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Madison Metropolitan School District

Four-year-old Kindergarten (4K)

Community Events

Orchard Ridge Elementary School is excited to participate in the Madison Metropolitan School District (MMSD) full-day 4K expansion! The expansion began with the operations referendum that the Madison community passed in November 2020.

We are offering 2 full-day classrooms with instruction provided in English 4 days per week Tuesday-Friday. Each classroom will have 16-20 students. Contact the school office for more information about bilingual 4K classroom options (for native Spanish speaking families only) at nearby locations. 

In 4K, students learn through a play-based model that provides the opportunity for skill building and development in several areas including language, vocabulary, early literacy, and math skills, as well as social skill development. 

The full-day schedule will include breakfast, lunch, exploration time for learning, small/large group instruction, outdoor play, and quiet learning/rest time.

Families must live in the Orchard Ridge attendance area boundary to attend full-day programming at the school.  Space in the full-day classrooms is limited; a lottery will be conducted if interest in attendance exceeds the authorized student enrollment. Students enrolled will be expected to attend four full days per week, Tuesday through Friday. Half-day programming is available at Chavez Elementary School for Orchard Ridge families who are interested in half-day 4K programming.

MMSD/MSCR does not provide “wrap around” or before/after school care for 4-year-old students outside of 4K instructional hours. The ECE sites that contract with MMSD for 4K may offer before/after school care.  Please contact the sites directly for more information. 

Visit the Community Coordinated Child Care to find more information about childcare and preschools in the Madison area.

Visit the MMSD Online Enrollment website for details and to enroll. For general information about the MMSD 4K program, visit madison.k12.wi.us/4K.

2023-24 Enrollment

  • On-line begins Feb 27
  • Elementary school staff available in-person, by phone, email or Zoom beginning March 6, from 2:00-6:00pm

What every parent needs to know about 4K and 5K