Readiness for Kindergarten
Our community has measured children’s skills at kindergarten entry since 2017 through the locally-developed Early Childhood Skills Inventory (ECSI). The ECSI is a 6-item inventory, consisting of three statements related to children’s approaches to learning and three related to physical skills, that is completed by kindergarten teachers during the early weeks of school for each kindergarten student. Items are rated on a 3-point scale, based on how often the student demonstrates each skill independently. While aggregate percentages per item are meaningful, it is most helpful to group the skills by category. The percentages shown below represent the percentage of students that were seen to demonstrate these skills “All or Most of the Time” by each category and on all six skills in the entire inventory. It is a short assessment to provide our community with a “snapshot” of our children’s progress in developing skills that are important for success in school.
Source: Early Childhood Skills Inventory, All Elkhart County Public Schools, Collected and Analyzed by Horizon Education Alliance in partnership with school districts, 2017-2023
The Early Childhood Skills Inventory (ECSI) is a tool for understanding children’s skills at kindergarten entry. It was developed in 2016 by Horizon Education Alliance (HEA), an Elkhart County nonprofit. The tool was developed through drawing on existing, validated assessments, with significant input from local kindergarten teachers and early childhood experts. The purpose of the ECSI is to help our community understand whether the experiences children have before coming to kindergarten are providing them with opportunities to develop the skills that are important for school success. This information can help our community to better identify and respond to early childhood education needs in Elkhart County.
Kindergarten readiness data for Elkhart County has been collected each year since 2017 except for 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
By Gender
Approaches to Learning Skills
Physical Skills
All 6 Skills
By Race/Ethnicity
Approaches to Learning Skills
Physical Skills
All 6 Skills
By IEP Status
Approaches to Learning Skills
Physical Skills
All 6 Skills
By English Language Learner Status
Approaches to Learning Skills
Physical Skills
All 6 Skills
As a locally developed instrument, there is not comparable data for other schools or counties in the state of Indiana from the ECSI. Indiana began piloting a state-level Kindergarten Readiness Assessment in Fall 2024, with some Elkhart County districts choosing to participate in the pilot. Data from the pilot has not been made publicly available. According to the Education Commission of the States, there are at least 29 states plus the District of Columbia that require the use of an assessment tool at kindergarten entry.
In 2022, many partner organizations came together to form Building Strong Brains – Elkhart County’s Early Childhood Initiative. Building Strong Brains (BSB) is working to build a comprehensive, aligned system of support for all children under age 6 and the families who raise them so that every child is prepared when they enter elementary school. The ECSI data is particularly important to inform this collaborative community effort.
Several additional dashboards provide more detailed data and information related to early childhood opportunities and experiences. These include the Elkhart County Child Dashboard and the Early Years Initiative Dashboard.
