What Your Child Should Know By Kindergarten

taken from:
http://www.circleofmoms.com/article/what-your-child-should-know-kindergarten-02713?trk=related_article_graphic_title

By The Circle of Moms Editors - Dec 29, 2011

Wondering what your child really needs to know before starting Kindergarten? To find out, we went to the experts, our Teacher Moms. Here’s some of the great advice they shared on what you can do to get your child ready for kindergarten.

Colors, Shapes, Numbers, Letters

“The year before kindergarten is the time to learn important skills, such as tracing the shapes of letters and numbers on paper, following simple instructions, recognizing the title of a book, and matching rhyming sounds.” –Ms. Whieley of Toad-ally Exceptional Learners

“I would be thrilled if my students came to kindergarten already knowing their colors, how to count to at least 10 (and not just say the numbers, it's important that they have one-to-one correspondence, meaning that if they say ‘5’ they're actually touching the fifth object rather than saying ‘1, 2, 3, 4, 5!’ when there are only three things being counted).” –Jennifer Knopf of Herding Kats in Kindergarten

“Read books together. Pointing to words as you read helps them learn to track as you read, differentiate words and letters and learn directionality (basic concepts of print).” –Melissa of Plug-n-Plan

Basic Self Care

“Some basic things that can help an upcoming kindergartener. . . include basic self-help skills. By this I mean knowing how to tie shoes, bathroom care, and similar skills.” -–Melissa of Plug-n-Plan

Social Skills

“As a kindergarten teacher, I encourage parents to make sure they provide plenty of opportunities for their child to socialize and interact in groups of children. It can be quite a shock to a child becoming one of 20 or so, especially if they've never been a part of a large group before.” –Krissy Miner of Mrs. Miner’s Kindergarten Monkey Business

“Along with learning letters, sounds, numbers, and rhymes, new social experiences like taking turns and going to school for an entire day need to be considered.” -Ms. Whieley of Toad-ally Exceptional Learners

Fine Motor Skills and School Tools

“Be sure to give them plenty of chances to practice and ‘play’ with school tools (glue sticks, drip glue, markers, scissors, etc...). Not only will these be great skills to have, but it will allow them to focus more on the learning and work involved versus how to use or just explore these items.” –Krissy Miner of Mrs. Miner’s Kindergarten Monkey Business