In kindergarten, literacy instruction prepares children to learn to read, as it has for decades. It includes letter names and letter sounds; concepts about print (e.g., left to right, letters make up words); phonological awareness (e.g., recognizing rhymes, beginning sounds); writing; comprehending stories and information read aloud; learning new vocabulary; and, toward the end of the year, reading some simple words and easily memorized stories (usually with less than fifty words total). This multifaceted approach is consistent with the standards of all fifty states and the Common Core.

Literacy itself is inherently social; it is about sharing information, stories, and ideas.

RED WORD REVIEW

Put on words on index cards in red marker (if possible), and your child can review reading these words. Some ideas we use to learn the spelling is stomping out the letters or tapping on his/her arm.

RED WORD SEARCH: Another idea is to have your child look for these red words in any type of print you have in your home, i.e. a book, a newspaper, a magazine, a letter from your junk mail, a post card. If you have a highlighter, the children enjoy highlighting the words they find.

the is a and I of

to for be see with would look

you do put her he saw take your

can was his are who very when like

my come she so or what come down from