KINDERGARTEN READINESS SKILLS-------PREPARING CHILDREN FOR KINDERGARTEN
Below are some of the entry level skills your child should be able to do when he or she begins Kindergarten.
*Your child will not be required to master all of these skills before entering Kindergarten. This information
is here to help you see the skills your child should learn in order to make their first big step into Kindergarten
more successful.
1 Talks about the pictures and the story of a book .
2 Retells a story after listening to it . .
3 Holds a book correctly and turns one page at a time .. ..
4 Holds and uses pencil/crayons correctly .. .
5 Holds and uses scissors correctly . ... ..
6 Draws and colors pictures that are recognizable .
7 Writes name using upper case letter followed by lower case letters ..
9 Recognizes all letters in name ... ..
10 Counts groups of at least five objects .. ..
11 Recognizes numbers 0-5 and understands what each number means ..
12 Counts to 20 ..
13 Speaks in complete sentences .. ..
14 Listens and follows directions with at least two steps ..
15 Says or sings familiar songs and nursery rhymes
16 Says and sings alphabet letters A-Z
17 Matches two pictures that are alike ..
18 Recognizes 10 basic colors .. ..
19 Recognizes and names 4 shapes; circle, square, triangle, and rectangle .
20 Knows personal information (birthday, address, telephone number) ...
21 Takes care of own needs: toileting, washing hands, tying, buttoning, zipping
22 Makes an effort to solve problems before seeking help from others ..
23 Adjusts well to new situations without parents being there ... .
24 Separates from parents and is comfortable and secure . .
25 Plays well with others including sharing and taking turns ..
26 Respects those in authority and is obedient .. .
For more information about learning these important skills, please contact the Mountain Home Kindergarten at 425-1256.
*Makes simple predictions and comments about a story being read.
*Retells a simple story such as The Three Little Pigs after listening to it.
*Holds and looks at book correctly-- for example, holds the book right side up and turns the pages one at a time from front to back.
Read
with your child every day.
Create a reading area for your child.
✿ Store your childs books in a special place such as a basket or drawer or on a low shelf.
✿ Create a cozy and comfortable place for reading.
✿ Talk with your child about how to care for books.
✿ Get a library card for your child. Let him or her look at childrens book and check them out.
Set aside a special time each day to read with your child.
✿ Read with your child in a special place such as a comfortable chair away from distractions.
✿ Hold your child close to you when you read to help develop a positive attitude toward reading.
✿ Read your childs favorite books over and over.
✿ Read favorite books from your childhood. Let your child participate in book reading.
✿ Talk with your child as you enjoy reading a book together. For example: Talk with your child about the illustrations and information on the cover of the book; the title, author (person who wrote the story) and illustrator (person who drew the pictures). Ask your child to look at the illustrations on the cover of the book and predict what he or she thinks the book is about. Show your child how to start at the beginning of the book and how to turn pages.
✿ Ask your child to retell the story in his or her own words.
Record the books you and your child read together.
✿ Start a list of books you have read with your child.
✿ Place a star by your childs favorite books.
✿ Your child may draw a picture after you read a story.
Suggested
Books to Read with Your Child
Cliffords First School Day by Norman Bridwell
Corduroy by Don Freeman
If You Take A Mouse to School by Laura Numeroff
The Three Little Pigs by Paul Galdone
Web Sites
http://www.naeyc.org/resources/eyly/1998/19.asp (How to raise a reader)
http://www.scholastic.com/families/ (Affordable books through Scholastic)
http://www.hssd.k12.wi.us/readingchild.htm (Reading with your child)
*Holds and uses pencils/crayons correctly.
*Holds and uses scissors correctly.
*Draws and colors pictures that are recognizable.
Gather
and organize materials for drawing, writing and cutting.
Help your child select a storage container for materials. Help your child decorate and label for example, Michaels Box.
Add some of these tools to the box: crayons, washable markers, pencils, chalk, colored pencils, blunt-tip scissors.
Add paper to the box: note pads, loose-leaf paper, stationery, envelopes, paper bags, typing paper, index cards.
Decide on some simple rules for using the drawing and writing materials. For example, Markers may be used at the kitchen table or outdoors, or Scissors are for cutting paper.
Encourage your child to hold the pencil correctly.
The basic tripod grip is shown here. The hold is the same for right-handed or left-handed people. Hold the pencil in the dominant hand and follow these directions. The thumb, forefinger, and middle finger form a triangle which is
supported by the ring finger and pinkie. The thumb and forefinger are on top of the pencil. The pencil rests on the middle finger. The ring finger and the pinkie help support the hold but do not touch the pencil. All fingers are slightly bent and pulled into a fist. This grip allows the pencil to be finely controlled by the fingers. The hand rests comfortably on the page.
