No, a preschool should not give your child an entrance test, a score or a ranking. At Global Star School, as at preschools generally, the admissions meeting is a two-way conversation: the school learns about your child's age, routines, languages, health and any support needs so the teachers can place and prepare well, and you learn how the school will get to know your child and care for them. If your child joins in, they play while the adults talk.
Parents who have been through competitive school admissions elsewhere sometimes arrive expecting an interview their toddler has to pass. That is not what happens, and it should not be. This guide explains why early childhood settings avoid testing young children, what the school is actually trying to learn, how to talk honestly about development or difficulties, and how to prepare yourself and your child without turning a friendly meeting into a performance.
Why preschools do not test young children
There are good reasons why early childhood education avoids entrance tests. Children under six develop quickly and unevenly. A two-year-old who says very little in a new room may be chatty at home; a four-year-old who will not draw a circle on request may do it happily the next day. Any single snapshot of a young child's abilities, taken in an unfamiliar place with strangers watching, is unreliable. Early childhood organisations such as the National Association for the Education of Young Children in the United States have long cautioned against using tests to make high-stakes decisions about young children for exactly this reason.
There is a second reason, which matters just as much. A preschool's job is to welcome children as they are and support their development from there, not to select the children who are already furthest ahead. In Vietnam, preschool is the first level of the national education system, and assessment within it is meant to follow each child's progress over time through observation, never to grade or rank them. That principle applies just as much on the first day as on the last.
Families coming from systems where entry to some private kindergartens is competitive, sometimes with observed play sessions or interviews, may find this surprising. It is worth asking the school directly how it decides on places. A typical answer is a combination of age, availability in the class, the order of applications and, where relevant, whether the school can meet a child's needs safely, none of which depends on how your child performs in a meeting.
So if anyone offers to "prepare your child for the preschool interview", you can safely decline. What helps is information, honestly shared, and a relaxed child, not a rehearsed one.
What the school wants to learn about your child
Age and stage. The exact date of birth decides the class, but the school also wants a picture of where your child is now: walking, talking, toilet habits, how they play, what they enjoy. This helps the teachers plan, not judge.
Daily routines. When your child naps and for how long, how they fall asleep, what and how they eat, whether they still have milk at set times. Routines are where young children most often struggle in a new setting, so details here are valuable.
Languages. Which languages your child hears at home, from whom, and how much they understand and say in each. In a bilingual class with Vietnamese and English, children who also speak Korean, Japanese, French or another language are common, and teachers plan around that.
Previous care. Whether your child has been in a nursery, a playgroup, with a nanny or at home with a parent, and for how long. A child new to group care needs a different kind of start from one who has been in a setting for two years.
Health. Allergies, ongoing conditions, medicines, recent illnesses. These go into the enrolment file, but discussing them in person helps the school ask the right follow-up questions.
Your family. Who lives at home, who will drop off and collect, how long you expect to stay in Vietnam, and anything going on in your child's life such as a recent move or a new sibling. Context helps teachers understand behaviour in the first weeks.
What happens if your child comes along
Many admissions meetings take place with the child in the room or nearby, and for a child over about two, it is usually a good idea to bring them. The school is not looking for a performance. Often a teacher or staff member will offer some toys, invite your child to play, or let them explore a corner of a classroom while the adults talk. What the staff notice in those minutes, how your child approaches new things, how they communicate, how they check back with you, is simply useful background for the teacher.
Your child may do none of the things you hoped. They may refuse to speak, cling to you, ignore the toys entirely or decide that the most interesting object in the room is the door handle. All of this is normal for a young child in an unfamiliar place, and experienced early years staff see it every day. It will not count against your child, and you do not need to apologise for it or coax them to show what they can do.
If your child is upset, it is fine to keep them on your lap or step outside for a moment. If they are tired or hungry, say so; it is better to rearrange a meeting than to have an unhappy first impression of the school for everyone concerned.
Talking honestly about development and support needs
Some parents worry that mentioning a delay, a diagnosis or a difficulty will reduce their child's chances of a place. The opposite approach usually works better. A school that knows in advance can plan: arrange a gradual start, brief the teachers, think about which class and which adults suit your child, and discuss whether any extra support is needed. A school that only finds out in the second or third week has to react rather than prepare, and that is harder for your child.
Share what you know in plain terms: what you have noticed, what any doctor or therapist has said, what helps at home, and what you are unsure about. Bring copies of any reports you have, in English or Vietnamese if possible. Ask the school directly how it supports children with additional needs, what it can and cannot offer, and how it works with outside specialists if your child already sees one.
