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Learning:
Beginning in Kindergarten, children develop critical skills to become lifelong learners. Here are some key concepts you can work on with your child at home to set them up for success.
Learn your name.
Label things in your
home with your child’s
name. By the first day
of school, they should
be able to recognize
and write their first and
last name.
Know each
letter sound.
Download ABC Kids app
and practice sounding
out letters 10-15 minutes
a day.
Learn the
alphabet.
While singing the ABC
song, use your copy
of the alphabet to
point out the capital
and lowercase letters.
Students should know
the letters even when
they are out of order.
Practice by identifying
letters you see
throughout the day.
Counting
numbers 1-10.
Help your child count
from 1 to 10. Use a
number line to point to
each number as you say
it and have your child practice writing numbers
as they count aloud.
What do
numbers even
mean?
Children need “number
sense”! Group objects
to show each number’s
value: 1 crayon, 2
pencils, 3 books and so
on. Suggest counting
groups of objects at
home or around your
neighborhood.
Practice
reading.
Have your child practice
how to hold a book, turn
its pages (one by one),
and read each page (top
to bottom, left to right).
Read
every day.
Read aloud with your
child for 10-20 minutes
every day. Bedtime is a
perfect time to create a
routine; if parents aren’t
available, have older
siblings, aunts/uncles
and grandparents read.
Read and
retell.
After you read with your
child, ask them to tell
you about the story. Ask
them what happened
first, next, and last.
Investigate
pictures.
Picture books are a great
way to help your child
build their knowledge.
After reading, ask them
about what is happening
in each picture, predict
what will happen next,
and discuss what the
characters may think
or feel.
Colors and
shapes.
Students should be able
to identify their colors
when they see them.
They should also be
able to recognize basic
shapes like squares,
circles, triangles, and
rectangles. Ask your
child to point out
shapes and colors at
home or around the
neighborhood. Use
flashcards to review the
shape and color names.
How fast can your child name these letters?
r v C O k h o L M u
i D I c B A f e U E
x S d G P g s F N y
b n j R m a H T p t
o O s m t x g h L E
M b n j R v r U T P
k s B I f i H A c e
Physical Skills
Kindergarten students will learn new gross and fine motor skills to enhance their learning. Help set the foundation early by practicing these tasks before they come to school.
Holding a
pencil.
Your child will use
a pencil every day.
Learning to hold a pencil
will help them with
using pencils, markers,
and crayons. Practice
writing by showing your
child how to support
the writing tip using the
thumb and first finger.
Let’s get
coloring!
Using crayons and
markers will help build
your child’s fine motor
skills. Allow them to
freely draw pictures and
explain them to you.
Have your child practice
writing letters and
numbers with crayons
and markers.
Scissor safety.
Teach your child how
to use scissors safely.
Practice using scissors
by holding them face
down and by the handle,
not the blade.
Be active!
Burning off energy
through physical activity
can lead to students
being more focused on
school work. Play catch,
skip and run with your
child to help strengthen
their coordination.
Getting Along
Social-emotional development is crucial in helping students become productive citizens who will change the world. Kindergarten is the perfect time for children to begin to talk about and express their emotions appropriately and build empathy for others.
School is cool!
Kindergarten will be an
amazing adventure that
will allow your child to
make new friends and
grow their brains. Get
your child excited by
reading books about
going to school and
having conversations
about why school is fun.
Knowing rules
are important.
Talk with your child
about why rules are
important (rules keep us
safe). Set up simple rules
for your child to follow
at home. Encourage
them to ask for help
if a task becomes too
difficult.
Follow directions.
Give your child simple
one and two-step
directions. (Please grab
a plate and come to the
table). Then, ask your
child to repeat them
back to you before
following the direction.
Take turns.
Create opportunities for
your child to play with
others. Playing with
their siblings at home
or even friends from the
neighborhood will help
them learn to share and
take turns. At home, play
board games or games
like Simon Says in which
people take turns.
Respect each
other’s feelings. When students are
aware of how they are
feeling or how another
person may be feeling,
it helps them build
empathy. In addition to
asking, “how are you
doing?”, ask “how are
you feeling?” If your
child is struggling to
identify their emotions,
provide them some
options.
Be a caring friend.
Talk to your child about
what friendship is and
how to be a caring friend
to others. Praise or
reward them when they
show kindness to others
or if they apologize for
being unkind. Remind
them that people are
happier when they are
kind to each other.
Learn cool down strategies.
It is okay for your child
to feel angry or upset.
However, it is important
that they respond
to those feelings
appropriately. It is not
okay to respond by
hitting, yelling or acting
out. Remind them of
strategies they can use
when they are upset:
breathing deeply or
finding a quiet space to
calm down.
Understanding persistence and resiliency.
Persistence means
sticking with a task
even if it takes a long
time. Resiliency means
sticking with a task
even if it is difficult. Give
your child tasks that
are more challenging or
longer than the things
they’ve done before and
encourage them to be
persistent and resilient.
Building confidence is key!
Your child is going to meet a lot of new people at school and have lots of new
experiences. Have them practice introducing themselves to others. Also, teach them how to respectfully ask questions about things they don’t understand.
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