Encourage your child to explore with drawing materials.
Suggest that your child draw pictures in the kitchen while you prepare dinner in the park while you enjoy the bright fall days after reading a favorite story or singing a favorite song in the doctors office.
Draw pictures together about family events and experiences Our trip to the store Grandmas house
Talk with your child about the pictures and decide on a place to display your favorites.
Clearly label your childs belongings with his or her name(capitalize first letter followed by all lower case letters).
Support your child as he or she practices using scissors.
Designate appropriate places for your child to use scissors and discuss safety rules.
Be sure that your child knows how to hold the scissors, how to open and close the blades, how to hold the paper.
Encourage your child to snip play dough snakes and soda straws into little pieces.
Provide strips of construction paper and cards from junk mail for your child to snip.
Offer old magazines for cutting. Let your child see that written words are a part of daily life.
Suggested
Books to Read with Your Child
A Letter to Amy by Ezra Jack Keats
The Art Box by Gail Gibbons
Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type by Doreen Cronin
Web Sites
http://www.hssd.k12.wi.us/readingchild.htm#scissors (Suggested activities for cutting)
http://www.crayola.com/activitybook/print.cfm?id=1129 (Free coloring pages)
http://video.about.com/babyparenting/Using-Scissors.htm (Video: How to hold and use scissors)
*Recognizes his or her own first name in print.
*Writes name using upper case letter followed by lower case letters.
*Recognizes letters in his or her own first name.
*Recognizes and names at least 10 letters of the alphabet.
Help
your child recognize his or her own first name in print.
✿ Make a name card for your child. Use an upper case letter to write the first letter of the name and lower case letters for the remaining letters. For example, this is how you would write Chris . Talk with your child about the names of each letter. Encourage your child to trace each letter with their finger, trace each letter with a pencil and copy each letter , making sure your child is holding the pencil correctly and forming each letter correctly.
✿ Display your childs name card on the refrigerator.
✿ Invite your child to watch you write his or her name to label personal belongings such as coat, backpack.
Help your child recognize the letters in his or her first name (and then last name).
✿ Provide a complete set of upper and lower case alphabet letter magnets.
✿ Place the letter magnets that are in your childs name on the refrigerator or cookie sheet for child to play with.
✿ Encourage your child to arrange the letters in the correct order, using his or her name card as a guide.
✿ Place the alphabet letter magnets in a sack or bag. Have your child to pull out the letters and name them.
Encourage your child to read familiar signs.
✿ Give your child materials such as telephone books, magazines, grocery ads, menus from restaurants to play with.
✿ Involve your child in making a grocery list using pictures cut from grocery store ads.
✿ Invite your child to read road signs and business signs with you as you drive .
Give your child opportunities to recognize and name letters of the alphabet.
✿ Encourage your child to find letters in his or her own name in signs you see.
✿ Read alphabet books with your child and allow him or her to name the letters he or she recognizes.
✿ Read a book and encourage your child to go back and look for a certain letter of the alphabet.
✿ Place the alphabet letter magnets on the refrigerator in order. Have your child touch each letter as you slowly sing the alphabet song. This will help the child make the connection that the song is about the letters.
Special Activities
✿ Make a set of cards with the names of family members. Use upper and lower case letters as you did when writing your childs name. Mix up the family name cards and encourage your child to find the name of each family member. These cards can also be used as place cards at the dining table.
Suggested
Books to Read with Your Child
A My Name is Alice by Jane Bayer
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin Jr.
Eating the Alphabet by Lois Ehlert
I Read Signs by Tana Hoban, Greenwillow
Web Sites
http://pbskids.org/lions/printables/games/alphabet_uc.html (On-line learning games for learning alphabet)
*Counts at least 5 objects such as 3 bananas and 5 forks.
*Sees the numeral 3 and understands this means 3 objects.
*Puts written numerals in order from 1 to 5: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.
*Counts from 1 to 10 and from 1 to 20 in the correct order.
Collect
a variety of materials your child can use for counting and learning about numbers.
✿ Items found around the house bottle caps from milk jugs margarine tubs plastic measuring cups and spoons
plastic lids catalogs and magazines with pictures thread spools old keys
✿ Purchased items pegs plastic links counting bears colored counting cubes dominos
Involve your child in number and counting activities.
✿ Listen as your child counts from 1 to however high he or she can count.
