The Unique History of Four-Year-Old Kindergarten in Wisconsin

by Kids Forward | September 12, 2010

Home 9 Early Care and Education 9 The Unique History of Four-Year-Old Kindergarten in Wisconsin ( Page 3 )

As universal public 4-year-old kindergarten (4K) continues to expand across the state, many are not aware that 4K has a history going back over 160 years. The first kindergarten in the United States was founded in Watertown, Wisconsin in 1856, shortly after the first “kindergarten” was opened in Germany in 1837 by Friedrich Fröebel. Read more.

Join us to build a Wisconsin where
every child and family thrives.

Donate Now

Recent

The Room Where it Happens: Attend a State Budget Hearing

The Room Where it Happens: Attend a State Budget Hearing

by | Mar 29, 2025

In February, Governor Evers proposed his state budget. Read our reaction here and some of our analysis here (more to come soon!).  The Governor’s proposals now go to the Joint Committee on Finance (often called the Joint Finance Committee or JFC). This powerful...

State Budget: Youth Justice

State Budget: Youth Justice

by | Mar 27, 2025

Tough-on-Crime Narratives Uphold Wasteful Spending and a Developmentally Inappropriate Juvenile Justice System Main Takeaways Wisconsin relies far too much on incarceration and blames children for system-wide disinvestment in basic needs. Protecting our children means...

State Budget: Health Care

State Budget: Health Care

by | Mar 20, 2025

Governor’s Proposed Budget Expands Access to Health Care and Helps Reduce Racial Disparities Main Takeaways No matter where we live or what we look like, we all deserve to live safe and healthy lives. We all need access to quality, affordable health care that supports...

Sign up for Emails

Your address helps us identify your legislators and the most relevant messages to send you.