Here in the Philippines, your child’s age and birth month are major concerns when enrolling them in Kindergarten. But the revised age rule recently set by the Department of Education for incoming Kindergarten pupils for SY 2025-2026 has addressed this issue.

Heads up, Moms: your child might be headed for Kindergarten sooner than you expected!

First things first: What was the old Kindergarten age rule, and why was it a major concern? 

As a prerequisite to Grade 1, Kindergarten is a mandatory and compulsory one-year preparatory education here in the Philippines for children at least five years of age. This is according to Republic Act 10157 or Kindergarten Education Act of 2012.

Then, only when your child turns five on or before August 31 will they be qualified to enroll in Kindergarten in the current school year. This is a concern for parents whose kids were born from September 1 onwards.

In the revised Kindergarten age rule, a child who turns five (5) years old by October 31 of the current calendar year will already be eligible for Kindergarten.

Hooray, parents of September and October babies!

So if your child is born in November or December, do you wait for another school year? 

Based on the amendment to the enrolment procedures, if your child will turn five (5) years old from November 1 to December 31, he or she may be considered for Kindergarten, provided that:

• your child has completed an Early Childhood Care and Development (ECCD) Program for one school year. You need to submit your child’s Certificate of Completion or Attendance as proof of ECCD program experience, or
• your child will undergo the Philippine Early Childhood and Development (ECD) during the enrollment period until the first week of the school year. A Kindergarten teacher of the receiving school will administer the checklist, and the results will determine if your child is eligible for admission to Kindergarten.

These steps are done to make Kindergarten more accessible and inclusive.

Where can you access the ECCD Program?

The Early Childhood Care and Development (ECCD) Program is offered by public or private Child Development Centers (CDC) or Learning Centers (LC). These centers provide Early Learning Programs which are “child-centered play-based programs designed to provide early stimulation and learning opportunities to children aged 0 to 4 years old.” You may check with your barangay or local government unit to learn more about their ECCD Programs.

Note that only CDCs and LCs with permits and recognitions will be honored, so it’s a must to check first before enrolling your child to any of these programs so you’re sure your time and effort are not wasted.