✿ Play Simon says. Say to your child Simon says clap your hands 5 times. 3 steps forward. Let your child have a turn being Simon.
✿ Play counting games such as How many doorknobs are in this room? How many legs are on the table?
✿ Make number cards. Write numbers on index cards 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, one numeral per card. Ask your child to place the correct number of objects on each card.
Read, tell stories, sing songs and say nursery rhymes about numbers and counting with your child.
✿ Read or tell stories such as The Three Bears to your child.
✿ Say nursery rhymes such as One, Two, Buckle My Shoe and Baa Baa Black Sheep with your child.
✿ Sing songs you remember; songs such as This Old Man.
✿ Help your child make a number book. Staple or tie together with yarn 6 plain sheets of paper. Write My Number Book on the cover page. Write or have your child write his or her own name and draw pictures on the cover page. Write one numeral from 1 to 5 on each page. Let your child put the correct number of stickers or paste cut-out magazine pictures on each page. Add pages to the book as your child learns numbers beyond 5.
Suggested
Books to Read with Your Child
Count by Denise Fleming
Fish Eyes A Book You Can Count On by Lois Ehlert
Mouse Count by Ellen Stohl Walsh
Ten, Nine, Eight by Molly Bang
This Old Man by Pam Adams
Web Sites
http://www.hssd.k12.wi.us/readingchild.htm#counting (Suggested math activities)
http://www.hubbardscupboard.org/kindergarten_prep.html#Math (Suggested math activities)
*Speaks in complete sentences.
*Follows directions with at least two steps.
Take
time each day to listen to and talk with your child .
✿ While traveling together Turn off the radio or CD player in your car as you and your child are going places together. Encourage your child to talk with you about where you are going and what might happen when you get there. Invite your child to tell you something he or she enjoyed doing that day.
✿ At home together Turn off the TV and spend a few minutes talking with your child about things that interest him or her. Talk with your child about things that each of you did that day.
Use pictures to encourage your child to express ideas.
✿ Collect magazine pictures that show action; pictures of children playing together, a family in a car or a team playing a sport, for example. Let your child look at the pictures one at a time. Ask your child to tell you what he or she thinks is happening in each picture.
✿ Go through your family photo album with your child. Find photos that show recent family events that you and your child attended together; events such as the county fair, a church picnic or a family trip. Encourage your child to talk about the people who were there and the things that happened at the event.
Involve your child in activities that require listening and following directions.
✿ Give your child directions that involve two steps. Here are some examples: Take off your shoes and put them in the closet. Pick up your plate and put it on the cabinet. Hop to the door and open it.
✿ Give your child an object such as a small ball or a bean bag. Ask your child to do certain things with the object. Here are some examples: Put the ball under your chin. Put the ball on top of your head. Put the ball behind your back. Touch the bottom of your shoe with the ball. Put the ball up in the air then down.
✿ Let your child tell you some things to do with the ball. Encourage him or her to use words such as under, over, behind, in front, beside, on top, on bottom, up, down.
Read or tell stories that have characters of different sizes.
✿ Read or tell the story The Three Billy Goats Gruff .
✿ Have your child show you the little Billy Goat, the middle Billy Goat and the big Billy Goat.
✿ Invite your child to retell the story to you.
✿ Have your child draw pictures of The Three Billy Goats. Notice if he or she draws three sizes of goats.
Suggested
Books to Read with Your Child
Big Dog, Little Dog by P. D. Eastman
The Mitten by Jan Brett
Peters Chair by Ezra Jack Keats
The Three Billy Goats Gruff by Paul Galdone
The Three Bears by Paul Galdone
Web Sites
http://www.drspock.com/article/0,1510,4833,00.html (Suggestions on How to nurture language development)
http://www.kidsource.com/kidsource/content3/AmericaReads/preschol.html (Using language to learn activities)
*Says or sings familiar songs ( including the Alphabet song ) and nursery rhymes.
*Recognizes rhyming words such as cat and hat.
*Matches a letter with the beginning sound of a word ( b with a banana).
Collect
materials that focus on rhyming and beginning sounds.
✿ Locate books of Mother Goose Rhymes and poetry for young children.
✿ Collect objects or pictures of things that rhyme. Some examples are cat, hat, rock, sock, soap, rope.
✿ Collect magazines and/or catalogs for your child to cut out pictures.
Read rhymes with your child.
✿ Read Mother Goose Rhymes with your child. Encourage your child to complete the rhyme with the correct rhyming word, such as Hickory , Dickory, Dock, The mouse ran up the (clock).
✿ Invite your child to say with you his or her favorite rhymes over and over again. Your child will soon be able to say the rhymes alone.
