Kindergarten Enrollment FAQ
Children who will be 5 years old by August 31 and are Somerville residents are eligible to register.
The Priority Registration Period is the approximately six-week period when the Kindergarten registration portal opens to the closing priority deadline. Students who submit a complete registration during this period participate in the priority assignment lottery.
Yes, your child will not participate in the first round of assignments lottery but will be assigned based on seat availability.
No, there is no advantage to enrolling on the first day the portal opens. Families simply need to submit a completed registration within the priority registration period to participate in the priority PK lottery assignments.
Attend our school tours and then rank your top five school choices in order of preference.
Yes.
Priorities apply to your first choice school only:
- Sibling: Your child has siblings already enrolled for the upcoming school year at their first‑choice school.
- Proximity: The first‑choice school is your child’s designated proximity (neighborhood) school.
Students not assigned to a first choice school will be placed automatically on the waitlist for that school. The Enrollment Office will inform parents/guardians when a space becomes available.
If you do not get your 1st choice, including Unidos, do we automatically go into our 2nd choice? No, assignment to a second-choice school is not guaranteed and depends on seat availability.
Students not assigned to a first choice school will be placed automatically on the waitlist for that school. The Enrollment Office will inform parents/guardians when a space becomes available.
If you do not get your 1st choice, including Unidos, do we automatically go into our 2nd choice? No, assignment to a second-choice school is not guaranteed and depends on seat availability.
Parents/guardians of students who are not assigned to a first-choice school are automatically placed on the waitlist of their first-choice school. Students will only be added to one waitlist and must be currently enrolled. The Enrollment Office will inform you when a space becomes available for your child to attend your first choice school.
All school waitlists expire on November 1. At the end of October, the Enrollment Office will contact all families regarding the waitlist. Parents/guardians must confirm with the Enrollment Office whether they wish to remain on the waitlist until the end of the school year.
The school principal will determine your student’s teacher assignment. You will be notified of the assignment in mid-August.
No, there is no Kindergarten placement preference based on a student’s SPS Pre-K placement. Attending Pre-K at a PK–8 school does not guarantee or prioritize a Kindergarten seat at that school.
An IEP is not considered if the student can receive their services in a general education classroom.
- If your child is attending a K-8 Somerville Public School, you do not need to submit a new application through PowerSchool.
No, you will not need to submit an application for 1st grade. However, in December we will reach out to families to collect their 5 school choices for 1st grade.
Twins are placed in the lottery together.