Belgium · Ghent
De Kleine Icarus is a Dutch-language GO! school for preschool and primary pupils in Ghent. Its Dalton approach emphasises independence, cooperation and responsibility. Regional applications and direct enrolment for remaining places are different stages.
GO! Daltonschool De Kleine Icarus, abbreviated DKI, is at K.L. Ledeganckstraat 4, 9000 Gent. It belongs to GO!, the Flemish Community’s public education network, through Scholengroep Gent. Use the school contact page for current enrolment enquiries.
DKI teaches in Dutch and covers kleuteronderwijs, the preschool stage, and lager onderwijs, six years of primary education. It is not an English-medium international programme. Compare International School of Ghent if English is the teaching language your child needs.
It is a day school without a published boarding provision. Families need to arrange the daily journey and any care outside lessons.
The central decisions are whether Dutch-language education fits your child and whether the Dalton approach suits their learning needs. Enrolment availability and the cost of care are separate practical checks.
Consider DKI if you want Dutch-language preschool or primary education with an emphasis on independent work and cooperation. The school describes five Dalton principles: independence, cooperation, responsibility, effectiveness and reflection. Dalton is a teaching approach, not a separate school-leaving qualification.
The school reports around 200 children and an average class size of 22. These are undated school figures, not a guarantee for the class your child would join. Its site is near Citadelpark and Gent-Sint-Pieters station.
The school ends after the sixth primary year, often written L6. Secondary admission is a later, separate application. Ask how the school prepares pupils for that transition and which deadlines families need to follow.
For a child new to Dutch, discuss language support and how the child will participate in lessons before deciding that the school fits. Do not assume that an English-language information brochure means teaching is available in English.
Use the regional mainstream primary admissions page for the relevant intake. Aanmelden means applying through the allocation system; inschrijven means completing enrolment at the school. An application is not itself a confirmed school place.
The official city enrolment guide gives this 2026–27 calendar for mainstream preschool and primary schools:
The main application and allocated-place registration periods have passed. That does not establish that no places remain. Ask the school about direct enrolment and current vacancies for the child’s year.
The regional mainstream primary page now describes digital applications for 2027–28. Use that route, not the similarly named special-education page, whose eligibility and waiting-list rules concern a different provision. The regional page also contains mixed 2025–26 and 2026–27 wording, so confirm the applicable calendar before acting.
The documents page still links a Dutch 2025–26 information brochure and school regulations. Its English brochure is dated 2024–25. The figures below come from the Dutch brochure; request the current schedule before budgeting.
The brochure states that enrolment and materials needed to meet compulsory learning objectives are free. Certain activities and additional materials fall under an annual contribution cap, called the scherpe maximumfactuur. Multi-day educational trips have a separate cap, the minder scherpe maximumfactuur. Neither cap should be read as an all-inclusive price for meals and childcare.
| Contribution in the 2025–26 brochure | Amount |
|---|---|
| Annual activity/material cap, preschool | €55, collected at €5.50 monthly |
| Annual activity/material cap, primary | €110, collected at €11 monthly |
| Multi-day trips, preschool | €0; the school does not organise these trips for preschool pupils |
| Multi-day trips, primary years 1–2 | €160 across the two-year stage |
| Multi-day trips, primary years 3–4 | €195 across the two-year stage |
| Multi-day trips, primary years 5–6 | €195 across the two-year stage |
| Multi-day trips, whole primary course | €550 total ceiling, not an additional charge |
The brochure calls the multi-day learning trips GWP and describes one in each two-year primary stage. A payment plan is available. Monthly invoices are payable within a month; families with payment difficulties should contact the school’s support coordinator or head.
Hot lunches cost €3.40 for preschool and €3.90 for primary pupils, excluding soup, in the 2025–26 brochure. Vegetarian soup is free on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. First-year primary pupils have weekly swimming at Strop at the school’s expense.
The same brochure distinguishes paid care from free supervision. Its published arrangements are:
| Period | Free supervision | Paid care |
|---|---|---|
| Before lessons | 8:05–8:35am | 7:15–8:05am: €2.30; 7:30–8:05am: €1.15 |
| Monday, Tuesday and Thursday | 3:30–4pm | 4–6pm: €1.15 per started half-hour |
| Friday | 3–3:30pm | 3:30–6pm: €1.15 per started half-hour |
| Wednesday | 12:20–1pm | 1–5pm: €1.15 per started half-hour; staying after 4pm costs €9.20 for the whole afternoon |
Care starting at 7:15am must be requested by the previous working day. On Wednesday, children staying for afternoon care bring a packed lunch. The school asks families to collect before 2pm or after 4pm because the group may be on an outing between those times.
Have the supervisor record collection from paid after-school care; otherwise the brochure says care is charged until 6pm. Collection after closing adds €3 per child: closing is 5pm on Wednesday and 6pm on the other weekdays. Families experiencing financial hardship can ask about reduced care rates.
The 2025–26 brochure gives an 8:35am lesson start. The morning break runs from 10:15 to 10:40, and lunch from 12:20 to 1:35pm.
School ends at 3:30pm, except 3pm on Friday and 12:20pm on Wednesday. Free supervision continues for the periods shown above before paid care begins. Confirm the current timetable and care arrangements before planning work or travel.
Choose DKI if Dutch-language preschool or primary education and its Dalton approach fit your child. Ask how teachers balance independent work with guidance, especially if your child needs language or learning support.
For a family needing English-medium education, it is not an equivalent substitute for an international school. For a family arriving after the main allocation period, availability must be checked directly; a past application deadline does not establish that the school is full.
The Ghent guide provides local comparisons. The Belgium guide explains the wider education system.
Official pages and documents we read. If a figure matters to your budget or your application, open the link and confirm it is still current.
Friendly orientation, not an application. Dates, fees, and programme details move. Confirm everything with the school.
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TervurenBritish School of Brussels is an English-medium international day school in Tervuren for ages 2.5–18. Its main distinctions are a French-English bilingual route through Year 9 and three different post-16 qualifications.
ISG and De Kleine Icarus solve different problems. ISG offers paid English-medium continuity and a developing secondary section. De Kleine Icarus is a Dutch-medium public primary school, so it better suits families ready to enter Flemish education.
7 minStart with the qualification your child would actually receive. Then check its subjects, language demands, and recognition in the countries where they may study next.
7 minStart with your child and the family's likely plans. Define the non-negotiables, verify the school's claims, compare three realistic options and visit with specific questions.
7 minTuition is only one line of the budget. Separate charges from advance payments, record what each figure includes, and ask the school to confirm your calculation in writing.