Play with rhyming sounds.
✿ Use a collection of objects or pictures of objects such as sock, rock, hat, cat, soap, rope, spoon and moon. Invite your child to choose the two objects or pictures that rhyme and name them.
✿ Use objects found around the house, such as a sock, ball, and hat. Encourage your child to say a word that rhymes with the chosen object. Accept nonsense words that rhyme as well.
Help your child match letters to objects or pictures.
✿ Give your child alphabet letter magnets.
✿ Select one of the objects or pictures you have collected; a banana, for example.
✿ Have your child say the name of the object so he or she can hear the beginning sound of the word.
✿ Ask your child to find the alphabet letter that matches the beginning sound of the word.
✿ Provide five alphabet letter magnets. Allow your child to choose a picture from your collection and match it with the beginning letter sound of the word.
✿ Place the alphabet letter magnets on the refrigerator in order. Have your child touch each letter as you slowly sing the alphabet song. This will help the child make the connection that the song is about the letters.
Make a book of rhymes that your child enjoys.
✿ Print some of your childs favorite rhymes on unlined paper. Provide crayons or markers for your child to draw a picture to illustrate the rhyme.
✿ Involve your child in creating an alphabet book over several weeks. Write one letter in upper and lower case at the top of a piece of paper; for example write Pp.
Suggested
Books To Read with Your Child
Barnyard Banter by Denise Fleming
Jamberry by Bruce Degen
The Napping House by Audrey Wood
Book of Mother Goose by Arnold Lobel
There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly by Simms Taback
Web sites
http://www.hubbardscupboard.org/kindergarten_prep.html#Literacy (Suggested activities to develop literacy)
*Matches two pictures that are alike.
*Looks at groups of objects and says which are same shape, color/size
*Recognizes and names at least 10 colors.
*Recognizes and names 3 shapes: circle, square and triangle.
Play
learning games.
✿ Old Maid and Go Fish Cards
✿ Memory/matching cards
Involve your child in matching activities .
✿ Matching Game Start with six pairs of matching cards. Shuffle the cards and lay them face up on the table or on the floor. Invite your child to find the two cards that match. Add additional pairs of cards as your child becomes more skilled at finding the pairs.
✿ Sorting Socks Let your child help you fold laundry . Put all the socks in a pile. Ask your child to match the socks and fold the tops or roll them together to make a pair.
Have fun as you play color games with your child.
✿ Play I Spy Colors game indoors and outdoors. Play the game by spying different colored objects in your home or outdoors. Begin with one color such as red. Say I spy something red. Its round and you can throw it. What is it? (red ball) Add another color such as yellow. Say I spy something yellow. You peel it and eat it. What is it? (banana). Continue playing the game by adding other colors.
Play shapes and sizes games with your child.
✿ Find the Shapes Show your child the shapes you have cut out. Help your child name each shape: circle, square and triangle. Hide one set of shapes somewhere in the room; each shape in a different place. Give your child one shape at a time and have him or her find the matching shape and name it.
✿ Sorting Coins by Size Show your child a collection of coins: quarters, nickels and dimes. Invite your child to put together all the coins that are the same size. Tell your child the names of the coins. Ask your child to show you the coins that are the biggest, middle size and smallest.
Make a color book.
✿ Give the book a title such as My Color Book and write it on the cover page. Write or have your child write his or her name on the cover. Using a red crayon or washable marker, write the word Red on a sheet of paper. Help your child locate pictures of red objects in catalogs or magazines, cut them out and paste them on the sheet. Create a page for different colors such as blue, green, yellow, orange, purple, pink, black, white, and brown.
Suggested
Books to Read with Your Child
A Color of His Own by Leo Lionni
Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin, Jr.,
Circles, Triangles and Squares by Tana Hoban
Little Blue and Little Yellow by Leo Lionni
Web Sites
http://www.hssd.k12.wi.us/readingchild.htm#shapes (Suggested activities to learn shapes)
http://www.funbrain.com/match/index.html (On-line games)
*Knows personal information: Tells if he or she is a boy or girl. Tells first and last name. Tells first and last name of parent(s). Tells how old he or she is. Tells birth date.
Create
with your child an All About Me and My Family book.
✿ Help your child make a book by stapling or tying together with yarn blank sheets of paper.
✿ Help your child create the cover of the book. Use a photo of your child or a picture he or she draws for the cover page.
✿ Let your child decide on the title of the book and write that on the cover.
✿ Add your childs name to the cover as the author of the book. Write or have your child write his or her own name on the cover of the book. Include both the first and last name.
