First Class Pre-K - Early Childhood Education

Resources

Alabama Transition to Kindergarten Toolkit

ECE Workforce Development

Head Start Collaboration Office

Mental Health for Educators

Mental Health for Families

Pre-K – 3rd Grade Early Learning

Professional Development

Special Education

Alabama First Class Pre-K has been ranked as the nation’s highest quality state pre-kindergarten program for 18 consecutive years!

Alabama First Class Pre-K offers 4-year-olds access to high-quality prekindergarten programs in their communities. It currently serves more than 24,000 children and has been awarded the highest quality rating by the National Institute for Early Education Research for 18 years.

Research on the program’s long-term impacts shows that children who participated in First Class Pre-K are more likely to be successful throughout their school careers than their peers who did not participate in the program. Alabama’s diverse delivery, voluntary, high-quality pre-k programs must meet specific quality assurances and abide by rigorous operating guidelines.

Click Here To
Locate a First Class Pre-K

Registration for First Class Pre-K for the 2025-2026
School Year Opens January 15th

Programs and Services

Alabama Standards for Early Learning and Development (ASELD)

The Alabama Standards for Early Learning and Development have been designed to support the state’s many early learning programs, as well as its early childhood students in high school, career technical schools or higher education programs. The ASELD offers a set of shared expectations for young children’s growth and development and provide a continuum of learning for all children, birth to age 5. They lay the foundation for what children should be able to know, do, and learn at age specific intervals.

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GOLD Assessment

The designated assessment tool for Alabama First Class Pre-K and the P-3 program is Teaching Strategies GOLD®. The department supports programs and educators using assessments to do what is best for young children.

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Other Resources

Registration for the 2024-2025 school year is open to all children who are Alabama residents that are 4-years-old by September 1, 2024. No child will be denied participation on basis of income, sex, race, color, national origin, or disability. If you need assistance with accessing the online application, contact a local First Class Pre-K program.

Frequently Asked Questions

The Alabama First Class Pre-K program supports quality, accountability, and child outcomes that extend well beyond kindergarten entry. The ADECE has implemented evidence-based strategies and methods grounded in research literature to assure that all Alabama 4-year-olds have access to excellent early learning classrooms in their communities. Classrooms are funded through a grant process in which sites must meet specific quality assurances and abide by rigorous operating guidelines. Alabama’s First Class Pre-K program has been awarded the highest quality rating by the National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) for 18 consecutive years.

A child must be an Alabama resident and be 4 years old on September 1 of the school year for which he/she is being registered.
For example, children born between September 1, 2019 and August 31, 2020 are eligible for First Class Pre-K for the 2024-2025 school year. Children born between September 1, 2020 and August 21, 2021 will be eligible for First Class Pre-K for the 2025-2026 school year.
Children who are eligible for kindergarten are not eligible for pre-k. No child will be denied participation on basis of income, sex, race, color, national origin, or disability.

Yes

There is no registration fee for First Class Pre-K programs. No child can be denied access to pre-k based income.

6.5 hours

There are classrooms in every county across the state. Click here to locate one in your community.

Visit prek.alaceed.alabama.gov to register your child. Each site will host a random selection drawing to enroll students.

Each program maintains a randomized waitlist that is used to fill an opening. Your child may be on more than one waitlist at a time.

Enrollees must provide a copy of the child’s birth certificate, proof of residence, an immunization record upon enrollment.

Numerous research studies have shown that children who participated in high-quality pre-kindergarten programs are less likely to repeat a grade, require remedial education, or be placed in special education; score higher on achievement tests; are more likely to graduate from high school and go on to college; get higher paying salaries as adults; and are more likely to stay out of prison and off welfare.