Assessments

Download or Print 25-26 Assessment Calendar

DATE	ASSESSMENT	GRADES LEVELS
FALL
August 13 - August 31, 2025 district assessment	iReady diagnostic assessments Reading & Math Additional growth checks are given monthly through iReady.	Grades 3 - 8
August 15-August 31, 2025	Acadience diagnostic assessments Reading & Math	Grades K-2
30 days from start of school year state requirement	WIDA EL Screener (Speaking, Listening, Reading, Writing) **Students whose primary/home language is one other than English(as indicated on the Home/Language Survey) will be screened. Screening results are communicated to parents and determine if a child is considered an EL learner.	Preschool - 8
August - October, 2025 (Must be done within first 40 days of student attendance) state requirement	Kindergarten Individual Development Survey (KIDS) (Social Emotional Development, Language & Literacy, and Cognition-Math) **This tool is designed to help teachers, administrators, families, and policymakers better understand the developmental readiness of children entering kindergarten through classroom observations.	Kindergarten
September, 2025 district assessment	SAEBERS SEL Survey (student/teacher) **This tool assesses both internalizing and externalizing behaviors as well as the presence of social skills in students. Students self-assess their social, academic, and emotional behavior.	Grade K-8
August - October 2025 grant requirement	Early Learning Scale (ELS) (Math/Science, Social-Emotional/Social Studies, Language and Literacy) **This tool is an informal, observation based assessment that measures a child’s progress and performance over time and in the context	All Preschool
Fall 2025 grant requirement	Ages and Stages (Developmental and Social Emotional) *This tool highlights or detects developmental delays with the help of families and early educators. This includes hearing and vision screenings every 6 months.	Birth to 3
Fall 2025 grant requirement	Parenting Interactions with Children: Checklist of Observations Linked to Outcomes (PICCOLO) *This tool is a checklist of 29 observable developmentally supportive parents behaviors in four domains (affection, responsiveness, encouragement, and teaching)	Birth to 3
WINTER
November 28 - December 20, 2025 district assessment	iReady diagnostic assessments Reading & Math Additional growth checks are given monthly through iReady.	Grades 3 - 8
December 1 - December 15, 2025	Acadience diagnostic assessments Reading & Math	Grades K-2
State: January 15 (earliest) – March 4, 2026 (latest) state requirement	Assessing Comprehension and Communication in English State-to-State for English Language Learners (ACCESS)	Grades K - 8 students who qualify for EL services
March 3 - April 30, 2026 state requirement	Illinois Science Assessment (ISA)	Grades 5 and 8
March 24 - April 11, 2026 state requirement	Illinois Assessment of Readiness (IAR) (English/Language Arts and Math)	Grades 3 - 8
March 12 - May 9, 2026 state requirement	Dynamic Learning Maps (DLM) **This is an alternate assessment to the IAR given to approximately 1% of the student population. Specific criteria must be met in order for a student to take the alternate assessment,	Grades 3 - 8
November 2025 - March 2026 grant requirement	Early Learning Scale (ELS) (Math/Science, Social-Emotional/Social Studies, Language and Literacy) **This tool is an informal, observation based assessment that measures a child’s progress and performance over time and in the context of typical, daily activities.	All Preschool
Winter 2025 grant requirement	Parenting Interactions with Children: Checklist of Observations Linked to Outcomes (PICCOLO) *This tool is a checklist of 29 observable developmentally supportive parents behaviors in four domains (affection, responsiveness, encouragement, and teaching)	Birth to 3
SPRING
April 24 - May 22, 2026 district assessment	iReady diagnostic assessments Reading & Math	Grades 3 - 8
April 27 - May 8, 2026	Acadience diagnostic assessments Reading & Math	Grades K-2
March- May 2026 grant requirement	Early Learning Scale (ELS) (Math/Science, Social-Emotional/Social Studies, Language and Literacy) *This tool is an informal, observation based assessment that measures a child’s progress and performance over time and in the context of typical, daily activities.	All Preschool
April 2026 (must be done in the 2nd semester) state requirement	FitnessGram (Physical fitness exam) *This tool assesses aerobic capacity, flexibility, muscular endurance, and muscular strength.	Grades 3 - 12
Spring 2026 grant requirement	Ages and Stages (Developmental and Social Emotional) *This tool highlights or detects developmental delays with the help of families and early educators. This includes hearing and vision screenings every 6 months.	Birth to 3
Spring 2026 grant requirement	Parenting Interactions with Children: Checklist of Observations Linked to Outcomes (PICCOLO) *This tool is a checklist of 29 observable developmentally supportive parents behaviors in four domains (affection, responsiveness, encouragement, and teaching)	Birth to 3

