Is Pre-K the Same as Preschool? What’s the Difference in Illinois?

Preschool is an early learning program before kindergarten. Pre-K usually means the last year of preschool, when children are 4 or 5. Some programs, including Chicago Public Schools, also use “pre-K” for 3-year-olds. The main difference is how each program uses the name, so check the ages it accepts.

If you’ve toured a few daycare centers recently, you might’ve heard the words ‘preschool’ and ‘pre-K’ used to describe the same group of 4-year-old kids. Searching online doesn’t clear it up either, because the guides you’ll find can’t agree on when exactly preschool begins: some start it at 2 years old, others at 30 months. If you’re not good with math, it might get confusing. In Illinois, however, the answer is simpler than the brochures make it look. Below, we’ll walk you through what the names mean, how to work out which year your child is in, what changes in pre-K, and what to ask about it on your next tour.

First things first: what is pre-K?

Pre-K is basically the last year of preschool, the one right before kindergarten. Children are usually 4 when the year starts and turn 5 at some point during it. Preschool covers every year from age 3 until kindergarten, and pre-K is only the final one.

Why one center says pre-K and another says preschool

Illinois doesn’t draw a line between the two terms. The state’s licensing rules give a room of 3-year-olds and a room of 4-year-olds the same staffing, with one adult for every 10 children and no more than 20 in a group. The Illinois Early Learning and Development Standards cover children from age 3 until they start kindergarten, and there’s no separate set for pre-K.

Even the public programs use the words interchangeably. The state program is called Preschool for All and serves children ages 3 to 5, while Chicago Public Schools lists the same age group under ‘CPS Pre-K (3 and 4 year olds).’

So, when a daycare center says pre-K, that’s simply the name it gives its 4-year-old room, and the same child could be in a room called preschool two blocks away. 

Names you’ll hear on Chicago tours

PreK-3 and PreK-4 are named after the age children are when the year starts, so PreK-3 is for 3-year-olds, and PreK-4 is the year before kindergarten.

Some centers call the two years Preschool 1 and Preschool 2, or Junior Preschool and Senior Preschool. It’s the same idea with different words.

Junior kindergarten is what some private schools call the year before kindergarten. Latin School of Chicago, for example, admits its youngest students into junior kindergarten.

The twos room comes before any of these. It’s for children from 2 to 3 years old, and Illinois gives it a smaller ratio of one adult to every eight children. We cover it in our guide to what age preschool starts.

And, if a friend in California mentions TK, or transitional kindergarten, that’s their state’s program. You won’t come across this term in Illinois.

How to tell which year your child is in

Chicago Public Schools counts your child as a 4-year-old for the whole school year if their fourth birthday falls on or before September 1st. Public school districts use the same date for kindergarten, where children need to turn 5 by September 1st. Once you know those two dates, you can work it out from your child’s birthday.

Let’s take Emma, born on June 10, 2022. She turns 4 in June 2026, which makes 2026-27 her pre-K year, and she’ll head off to kindergarten in August 2027.

Her friend Kevin was born on October 3, 2022, just a month after the age cutoff. For him, 2026-27 still counts as a 3-year-old year. His pre-K year comes after that, in 2027-28, and he’ll start kindergarten in August 2028, a few weeks before his sixth birthday. Basically, Kevin gets one more year of preschool. 

Ask the teachers what the oldest children work on during that extra year. They should be able to give you examples, like writing short words or helping lead circle time.

Keep in mind that CPS opens in late August, before the cutoff date. If your child’s birthday falls in the last days of August, they’ll start the pre-K year while they’re still 3 years old. Private schools also set their own cutoffs, and some fall later than September 1st. That means a fall-birthday child who misses the public date may still qualify at a private school.

What changes in the pre-K year?

By the end of their pre-K year, children are working toward the CDC’s milestones for 5-year-olds. By then, they can typically count to 10, write some of the letters in their names, and name some letters out loud when you point to them. They can also pay attention to an activity for an extended time, and take turns in a game with other children. That being said, don’t worry if your child isn’t there yet in September. Kindergarten doesn’t test for any of this, and children get there at their own pace over the year.

