Get connected with your child’s school -- be sure to register early! If your child is enrolled at an Appleton Community 4K site, most Kindergarten registration paperwork is already completed. Additional information about Kindergarten registration and orientation will be provided through your home school.

If your child is eligible to attend kindergarten this fall and is not currently enrolled in Appleton Community 4K, please contact Enrollment Services at our Welcome Center. 

They will help you determine your home school, talk through your options, and they can even help you enroll and set up school tours. Please call Enrollment Services at (920) 852-5308 or view our school boundaries.

Elementary Meet and Greet events usually take place the week before the first day of school and is an opportunity for families to meet their child’s teacher, principal, and other staff members, as well as drop off school supplies. Date and time information for meet and greet events can be found on each school website under Our School and then Annual Student Registration.

Welcome visits are offered to families with children birth to five and also incoming kindergarten students. The Birth - Five Outreach Program offers a welcome visit (at the Community Early Learning Center, at home, the neighborhood school, or any community building like the Appleton Public Library, etc.) to parents of children ages birth to five-years-old.

A folder of information is shared with the parent or guardian during the visit and includes information about school and community programs, activities and resources. Please call to set up an appointment with one of our Resource Coordinators at (920) 852-5300 ext. 61016. 

The Appleton Area School District offers a summer school program called “Kindergarten, Here I Come” to all incoming kindergartners.

This highly recommended program is designed to introduce and/or reinforce basic skills for kindergarten. Students have a lot of fun and meet new friends while becoming familiar with the school setting. 

Read more about this year's schedule and offerings on our Summer School page. 

• Create a routine over the summer. Give your child a bedtime (7:30 or 8:00 PM is great) and stick to it.
• Have your child practice writing their first name. If they can do this, try your last name or practice lower case letters.
• Use counting in your daily activities. Count how many steps it takes to get to the mailbox or the park. Count out fruit, place mats, napkins and so forth.
• Take your child with you to the grocery store, post office, library and other errands.
• Talk with them about what they're seeing, hearing and touching. It’s all part of learning!
• Visit your local library and help your child get a free library card. Then use the card to visit the library each week and borrow a book. Talk about the books you read. Ask questions like, “What was your favorite part of the story?” or “Which part did you like least?” Halfway through, ask your child what they thinks will happen at the end.
• Let your child practice their independence by allowing them to make limited choices. “Do you want an apple or a banana?” Encourage them to try new things.
• Set a limit to the amount of TV your child watches (1-2 hours daily). When possible, watch TV with them and talk about what you see.
• Prepare a “study spot” for your child in the kitchen or living room and supply it with crayons, paper, scissors and other kindergarten tools. Let your child draw there while you make dinner. Once school starts, this can become the time and place where she does her homework.

Help your child know or be able to do the following before they enter kindergarten: 

• Name, address and telephone number
• Use the bathroom on their own and button and zip their clothes
• Share and play with other children - this will help them to adjust to their new classroom

3-5 Year-Old Developmental Screenings offered through the Appleton Area School District are highly recommended. We encourage families to participate in screenings for all children ages 3 to 5 who are not enrolled in 4K.

The purpose of the developmental screenings is to check on the child's overall development and to determine if the child may need further testing or services prior to kindergarten. The district offers many programs and services for children who may need support before kindergarten. This is your child's "other check-up" to make sure your child's development is on track so when the time comes, your child will be ready to transition to kindergarten.