Preparing My Son For Kindergarten

Here is a list of Kindergarten readiness skills that might be able to help you. Kindergarten Readiness Checklist While there's no perfect formula that determines when children are truly ready for kindergarten, you can use this checklist to see how well your child is doing in acquiring the skills found on most kindergarten checklists. Check the skills your child has mastered. Then recheck every month to see what additional skills your child can accomplish easily. Young children change so fast -- if they can't do something this week, they may be able to do it a few weeks later. Listen to stories without interrupting Recognize rhyming sounds Pay attention for short periods of time to adult-directed tasks Understand actions have both causes and effects Show understanding of general times of day Cut with scissors Trace basic shapes Begin to share with others Start to follow rules Be able to recognize authority Manage bathroom needs Button shirts, pants, coats, and zip up zippers Begin to control oneself Separate from parents without being upset Speak understandably Talk in complete sentences of five to six words Look at pictures and then tell stories Identify rhyming words Identify the beginning sound of some words Identify some alphabet letters Recognize some common sight words like "stop" Sort similar objects by color, size, and shape Recognize groups of one, two, three, four, and five objects Count to ten Bounce a ball If your child has acquired most of the skills on this checklist and will be at least four years old at the start of the summer before he or she starts kindergarten, he or she is probably ready for kindergarten. What teachers want to see on the first day of school are children who are healthy, mature, capable, and eager to learn

Ohh congratulations! My daughter is turning 6 and she enters pre-school this coming school term (June in our country). And I think the basics are enough, if he knows his abc's, numbers and colors. Plus ability to write his name, that's enough I guess. If he's really into it, you can play with him by coloring or painting, and letting him read a few simple words, cat, dog, something like that, but put no pressure on him, just let him decide when it's time to study. Let him be your guide, cultivate his talents based on what he likes. The school will teach him what he needs to know, and you will be his guide/assistant in his quest for knowledge. Like me, as soon as my daughter showed interest in studying, I taught her, ABCs, number counting, she likes to color, so I bought coloring books that teaches ABCs and numbers, she learned without pressure and it became easier for her to recall everything, and all the other skills she learned in school, i just cultivated it, by helping her out, pointing out letters, and letting her count her toys when we put them away. Hmm...I let my fingers get away with me.. Anways, as long as he already knows that basics, I think that's enough, but if he shows interest maybe you can add more topics little by little as the time to go to school nears. Moreover, if he already knows that basics, I think you should also prepare him emotionally and socially into entering school.

I have found flash cards work. If you start with only a few at the time and about every three days add another one and before you know it they are telling you the alphabet as the numbers. It is important for them to be able to write thier name also I would start practicing that with him as soon as possible.

I think you should get him to do more. Nowadays, it is never enough. Give him more than you think he needs. Having said that though, make sure he still have a childhood. If getting him to do more is making him unhappy, then no. Give him his childhood is what I suggest.

My daughter is in public pre-k and her teacher said those are some of the things that they need to know. They also need to know how their colors,shapes, and be able to write all the ABC's not just his name. Since some kids don't get to go to pre-k I'm sure his teacher and the aid in his class will work with him on what he doesn't know. Have fun preparing him for Kindergarten. I'm sure he will have a blast.

I myself have a three year old son who I am trying to teach the basics to now. It is never too early I believe. It sounds like you are doing well. It is good to know that you are a mother who is taking an effort in ensuring her child's preparedness for school. I have already started to teach my son ABC', 123's and so forth. I think if I had any advice I would say to continue on with the basics throughout the summer, you know, especially times even when he is not in school just to keep his mind sharp and better prepared for the school process.

