Kindergarten Registration
Kindergarten registration for the 2025-26 school year is underway! To be eligible for kindergarten, a child must be 5 years old on or before September 1, 2025.
Please review the "About Online Registration" section and video below before clicking the online enrollment link. For additional questions about kindergarten and/or the district's Dual Language program, see the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) below or email studentupdate@district158.org.
Note: Students currently enrolled in the district’s Early Childhood Center (ECC) preschool program should NOT register for kindergarten now. Instead, ECC families will receive a registration link via email in April 2025.
About Online Registration
Before starting the online registration process, please have scanned copies of the following documents ready to upload.
- Birth certificate (Note: must be original, certified county-issued birth certificate)
- Parent ID (driver's license or state ID)
- Residency documentation
- Homeowners: HUD settlement statement/ALTA master statement, real estate tax bill, or signed lease agreement. Tax bills are mailed to households in the spring. To look up your property tax bill online, visit Kane County's website at https://kaneil.devnetwedge.
com/ or McHenry County's website at https://mchenryil.devnetwedge.com/. - Renters: Current signed lease agreement AND two utility bills in your name (water, natural gas or electric)
- Homeowners: HUD settlement statement/ALTA master statement, real estate tax bill, or signed lease agreement. Tax bills are mailed to households in the spring. To look up your property tax bill online, visit Kane County's website at https://kaneil.devnetwedge.
- Immunization/physical form, completed by physician - It is a requirement that all children entering Kindergarten have a physical exam form on file with their school prior to the first day of school; however, a physical form is not required to complete registration and may be provided via email any time prior to the start of school. In accordance with the state's first day exclusion policy, if a child’s physical is not submitted prior to the first day, the child will not be allowed to begin school. Note: Prior to submitting your child’s completed medical forms, parents are advised to make a photocopy for their records as copies will not be made at the schools or District Office.
- Optional: Current vision and dental exam forms may be uploaded during the online registration process.
Online Registration Video Tutorial
Watch the video below to guide your use of the online registration form. You may save and stop the process and return where you left off if you cannot complete the process in one sitting. If you have any questions, please contact the District 158 Registration Office at (847) 659-6147 or by email at studentupdate@district158.org.
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Kindergarten Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is full-day kindergarten?
Full-day kindergarten follows the regular full-day elementary schedule. A longer school day allows teachers more time to deliver their curriculum outcomes. When teachers have more time to teach, they can spend more time teaching outcomes that are challenging for students, delivering curriculum in a variety of ways, and re-teaching concepts. The half-day program does not always allow for such flexibility. Students enrolled in the full-day program will also attend physical education, music and art classes in addition to eating lunch and going out for recess.
Does the program recognize what is “developmentally ready”?
When School District 158 began planning for full-day kindergarten, we went back to the drawing board. Above all, teachers stressed the importance of a program that was geared to the developmental level of these young students. The program is built around the concept of “developmentally appropriate practices.”
Does the full-day program “push” first grade curriculum down to the kindergarten level?
Kindergarten students are taught kindergarten outcomes. The longer school day provides students more time to practice and learn these outcomes. First grade outcomes are not taught at the kindergarten level.
Does full-time kindergarten impact the curriculum of 1st and 2nd grades?
The curriculum outcomes are not changing or increasing just because we now have students for a full-day. The full-day kindergarten program will not affect the curriculum in other grades. Students should have a stronger mastery of the kindergarten outcomes when they leave the full-day kindergarten program, which may allow first and second grade teachers to spend more time on enrichment.
Are full-day starting and ending times the same as the regular elementary grades?
Yes, the full-day kindergarten starting and ending times will mirror the regular elementary schedule. All kindergarten students will ride the regular elementary bus routes to school. Full-day kindergarten students will ride the regular elementary bus routes home from school and half-day students will be transported home on a kindergarten only bus.
How will the program deal with students who are not ready to be away from home for a whole day?
We understand that students come to school with a variety of comfort levels about being away from familiar caregivers. Children are changing, growing, and adapting rapidly at this point in their lives. This change, while sometimes hard for parents, is a positive one in a child’s development. We do not anticipate that the transition to a full-day program will be different than the transition to a half-day program. We understand that parents are concerned and we will work with families to make sure that school, full-day or half-day, is a positive experience for children.
When will half-day students attend?
Due to bussing and class scheduling, half-day kindergarten students will attend in the morning.
What are the advantages of going full-day?
School District 158 firmly believes that a full-day experience is the most beneficial for students. The full-day program gives students the “gift of time”. Students will focus on the same material with more time to work through each concept.
Will full-day and half-day students be separated?
No. The program will mix full-day and half-day students.
Does Huntley 158 have a dual language program for kindergarten?
Yes. Huntley 158's Dual Language Program is an integral component of our multilingual services. Established in 2017, the program has progressively expanded to include additional grade levels annually. For more information about the Dual Language Program, please visit our dual language webpage or reach out to Lissette Jacobson, Director of Curriculum for Multilingual Services, at ljacobson@district158.org.