Foster Care Kindergarten Readiness

Children who experience foster care are consistently prepared for kindergarten at lower rates than children who do not experience foster care. Although the overall rate of kindergarten readiness has increased over the past few years, there has not been a substantial increase in kindergarten readiness for children who have experienced foster care. For both groups, annual readiness rates vary, but for non-foster students, improvements made prior to 2020 have been maintained since 2020. In the 2015-2016 school year, 46.8% of non-foster students were ready for kindergarten, and in 2025-2026, 58.7% of them were ready. For foster students there is annual variation but not evidence of sustained improvement in kindergarten readiness. In 2015-2016, 33.1% of foster students were ready for kindergarten, and in 2025-2026 37.9% were ready.

READ THE ERDC REPORT ON EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE OUTCOMES FOR CHILDREN & YOUTH IN FOSTER CARE

Kindergarten Readiness by Foster Care Status, 2015-2025 School Years

Kindergarten Readiness by Foster Care Status, 2015-2025 School Years

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Source: Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (2026). Washington Kindergarten Inventory of Developing Skills (WaKIDS) [2015-2026]. 
Notes: Readiness is defined here as ready in all six of the domains measured by the Washington Kindergarten Inventory of Developing Skills (WaKIDS).