I dont think its what the kids need to know as much as its should know so school is easier for them..Skylar knows everything he wil need to know in Kindy,,except for writing his name.still having issues with writing K for some reason..hes gone to head start since he was 3 and he knew already everything pretty much excpet reading books.,.,which im pleased to say he is reading awesome now!!and my cousin..her little girl never went top anything and knew nothing when she went to Kindy and shes doing just fine..so have no worries:)

You didn't put him in Pre-K before Kindergarten? Before going to Kindergarten they need to know how to write their name, ABC's and 1-100. My daughter was in Pre-K and they told me before she went off to Kindergarten she would need to know all that and if she didn't then she would of repeated Pre-K. But my daughter has done good in Pre-K, she went into it not really knowing much and came back out of it knowing a whole lot. Now she is going to Kindergarten. The only thing I can tell you is that if anything else, he might have to repeat Kindergarten. It all depends on the system and what state you live in.

My mother was a kindergarten aide in norther Virginia for about 10 years (she retired a couple years ago). Judging from what she would tell me about her job, you son is in very good shape, he may even get a little board if not all his classmates are as advanced as him! My mother had children come in with skills that ranged from knowing how to spell simple words to not even speaking english hardly at all. The fact that you are an involved parent and are working with your son at home will practically gaurantee that he will do well in kindergarten. The list that the first responder posted is an excellent guide, but may be advanced for some children, particularly if they didn't attend pre-K. Some children can't even master all these skills by the END of their kindergarten year, but all kids develop differently. Someone else talked about "playing school" at home to get the child used to the idea of what would be expected of them. This is a great idea, too; it will give your child confidence becasue he will feel that he knows a bit of what is going on, and will be less confused by all the new things. I think your son is going to be just fine. :-) Good Luck.

If he can do most of the list the first poster listed, you could have him start writing words because they will start sentences (probably a few sentences that they copy from the teacher). Make sure he can write his letters as well. You may consider having him speak two languages because it is always nice if people can speak lots of languages :). You could have him count with money and stuff because that would be math :). It wouldn't hurt if he can write the numerical numbers such as 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, etc. Have a nice day and it seems to me that your son knows a lot already :). You are a wonderful parent because you want him to be ready.

My son started k5 this year and they really have moved through things fast. If your child know their ABC's pretty well I would suggest working with vowels sounds and blends. That will make it easier to learn when they start teaching this in k5. My son learned his vowel sounds and having trouble with blends. But in k5 here they have already gotten them reading and adding, now towards the end of the schooling they are throwing in some subtractions. They have also started counting money. He has learned a lot this year. I don't remember learning moist of this stuff in 1st and 2nd grade when I went to school.

It's so competitive now that even 3 year olds in Singapore are already studying ABCs and counting numbers 1-10 in his playgroup. I am not sure about your end, but I guess it is better to "better" prepare him than to teach him just the basics. However, it all depends on the child's interest and inclinations.

Honestly, I think that anything you do with your child will help them in school. My son has mild cerebral palsy and I was concerned that he would fall behind in school so I began to "play school" at home. I would make him a little lunch and pack his little lunch box and back pack. He would sit with me at the table and we would sing our ABCs, I got him to begin to count. We would do small crafts where he would use sizzors and glue. I have come to realize children need to know how to use sizzors in kindergarten. I find that bizarre considering how we as parents try to keep them away from anything sharp (lol). Anyways, I got him to draw basic lines and circles. I would have him put his hand up when he had a question and he would put his hand up when he wanted to go to the bathroom etc.... Not only did him and I have lots of fun "playing school" but the progress reports I have gotten say that he is above his class (even though he has a mild disability). Also I suggest that you read to him/her small simple books that he/she may be able to keep up with. Try to get him/her to identify words and possibly read with you.

Sure i would start teaching him all of that now, just a bit at time not to confuse him. My friend started all that when her daughter was really young and when she got to school she was doing really well. My daughter knew a bit but not as much as I would of liked but i didn't spend enough time on that stuff with her.Either way I found that she did good in school and learned everything at her own pace and the teacher told me that not all the kids know all of that stuff when they first start. Just do what you can , he'll be fine :)