Admissions staff are not there to diagnose, and they should not. If something about your child's development worries you and has not been looked at, the right person to talk to is a doctor or a qualified specialist. Specialist screening and early intervention are covered on our sister site devoted to special educational needs; the admissions meeting is about making a good start possible.
Children who speak neither Vietnamese nor English
There is no language requirement for joining a bilingual preschool class, and there should not be. Many children in international families arrive speaking a different home language, or only a few words of English, and young children are remarkably good at joining in through routines, gestures, songs and play long before they speak the classroom languages.
What helps is preparation on the adult side. Tell admissions which language your child speaks, how much English or Vietnamese they understand, and whether they have been in a setting where another language was used. Offer the teachers a short list of key words in your home language, written phonetically: water, hungry, toilet, tired, hurt, mummy, daddy, home. Mention any comforting words or songs your child knows.
Ask how the class supports a child in this situation in the first weeks. In a class with a Vietnamese homeroom teacher and a foreign or bilingual co-teacher, children hear two languages through the day, and many families find that their child begins to understand far sooner than they speak. The question of how to keep a home language strong alongside two school languages is covered in our section on multilingual families.
What you should learn from the meeting
The meeting is also your chance to understand how the school will get to know your child. These questions are less about policies, which you can read, and more about the people who will care for your child each day.
- Who will be your child's main teacher, and who should you speak to with day-to-day questions?
- How will the teachers learn your child's routines in the first days, and how will they tell you how it is going?
- Which language will teachers use when messaging you, and can both parents receive updates?
- What will the first week look like for a child of this age who has never been in group care, or who has?
- How does the school handle a child who is very upset at drop-off, and when would they call you?
- If your child has particular needs, who coordinates the support and how often will you meet?
If you are comparing two campuses, ask the same questions at both. The answers are often similar on paper, but the way staff talk about the children in their care, with examples, names and a sense of humour, or in general phrases, says a good deal about the daily atmosphere.
Notice how these questions are answered as well as what is said. Specific, patient answers about real children usually tell you more than a polished description of the programme.
Preparing yourself and your child
It can help to think about what you most want the school to remember after the meeting. For most parents it is two or three things: how my child falls asleep, the one food that is dangerous, the word my child uses when they are frightened. Say those clearly, and write them on the form as well.
For your child, preparation means very little: a short, simple explanation that you are going to see a school with toys and other children, a meeting time that avoids naps and meals, a snack and a drink, and perhaps a favourite small toy to hold. Do not rehearse answers, colours or letters. A child who has been coached tends to be more anxious, not less, and the school is not interested in a performance anyway.
For yourself, the most useful preparation is a few written notes: your child's routines, languages, health information, any concerns, and the start date you hope for. If both parents attend, agree beforehand who will cover what, so the meeting does not end before your key questions have been asked. Bring copies of any reports from previous settings or specialists.
Afterwards, write down what you learned and anything you want to follow up. If you are deciding between campuses, note who you met, how they engaged with your child, and how clear the answers were. Then, if it feels right, the natural next step is a trial week, which tells you far more than any meeting about how your child responds to the actual day.
Câu hỏi thường gặp
Can a preschool refuse a child after the admissions meeting?
A school may say it has no place in the right class, or that it cannot meet a particular need safely, and it should explain why. It should not refuse a young child because of how they behaved in a single meeting. If you are unsure about a decision, ask for the reason in writing and what alternatives exist.
Will my child be asked questions in English?
A teacher may chat with your child in English or Vietnamese while they play, but it is not a test and there is no expected answer. Children who say nothing are entirely normal. Tell the staff which languages your child understands so they can speak in a way that puts your child at ease.
Should I mention that my child is a late talker?
Yes. Sharing it helps the teachers support your child from the first day, and it will not count against your child. If you have concerns that have not yet been looked at, raise them with your child's doctor as well, since the school cannot diagnose and should not try to.
Do both parents need to attend the meeting?
It is not usually required, but it helps when both parents can hear the answers and meet the people involved. If one parent cannot attend, ask whether a video call is possible, or share your notes afterwards so that both of you take part in the decision on equal terms.
How long does an admissions meeting take?
Often between thirty minutes and an hour, sometimes combined with a tour. It can take longer if your child settles into play and the conversation covers health or support needs in detail. Plan the time so that you are not rushing and your child is not past their nap.