Transitional Kindergarten Program Launches at Cabrillo Elementary Schools

A Transitional Kindergarten (TK) program is officially coming for the first time to Cabrillo Unified School District (CUSD) elementary schools, and it’s not too late to register your child.

In response to moving the entry date for enrollment in Kindergarten from Dec. 1 to Sept. 1, the TK program purpose is to provide the youngest students (for students this year, that would be November birth date students) with a two-year kindergarten program, including this first transitional year.

The program is developmental in nature to support student success and a strong foundation in elementary school, said CUSD assistant superintendent Elizabeth Schuck.

"This program will be a bridge between preschool and kindergarten that will give children whose birthdays fall late in the year an opportunity to learn important academic and social skills in a hands-on way that supports their development," Schuck explains on the District's website.

There will be one TK class at Hatch, the southern end of the district, and one class at Farallone View, the northern end of the district, according to Schuck.

As of June this year, enrollment for the program was low: Nine students for Hatch and six students for Farallone View, including one from El Granada.

“If the numbers increase to 24 in each, they will be solely TK classes. If the numbers don't, they will be combination classes of Transitional Kindergarten/Kindergarten,” said Schuck.

Classes will be differentiated specifically to TK or K students “much as we do with other split classes,” said Hatch Elementary School principal Mark Loos.

"While we welcome more students to our existing class, the class is not dependent on increased enrollment," adds Joy Dardenelle, Farallone View principal.

Parents are welcome to enroll now, and all elementary schools are open and taking new enrollees, whether for TK or other grades, added Loos.

So far, there’s been enough interest to support the program.

“As educators we are anxious to provide this important first step for our youngest enrollees,” said Schuck. “We are also required to offer the program.”

State law mandates that all schools offer TK for children born late in the year.

California State Sen. Joe Simitian, who authored SB 1381, otherwise known as the Kindergarten Readiness Act, changed the minimum age requirements so that all children must turn 5 years old by Sept. 1 in order to start kindergarten that year, mandating that all schools in the state offer TK for students that otherwise would have been old enough to start kindergarten, having a birthday that falls between Sept. 2 and Dec. 2.

"Transitional kindergarten is part of a statewide reform, which will be shifting the kindergarten entry date and offering transitional kindergarten to all children in California affected by the change," explains Schuck on the District's website. "Providing transitional kindergarten to our youngest kindergarteners will help kids get the best start possible, with curriculum that is designed just for them."

The TK program benefits students in two ways, according to Loos.

“It gets younger students into an academic setting earlier and provides them access to a rigorous curriculum, providing them an extra year to show academic gains and success.”

Loos sees continuing the program in Cabrillo schools in the future.

“We are very excited to get this going at Hatch,” he said.

"This early support will give our youngest students a strong educational foundation," said Dardenelle, "which will benefit the school and our Coastside community as a whole in years to come."

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