in pre-school 3 years before he hits kindergarten...which is ok with me, but he needed the socialization and school routine...he had a mixed class of 3 thru 5 year olds, and it was wonderful for him.

Good luck,

M.

Just adding to what everyone else said... you mentioned through eighth grade - you didnt mention if it was public school or private, but most public schools only go through 5th or 6th grade and then they go to middle school. My son went to pre-k through the park district for two years before he started Kindergarten and I think the structure and socialization helped. He's now in first grade... I can't believe how much homework they have to do!

Every school is different. We go to a local Catholic school which does not offer a pre-K program. Registration for kindergarten begins in October of the year before your child would go to kindergarten. The pre-school we attended began registration in January for school in September. The slots fill quickly, and there is usually preference for returning students and younger siblings of enrolled students. You'll need to contact the schools that you are interested in and see what they say.