Why Kindergarten Readiness Matters for all Ohio Children
- 2 hours ago
- 4 min read
By Wendy Grove, Ph.D., Senior Advisory, Research, Evaluation, & Impact, Ohio Department of Children & Youth
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Every child in Ohio is born with the potential to learn, do, and become anything they dream. It is our job as parents, policy makers, teachers, and caregivers to keep them safe and in a loving environment that allows their brains to grow strong and healthy. Beginning before birth, babies’ brains are forming neural connections that determine their learning capacity.1 By the time a child starts kindergarten, we can see just how well we have maximized this period of brain development with learning opportunities and nurturing.
In Ohio, we have a set of questions and activities that kindergarten teachers do with each child starting public or community school in the fall. Ohio’s Kindergarten Readiness Assessment (KRA) measures a child’s preparedness to fully engage in the kindergarten curriculum. The KRA is a critically important milestone measure for the state of Ohio because:
Research has proven that identifying children early in their academic journey allows us to have a greater positive impact on their well-being.2
Supporting young children in their learning reduces the likelihood of adolescent risk-taking behaviors and mental health struggles.3
Kindergarten readiness predicts third grade proficiency, which in turn predicts attendance, high school completion, higher income, employment stability, and lower reliance on social services and involvement with criminal justice systems.4
In addition to the research literature, children in Ohio who are demonstrating readiness are more likely to score Proficient on the Ohio State Tests for literacy and math starting in third grade. This likelihood is true even when we account for socioeconomic disadvantage, disability, English Learner status, and race. Stated another way, we know with statistical certainty, which children are most likely to meet the state’s standards for math and literacy proficiency and which children are not. Unlike almost any other test we give or take, the kindergarten readiness measure gives us a four-year head start to support (and intervene, if needed) so that every Ohio child learns to read and write.
This past fall, almost 105,000 Ohio children completed the KRA. And the results show some great things. In Fall 2025, more Ohio children started kindergarten demonstrating readiness than ever before.5 This means that 7,600 more children are already on their way to meeting the math, literacy, and social emotional challenges that come with school. Even more exciting is that almost 17,000 more children performed “on track” for their grade level expectations in language and literacy skills and knowledge than in the previous year.
We believe these results are due to the state’s investments in teaching scientific methods of literacy instruction, increasing access to early learning opportunities through early care and education, and breaking down barriers for child care programs’ use of a teaching curriculum. We also have analyses which show that attending preschool increases an Ohio child’s likelihood of demonstrating readiness at kindergarten entry.6
Kindergarten readiness matters because it predicts everything that comes after. It’s true, our own data on Ohio children show this predictability through statistics. We know that children who are supported to succeed in school are more likely to graduate from high school, which is directly tied to earning potential and pathways of opportunity that include career, college, and the military.
Each child in Ohio deserves to have the opportunity to be whatever he or she wants to be. With the known importance of kindergarten readiness, you now know that the time and energy we put into our babies and little people are essential for their academic, social, and economic chances. We have organized some free and fun ways to make sure you are getting the little people you love ready for kindergarten! We’ve got easy to access guides and a set of cards that provide ideas for supporting learning while you’re doing the normal things you do, like mealtime, bathtime, and playtime. Another fun and easy thing you can do is sign up for the Dolly Parton Imagination Library and start getting a book a month delivered for free that is perfect for whatever age your child is between birth and five. We also have companion guides for these books, as well as a bunch of easy tips for supporting your child’s early language and literacy.
Doing what’s right for kids starts with knowing the importance of being kindergarten ready and doing all we can to get every Ohio child there!
Citations
Dr. Wendy Grove serves as the Senior Advisor for Research, Evaluation, and Impact (REI) at the Ohio Department of Children and Youth. She holds Bachelor’s degrees in Psychology and Sociology from Gonzaga University, a Master’s degree in Sociology from Portland State University, and a Doctorate in Sociology from the University of Akron. Previously, she served as the Director of the Office of Early Learning and School Readiness at the Ohio Department of Education, where she helped develop and implement policies for preschool special education and early childhood education.