In a pre-K classroom, you’ll usually notice these changes:

• Group time gets longer, and children listen to a story and then answer questions about it.
• Children start writing their own names on their artwork and cubby labels, first with help and then on their own.
• Teachers play listening games with the first sound of a word, like which friend’s name starts with the letter ‘M.’
• Children move from reciting numbers to counting real things, like the cups set out for snack time.
• Teachers give instructions in two steps, such as ‘wash your hands, then find your spot on the rug.’
• Children look after their own coat, bag and lunch box, with less help from the teachers.

Should 3-year-olds and 4-year-olds share a room?

In Illinois, when children of different ages share a room, the center has to staff it for the youngest child there. Since 3-year-olds and 4-year-olds have the same ratio, a center can mix them without hiring an extra teacher.

In a mixed room, the younger children watch and copy the older ones, and the 4-year-olds get to practice explaining and helping their younger ‘peers.’ Teachers split activities by level, so at the same table a 4-year-old might be writing their name while a 3-year-old traces shapes.

In a separate pre-K room, teachers can plan the whole day around the year before kindergarten, with longer group activities and more letter and number work for everyone.

Both setups can prepare your child well for kindergarten, as long as the teachers plan for each age. If the room is mixed, ask how they plan pre-K work for the oldest children.

Questions to ask about the pre-K year on a tour

1. What ages are in the room my child would join? The staff should be able to tell you the birthdays of the youngest and oldest children in the group.
2. Does my child move up on their birthday or in August? Privately run centers often move children up when they turn 4, while school-based programs move the whole class at the start of the school year.
3. How do you tell parents how their child is doing with kindergarten skills? Ask whether you’ll get written updates during the year and a meeting with the teacher before kindergarten.
4. Does the program run a full day and all year? Public pre-K follows the school calendar, which we compare in our guide to private vs. public preschool in Chicago.

The preschool years at LadyBug & Friends

Our Preschoolers program runs from age 3 all the way to kindergarten under one curriculum. There’s no separate program to apply for when your child turns 4, and no new building to get used to. Our teachers guide the children through group time, discovery time, art, dramatic play, early numbers, early literacy and handwriting, with activities designed to feel like what they’ll meet in kindergarten and their first years of school.

Families can choose two, three or five days a week, and we’re open from 7am to 6pm. One dad summed it up in his review: our curriculum ‘keeps the day interesting and also prepares the pre-schoolers for the move to kindergarten.’

Book a tour and ask to spend some time in one of our preschool rooms. You’ll see for yourself what our oldest children are working on before kindergarten.

Frequently asked questions

What is pre-K 3?

Pre-K 3 is a class for children who are 3 at the start of the school year, the year before the pre-K year. Some schools use the name for any room of 3-year-olds. If you’re not sure, ask which birthdays the class covers.

Is pre-K the same as kindergarten?

No. Kindergarten is the first year of elementary school and comes after pre-K. In Illinois, a child needs to turn 5 by September 1 to start kindergarten in a public school district.

Can my child skip preschool and go straight to pre-K?

Yes. Children join in the pre-K year all the time, and teachers plan for new faces every fall. Our guide to what age preschool starts covers what to ask when your child joins at 4.

Is junior kindergarten the same as pre-K?

Usually, yes. It’s the name some private schools use for the year before kindergarten. Check which age the school takes, since it can vary from one school to the next.

Is pre-K required before kindergarten?

No. Illinois law, 105 ILCS 5/26-1, only requires school attendance for children who are 6 by September 1. Neither preschool nor pre-K is required, and a child can start kindergarten without either.

What is the difference between Head Start and pre-K?

Head Start is a federal program, free for children up to age 5 from low-income families, and it includes health and family support services alongside the classroom. Pre-K is the name for the year before kindergarten, whoever runs it. That makes a Head Start class for 4-year-olds one kind of pre-K.