Kindergarten Readiness

Start Strong in Kindergarten

In the same way that every child learns to walk at a different age, different children develop academic and social skills at different rates. This is not a checklist. Instead, this is a way for you to reflect upon your child's strengths and growth areas as you prepare your child for Kindergarten. If your child has some of the skills listed in each area, your child's skills are in line with the expectations for kindergarten readiness. If your child has not yet acquired many of the skills in each area, it may indicate that your child could benefit from more experience in a structured learning environment or exposure to similar-aged peers before embarking on kindergarten.

Language

• Recognizes own name and names of familiar people and things

• Speaks in complete sentences

• Tells a story about a past experience

• Engages in conversations with others

• Uses words to express needs

• Understands and follows 2 step directions

• Listens when someone is talking

Social-Emotional

• Puts his or her belongings away

• Uses materials appropriately (art materials, toys)

• Uses the bathroom and washes hands independently

• Asks an adult for help when needed

• Identifies emotions (happy, sad, mad)

• Shows concern for others

• Plays positively with 2-3 other children

• Takes turns with toys and on the playground

• Separates from parent/guardian and recovers quickly

Cognitive

• Works cooperatively with a friend to play a game or complete a puzzle

• Sustains an activity for more than 5 minutes

• Tries different solutions to solve a problem.

• Ask questions about something to learn new information

• Uses imagination and props to engage in pretend play

• Makes connections when reading a book

 
Physical

• Runs and walks

• Alternates feet on stairs

• Climbs playground equipment

• Jumps on two feet

• Throws and kicks a ball

• Cuts with scissors

• Pours liquids from one container to another

• Uses fork and spoon to eat

• Buttons/zips own clothing with support

• Opens and closes doors

• Holds a pencil, crayon, or marker correctly

Literacy

• Recognizes that some words begin with the same sound

• Knows some letters in the alphabet

• Recognizes when two words rhyme

• Knows some letter sounds

• Draws a picture and tells about it

• Recognizes and can write own first name

• Pretends to read a book (knows how to hold a book and where to start reading)

• Pretends to read a familiar story using language similar to the text

• Asks and answers questions about a book

• Retells familiar stories

Math

• Recognizes numerals to 5 or 10

• Counts 5 to 10 objects

• Understands positional words (next to, under, on top of, over, between)

• Compares objects: smaller/larger, heavier/lighter, more/less

• Sorts objects by color, size, or shape

• Builds a tower or structure with blocks