Involve your child in adding personal information to the book.
✿ Begin writing a sentence and ask your child to complete it. Add to the sentence what your child says, helping as needed with items such as height and weight, so that the information is correct and complete. Here are some examples of what to include. My name is (include childs first and last name). Sometimes my family calls me (nickname). I am a (girl or boy). I was born on (date) and I am (age) years old .
Help your child add a family section to the book.
✿ Add family photos and help your child decide what to write about each family member in the photo. Here are some examples: This is my mother. Her name is (first and last name). She makes good spaghetti.
This is my grandfather. He lives with us. His name is . I have a baby sister. Her name is . She cries a lot.
✿ Include all family members living in your home as well as other family members your child would like to add.
✿ Ask your child to draw all of the members of his or her family on one page of the family section. Write their names under each figure as your child tells you who each one is.
Create with your child a section about your familys favorite things.
✿ Go through photos with your child of family events such as reunions, outings, and trips and select some that are favorites. Add these to the book. With each photo write what your child has to say about the event.
✿ Make Family Favorites lists. Some examples to include: Our favorite songs, movies, TV shows, places to visit, restaurants or cafιs, foods, sports.
✿ Let your child use washable markers or crayons and draw pictures of his or her favorite things. Write on the picture what your child tells you about the drawing.
✿ Let your child share the All About Me and My Family book and the family tree with other family members and with neighbors. Suggest that he read what is written in the book and on the family tree. Your child may not be able to actually read all the words, but with your help can recall what was written.
Suggested
Books to Read with Your Child
Are You My Mother? by P.D. Eastman
Happy Birthday Moon by Frank Asch
Peters Chair by Ezra Jack Keats
The Relatives Came by Cynthia Rylant
Web Sites
http://www.behindthename.com/ (The history of names)
http://www.crayola.com/activitybook/print.cfm?id=625 (Free coloring pages)
*Takes care of own needs: toileting, washing hands, tying, buttoning, zipping.
*Adjusts well to a new situation without parents being there.
*Separates from parents and is comfortable and secure.
Support
your childs independence.
✿ Make an I Did It Myself poster for your refrigerator or your childs room. Celebrate all of the things that your child has learned to do on his or her own by writing those things on the chart. Here are some examples. Put on my shoes and tie them Button my shirt Zip my backpack Brush my teeth Ride my tricycle
Practice going to kindergarten .
✿ Begin to gather school supplies for your child.
✿ Play school with your child. Take turns being the teacher. Ride in the bus or car, read stories, sing songs, draw pictures, play outdoors, eat lunch, and play a game.
✿ Eat a meal on trays with your child. Encourage your child to carry his or her own tray to the table and return the tray to the kitchen after the meal. Or eat a meal from lunch boxes and bags. Show your child what can be thrown away after eating and what should be brought back home.
✿ Pretend to take your child to school. With your child, think of lots of ways to say good-bye. Decide how you will say good-bye to each other on the first day of kindergarten.
Visit your childs school and preview school activities.
✿ Attend your schools family open house or meet the teacher day. Here are some things to do when you visit.
Talk with the teacher. Try to find out something interesting that you or your child have in common with the teacher. Explore the classroom. Find out where the children store backpacks and hang coats. Find out about the daily schedule for your childs class. For example, when do they have lunch, outdoor play and rest time? Locate the restrooms and water fountains. Look for the cafeteria, the playground, the principals office, the nurses room, computer room and other special features of your school.
✿ Afterwards, talk about your visit to the school. Encourage your child to draw pictures or write stories about the visit. Answer any questions that your child may have.
Maintain predictable family routines.
✿ Establish a regular bedtime for your child.
✿ Be prepared for your morning before school time. Getting everyone up and off to school can be hectic. Planning can eliminate some of those morning hassles. Designate a place to collect things that need to go to school tomorrow. For example, put everything in your childs backpack and keep the backpack
beside the door. Before bedtime, talk with your child about what clothes he or she will wear tomorrow. Be sure that everything is ready. Give yourself enough time. Try setting the alarm 10 minutes earlier.
Suggested
Books to Read with Your Child
The Kissing Hand by Audrey Penn
Franklin Goes to School by Paulette Bourgeois
Off to School, Little Duck by Amy Hest
Timothy Goes to School by Rosemary Wells
Will I Have a Friend? by Miriam Cohen
Web Sites
http://www.howtobehave.com/kindergarten.html (Suggestions for preparing for the first day of kindergarten)
http://www.naeyc.org/ (National Association of the Education of Young Children)