State Assessments

+ Access

Administered to all eligible English Language Learners yearly in winter.

ACCESS is given annually and measures students’ progress towards academic English proficiency in four domains: Listening, Reading, Writing, and Speaking. Information from this assessment is used to determine levels and areas of language support. It is also used as a summary tool for school accountability in the State of Illinois.

+ Dynamic Learning Maps (DLM)

Administered to 3-8 students with significant cognitive disabilities yearly in spring.

The Dynamic Learning Maps assessments are for students with the most significant cognitive disabilities for whom general state assessments are not appropriate, even with accommodations. DLM assessments offer these students a way to show what they know and can do in English language arts, mathematics, and science.

+ Illinois Assessment of Readiness (IAR)

Administered to 3-8 grade students yearly in spring.

The Illinois Assessment of Readiness (IAR) is the state assessment and accountability measure for Illinois students enrolled in a public school district. IAR assesses the Illinois Learning Standards Incorporating the Common Core and is administered to students in English Language Arts and Mathematics.

+ Illinois Science Assessment (ISA)

Administered to 5th and 8th grade students yearly in spring.

In compliance with federal testing requirements, Illinois administers a science assessment to students enrolled in a public school district in grades 5, 8 and 11. The assessment is administered in an online format and is aligned to the Illinois Learning Standards for Science incorporating the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), which were adopted in 2014.

+ Kindergarten Individual Readiness Survey (KIDS)

Administered to all kindergarten students yearly in fall.

The Kindergarten Individual Development Survey (KIDS) is an observational tool designed to help teachers and administrators better understand the developmental readiness of children entering kindergarten. KIDS is core to the Illinois State Board of Education’s (ISBE) goal that every child in Illinois deserves to attend a school wherein all kindergarteners are assessed for readiness. KIDS focuses on the knowledge, skills, and behaviors that most impact long-term student success. This assessment takes place within the first forty days of the Kindergarten school year. KIDS focuses on the knowledge, skills, and behaviors across four key domains that most impact long-term student success. The domains are: Approaches to Learning and Self-Regulation; Social and Emotional Development; Language and Literacy Development; and Cognition: Math.

+ WIDA EL Screener

WIDA Screener is given to new students in grades K–12 whose home language is other than English to help educators identify whether they are English learners.

+ FITNESSGRAM

All Illinois public schools are required to administer a physical fitness assessment to students in grades 3-12. Illinois has selected FITNESSGRAM, a health-related fitness test that is intended to help students acquire lasting habits of regular physical activity.

The four required areas of fitness assessment are as follows:

For Aerobic Capacity, grades 4-12 will take the PACER test (recommended) or Mile Run Test (alternate) or Brockport test (adapted);
For Flexibility, grades 3-12 will take the Back-Saver Sit and Reach test (recommended) or Trunk Lift test (alternate) or Brockport test (adapted);
For Muscular Endurance, grades 3-12 will take the Curl-Up test or Brockport test (adapted); and
For Muscular Strength, grades 3-12 will take the Push-Up test or Brockport test (adapted).

For each fitness area of the FITNESSGRAM, a student's performance is classified into the Healthy Fitness Zone (HFZ) or Needs Improvement (NI). The desired performance goal for each test option is the HFZ, which represents a level of fitness that offers some protection against the diseases related to physical inactivity. The NI designation indicates an area of fitness where a student would benefit from activities designed to improve performance in that area.

District-Level Assessments