Kindergarten Readiness

Despite all of the competition that parents believe exists at this level of a child's education, one doesn't have to expect too much in the terms of a child's academic preparation. Kindergarten for the most part is just a social acclimatization to the routines and art of attending school.

Well for one thing have conversations with your child so he or she can practice verbalization and social skills. A well verbalized child has a great head start at school.

Read to your child as often as you can to encourage reading as well as mental discipline for which your child will learn to sit still long enough to understand that certain times are meant for those types of activities.

You might want to use some kind of flashcards: basic shapes, letters, and numbers just to familiarize the child with the concepts.

Allow the child to be creative with exercises in drawing and such. You know artistic play that many children are drawn to in the first place. Then ask the child about the work he or she created in order to reinforce the verbal skills.

Be mindful of the child's manners and social skills when it involves other children and adults. Reinforce good behavior and remind the child when he or she slips in this department.

BTW: welcome to a2k. Just curious... what country do you reside in?

Hi tsar,

That used to be the case for sure, but now you're describing preschool more than kindergarten. Everything's kind of been moved up a year. Preschool is for the general acclimatization and especially emphasis on social skills (which are important), then in kindergarten there are more academic demands. (I know, kindergarten!)

So depending on how old your child is, kinder10, one big recommendation I have is that you do preschool first. A lot of people don't realize how important it's become, and how much kindergarten teachers assume that your child has already experienced preschool.

If your child has already attended preschool, I think you don't have to do anything specific, just kind of encourage their interest and excitement about school, talk about it in a positive way ("School is going to start in a week!!"), do fun things around preparing (having your child pick out a new backpack for example), stuff like that.

Actually if your child hasn't attended preschool, same thing, as you won't be able to make any particular inroads academically between now and when this school year starts. I think it'd be more likely to just make 'em anxious, and you definitely don't want that.

edit: all of the above applies to the US.

If your child socializes well, you are ok. If you have that plus he knows his ABC's and numbers, you are in good shape. I second Soz's remarks about reading to your child as well.

I didn't actually say that, it was Tsar, but it's good advice!

Reading to your child and generally making reading something that is fun and interesting to participate in, even if they're not doing the reading themselves. (No rush on reading btw, don't worry if your child isn't reading yet.)

Sorry Tsar!

It might be of some minor interest that "kindergarten" is a German word (and invention: the first kindergarten in the region were I live was opened pre 1810).

Today, children here can go from the age of 3 months onwards in a kindergarten (with a legal claim to go there from at least -depending on state- three years of age - and then to school at around 6. If they aren't fit enough for school ... they go to a pre-school kindergarten.

Pretty much the same in Canada.

Children start junior kindergarten at age 4. The are expected to be able to count to at least 10 and know the primary colours. They are also expected to speak in sentences and be fully capable of attending to their own washroom needs.

Senior kindergarten is at age 5 and they are to be at the level of what used to be acceptable for grade 1.

In my opinion, kids are being pushed too fast nowadays and miss out on actually being kids.

Thanks for the information.

I'd suggest asking the school - each school is different and the expectations are different.

My daughter's school for instance actually test the children and then they are given an assignment book to work on over the summer. But I think this is more the exception than the rule - most schools do not require a certain level of knowledge prior to attending.

Starting kindergarten is a big deal.That;s why beginning kindergarten is a huge milestone for a child and their parents. So, the parents need so many ways for their child to be prepared to be in school.
Here are some tips:
Tip no.1 Have your child practice writing his/her name using a variety of tools such as crayons,pencils and markers
Tip no.2 Read and enjoy counting books together
Tip no.3 Read with your child on a daily basis and talk about the book as you read with your child and after you have finished reading it.
Tip no.4 Have your child draw objects on paper and ask him/her to color the objects in certain colors.

Hello friends,

Preschool worksheets includes worksheets which introduce various concepts, reinforce color recognition, improve fine motor skills, and introduce numbers and letters. All of our preschool worksheets are intended to enhance your child's skills and introduce new concepts in a fun, stress-free manner. Depending on your child's abilities, you may wish to refer to our kindergarten and first grade worksheets for additional practice. In order to view and print our free preschool worksheet pages, you will need to have Adobe Reader version 6.

Best regards
Marie Colvin