Preschool Program & Screening Details
Preschool Programs
& Screening Process Information:
The Herscher School District offers a Preschool for All program that is grant/district funded to qualifying children. Also, in collaboration with the Kankakee School District #111, the Herscher School District offers a Head Start program to qualifying children. All children must go through a preschool screening in order to be considered for either of the programs. Preschool screenings are held in the Spring and are by appointment only. When the screenings are open, you can make an appointment through this website. The link will available on the home page.
If the district is not currently offering screening appointments, please click on the link below to put your name on the preschool screening contact list. This insures your child will be included in the next round of Spring screenings.
Preschool Screening Contact List-CLICK HERE
*Screening Requirements* per the bylaws of our preschool grants, we must collect the parent's proof of income and the child's official birth certificate prior to the preschool screening. Refusal to comply with the state's requirement will disqualify your child from the screening process and therefore the preschool programs.
Preschool Screenings: The district's preschool screening consists of the following components:
- Developmental Indicators for Assessment of Learning-4 (DIAL 4). The DIAL 4 is a screening tool administered by certified preschool staff and speech/language pathologists, assessing the following areas: vocabulary, visual-motor integration, language and speech development, English language proficiency, fine and gross motor skills, social skills and cognitive development.
- Ages & Stages: Social-Emotional Questionnaire. Parents complete the questionnaire to determine social-emotional risk factors.
- Parent Interview. An interview conducted by the district's Parent Educator to obtain information regarding environmental, economic and demographic background.
- Proof of Income. You will need to provide your household proof of income prior to screening. Although there is no cut off for income eligibility, it does factor in to a child's risk factor.
- Birth Certificate. A copy of your child's birth certificate is required prior to screening.
- Vision and Hearing Screening. A vision and hearing screening conducted by a state certified vision and hearing technician - when available.
The scores of the screenings are weighed and ranked, determining children to be most at-risk for academic failure. Families are offered openings in the preschool program based on their rankings. A waiting list of children is maintained throughout the school year in the event that openings become available in the preschool program.
Age Limits for Preschool: Children must be 3- or 4-years old on or before September 1st to qualify for preschool. If your child will be 5-years old on or before September 1st, they are eligible for Kindergarten. Please check back to this website in early spring to sign up for the Kindergarten Cafe, the district's Kindergarten orientation / pre-registration.
Program Information: The program consists of 4 preschool classrooms: 1 Head Start room and 3 Preschool For All rooms all located at Bonfield Grade School. The programs run a full-day from 8:00 AM - 3:05 PM. Preschool for All follows the Herscher School District calendar for grades Kindergarten-12th (174 days). Head Start will follow their own calendar set by the Kankakee School District.
Transportation*, hot lunch and supplies are provided by both programs and there are no registration fees. Class sizes are mandated by the bylaws of the grants and cannot exceed more than 20 students per classroom. All preschool classrooms have 1 certified Early Childhood Teacher and at least 1 licensed Paraprofessional.
*Transportation is provided to in-district students only. As well as those who live outside of the village "walk-zone". Transportation is the parent's responsibility if: the family lives outside of the Herscher School District boundaries, the family lives within the Village of Bonfield while the child is attending Bonfield Grade School.
For any other information or questions, please see our Preschool Program FAQ's or email Melissa DeLong at delongm@hcusd2.org