Choosing a Kindergarten

Pre-primary education can enhance your children’s physical, intellectual and social development at an early stage. Here you can learn about how to choose a quality kindergarten for your children and other pre-primary alternatives.

What are the benefits of pre-primary education?

 Pre-primary education lays an important foundation for life-long learning and whole personal development. By attending a kindergarten, children can:

 
  • engage in physical activities and cultivate a healthy lifestyle;
  • develop basic language skills and logical thinking;
  • build up communication skills; and
  • explore their own creativity.

You can refer to the booklet issued by the Curriculum Development Council for recommendations on pre-primary curriculum.

Guide to the Pre-primary Curriculum – Parent Booklet (pdf file)

What should you look for in a kindergarten?

A quality kindergarten should:

   
  • operate in a safe and hygienic premise;
  • offer a stimulating learning environment;
  • employ professionally trained teachers;
  • adopt an all-round curriculum with inspiring activities; and
  • focus on holistic development of children, including positive learning attitudes, good character and healthy living habits.

You can find more tips for choosing a kindergarten on the links below.

FAQs on choosing a kindergarten

For comparison, you can also check out the profiles and official quality reports of kindergartens on the following links.

Profiles of Kindergartens and Kindergarten-cum-Child Care CentresQuality Review Reports

How can I get subsidy for kindergarten education?

Children who are Hong Kong residents and aged 2 years and 8 months or above as at 31 August of the year of admission are eligible for the Pre-Primary Education Voucher Scheme (PEVS), provided by the Student Finance Office (SFO). The Scheme offers fee subsidy to parents of children attending nursery, lower or upper classes in eligible local non-profit-making kindergartens. Each eligible student will receive a Certificate of Eligibility for PEVS, with which the student can receive fee subsidy when attending relevant classes in a kindergarten eligible for voucher redemption.

More on PEVS

Parents who need financial assistance on top of the subsidy from PEVS may apply for fee remission under the Kindergarten and Child Care Centre Fee Remission Scheme (KCFRS). Eligibility for KCFRS is subject to the applicant’s passing the means test, and the social needs test in respect of application for whole-day fee remission.

More on KCFRS

Child Care Centres

Children under 3 may also attend a standalone child care centre, or a child care centre in a kindergarten-cum-child care centre which caters for young children up to the age of 6.  Some child care centres provide full-day services for needy children and families, and some cater for children and families with special needs.

More on child care centres
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Last revision date: September 2023