Preschool Program Information

Centennial Preschool offers both part-day and full-day classes. Full-day classes are currently held at all five of the elementary school locations (Blue Heron, Centennial, Centerville, Golden Lake, and Rice Lake) as well as the Early Childhood Center (located at Rice Lake). Part-day classes are only held at the Early Childhood Center. Centennial Preschool is taught by licensed teachers and is designed to help children prepare to enter kindergarten with the skills and behaviors necessary to be successful. Children who meet minimum age requirements and are toilet trained are eligible to enroll.

Children work on listening, personal and social development, language and literacy, thinking and math skills through guided play, group time, and social interaction. Activities include language arts, math, science, art, large muscle development (gym/outside), dramatic play, blocks, and music.

Registration begins in March for the following school year. Registrations are accepted through a lottery in early April. After the lottery, registration remains open so long as there is space available.

Enroll here using your current Eleyo account. New users, create a user account and password. Once your account is established, select either Community Ed at the top of the screen or click on the Community Ed tile. Now select Explore all Programs and select Centennial Preschool. Now simply follow through the steps, answering all the contract questions to complete your child’s contract and finish the registration process. If you do not receive a confirmation email, your registration is incomplete. Please log back into Eleyo to make sure your application is complete and submitted.

If you do not have internet access, please call the Early Childhood office at 763-792-6120 to submit a registration by phone.

You will receive a confirmation email if/when your child is placed in a class. Registrations received during the lottery period will be reviewed in randomized order. Post-lottery registrations will be reviewed on the first working day of each month in the order received so long as space is available and registration requirements are complete. See the checklist above for more information.  Families will be notified if a spot is available.

The Centennial Preschool administrative office will send out additional information via email in the spring and again in August. The August welcome letter will include information such as open house dates/times and more specifics regarding the Centennial Preschool classrooms.

Yes! Centennial Preschool is open to all students regardless of district membership. Please note that out-of-district Centennial Preschool students must still complete an open enrollment application to attend kindergarten in the Centennial district. Centennial Preschool students do not receive any priority for open enrollment.

Please see the Centennial Preschool brochure for monthly tuition rates. There is also a non-refundable registration fee charged when your child’s contract is approved. Tuition is charged from August through April in nine monthly installments, one month in advance. (For example, October tuition is invoiced on the first working day of September.) State funding allows Centennial Preschool to offer tuition discounts and scholarships based on household size and annual pre-tax income, however we do not offer 100% free preschool for Monday-Friday full-day schedules.

Tuition discounts are available to families to qualify, based on household size and income. In addition, Early Learning Scholarships are available to Centennial Preschool families. Click here for more financial information. 

Transportation for Centennial Preschool is provided only for students receiving coordinated services through Early Childhood Special Education (ECSE). Preschoolers are not allowed to ride the K-5 buses.

Yes, including all non-school days.

Pre-K Kids Club before and/or after school is available for full-day Centennial Preschool students only. Students may only use this care on days they attend preschool. Care can be contracted on a consistent schedule for any combination of days/times. Attendees can be dropped-off/picked-up anytime during the care window, but the daily rate is the same regardless of the length of care. Pre-K Kids Club attendees are supervised by preschool staff in a preschool classroom except for the 6-6:30 am and 4-5 pm periods, when they are combined with the K-5 grades. Click here for more information.

Yes, Centennial Preschool utilizes Creative Curriculum for Preschool. Creative Curriculum is approved by the state of Minnesota. To read more about the learning centers in our classrooms and the questions we use to promote thinking at each center, click here. 

Centennial Preschool uses the assessment tool Desired Results Developmental Profile (DRDP) to measure student growth throughout the year. The DRDP Assessment is a formative assessment instrument and represents a full continuum of development from early infancy up to kindergarten entry.

Assessment is completed bi-annually: once in the fall and once in the spring. The DRDP is an assessment tool approved by the state of Minnesota.

Our main goal for students is to see growth, which is why we assess students in the fall and spring. These assessment results show us where students are at when they enter preschool, what they already know, and how we can support their learning at a deeper level. For some students this may simply mean more exposure to letters and numbers, but for others it may be writing their name and being able to identify every letter/sound in the alphabet. We do aim to have our students know at least half of the letter names/sounds by the end of preschool. 

From Centennial Kindergarten teachers:

Your child will be learning so much in Kindergarten, so try not to stress out if they don’t have all the academic skills before entering Kindergarten. There are a few basics your child should be able to accomplish before Kindergarten, but know that these skills will continue to develop during their Kindergarten year:

• Identify the letters in their name

• Write their name (all uppercase is okay)

• Know the difference between letters and numbers

• Count from 1-20

• Knowing that words are made up of sounds

Each preschool classroom is made up of students from a variety of backgrounds with a variety of previous learning experiences. For those students who may be more advanced in their academics, teachers will assess their skills in the fall and differentiate learning activities based on each child’s skills. For example, one group of students may be practicing identifying their name and tracing the letters, while others are practicing writing their name without any tracing or assistance. And remember that while a student’s academic skills may be more advanced, their social-emotional skills are just as important, which is why we focus on both areas of learning in our classes.

Students may be playing together in one center, but their learning may look different. For example, two students may be at the dramatic play center in a pretend restaurant. One student may be “writing” the menu using invented spelling or symbols and drawings, while another may be practicing letters and writing words. Both are learning through play together, but are learning at their own pace and practicing different skills. 

Students who are more advanced can be wonderful role models in the classroom and can encourage and support their peers!

Children learn in a variety of ways, but at Centennial Preschool we believe children learn best through hands-on, interactive play. Research on learning in early childhood classrooms, shows that worksheets are not the most developmentally appropriate way children learn foundational learning concepts, like math and reading.

Before a child can complete a worksheet, they need to strengthen their hand and finger muscles to hold a pencil. Before a child can sit and focus on a worksheet, they need to practice self-regulation and impulse control. Before a child can understand more abstract concepts like letters, numbers, and what they mean, they need to practice this abstract thinking through imaginative, pretend play. Completing a worksheet does not necessarily mean a child is comprehending or understanding the content of that worksheet. These are all things we focus on in Centennial Preschool: providing play-based learning opportunities for students to practice the skills needed for more challenging academic learning.

Students can bring a cold lunch from home or receive a free hot lunch (or alternate meal). Centennial Preschool full-day classes and the afternoon part-day class provide a snack each day. We appreciate any snack donations to the classroom.

While school meals are now free, families who qualify are encouraged to complete an Application for Educational Benefits to ensure they are receiving any needed services.

Yes, Centennial Preschool is a four-star Parent Aware rated program.

Yes. Please be advised that having completed (or scheduled, if your child is not yet 3) an early childhood screening is required before your child’s contract request for Centennial Preschool is approved. Appointments may be scheduled online using your Eleyo account, by email to escreenings@isd12.org, or by calling 763-792-6120. Screening is a free service and is required for enrollment in a district preschool program or kindergarten.

One staff member per 10 students. Full-day classes have a teacher and two site managers or paraprofessionals. Part-day classes have a teacher and one paraprofessional.

Centennial Preschool is not open on non-school days. If there is a planned non-school day and it isn’t a holiday for our staff, we offer care for full-day students through Pre-K Kids Club at an additional fee. (You must have a pre-existing Pre-K Kids Club contract to use non-school day care.) Watch for more information via email and click here to register.