The Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) announced a new contract with Teaching Strategies to support the design and implementation of the new Minnesota Kindergarten Fall Assessment (MnKFA). The creation of a new assessment was signed into law by Governor Walz in 2023 and represents an investment in our future that will help give young learners the best experience to begin their school career. Additional historic investments in education from the 2023 and 2024 legislative sessions are already paying off at the high school level, with Minnesota celebrating a second year of record graduation rates. 

“While kindergarten is a critical milestone, limited data hinders our ability to improve children’s experiences across our statewide education system,” said Commissioner Willie Jett. “The Minnesota Kindergarten Fall Assessment is an opportunity to help us build a stronger bridge into kindergarten for all of our young learners and families.” 

Rather than administering a traditional test, the MnKFA is observation-based and designed to be embedded in everyday classroom experiences, allowing teachers to collect information through authentic learning activities such as conversations, play, and classroom routines. This approach reflects the state’s ongoing commitment to modernizing how we measure children’s learning and success.

MDE selected four domains of learning from the Early Childhood Indicators of Progress that ensure the assessment is developmental in nature:

• Social and Emotional Development

• Approaches to Learning

• Language, Literacy, and Communications

• Mathematics

Data collected from the assessment will support classroom instruction, inform local decision-making, and contribute to a broader statewide understanding of early learning and the transition into kindergarten. The MnKFA takes an asset-based approach that helps teachers identify where a child is in their development and learning. This assessment is not an accountability or kindergarten readiness test as kindergarten eligibility is based on age.

MDE will conduct a pilot of the MnKFA in fall 2026 and begin assessing all kindergartners in fall 2027. 

MDE selected Teaching Strategies based on priorities identified by Minnesota families, educators, early childhood experts, and kindergarteners. The assessment will reflect the preferences of Minnesotans and encourage best practice around educating and assessing young learners.