Is Your Child Ready for Kindergarten?

Can you believe that the end of summer is quickly approaching? Where did the time go???

If you have a child entering Kindergarten in just a few short weeks, this Language Arts Checklist may be helpful.  What does your child need to know?

Teaching basic reading & writing skills in creative & engaging ways is a challenge, a challenge compounded by the reality that there are so many important skills that children need to know.  To help you determine what language arts skills are needed, consider the lists provided below.

Your pre-kindergartner should begin to demonstrate…

Oral Communication

• recite short poems/songs
• share reflections, thoughts, information & ideas
• connect new information to prior knowledge & personal experiences
• communicate emotions & needs to peers & adults
• speak audibly in complete, coherent sentences
• follow simple one- and two-step directions & respond appropriately to familiar questions
• participate in class discussions, oral activities & dramatizations
• respond to literature & life events by asking questions, expressing feelings, relating to personal experiences & sharing ideas
• demonstrate enjoyment & increased understanding of language by joining in when a teacher reads repeated parts of a story, leaves out a predictable word in the story, asks for echo reading, or makes up new songs & chants
• listen & respond to others by paying attention to a speaker, enjoying a story, taking turns speaking within a group setting & staying on topic
• use expression & gestures to communicate more effectively
• draw on specialized vocabulary related to mathematics, science & the world around them

Reading Comprehension

• demonstrate an understanding of story by using picture clues, prior knowledge & context to make predictions & inferences about story content
• distinguish between reality & fantasy, fiction & non-fiction
• retell events, familiar stories, or favorite books; refer to details, characters & sequence
• relate information from non-fiction material that has been read aloud, or describe how a story connects to what he or she knows already
• reflect on connections between personal experiences & those of storybook characters
• ask & answer questions about the story’s literary elements
• complete simple graphic organizers with a teacher

Understanding Non-Print Resources

• identify & discuss various types of media
• respond to media by means of discussion, art, music & creative movement

Part II, regarding what your pre-kindergartner should begin to do mathematically, will be posted next month so stay tuned!

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Kristin Rude is the Owner and Center Director of FasTracKids, Del Mar. She previously taught in the Del Mar Union School District. Kristin obtained her teaching credential from the University of San Diego and has her Masters degree in curriculum and instruction with an emphasis on second language learners. When Kristin is not working, motherhood keeps her plenty busy with her 2 children, Connor, age 3 & Katherine, age 2. She looks forward to having her own children benefit from the FasTracKids program. Spending time with her family, golfing, traveling, and continuously learning are among her favorite activities.