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Kindergarten Readiness Skills
BEFORE COMING TO SCHOOL . . .
Encourage your child to learn:
• Their name, address and phone number
• Traffic signal safety
• Rules for personal safety
• Good eating and sleeping habits
Your child should know how to:
• Dress independently- including buttoning, zipping, tying shoes, opening and closing all fasteners on clothing and book bag.
• Use toilet facilities independently- including flushing the toilet and washing and drying hands. (Boys need to be instructed on how to use the urinal appropriately.)
• Play well alone and cooperatively with others, including sharing toys and taking turns.
• Listen while others speak
• Show cooperation and consideration toward family members, friends, teachers and others
• Print first name
• Use a pencil, crayons, and markers on paper using appropriate grip.
• Cut with scissors safely and evenly
10 Ways to Prepare Preschoolers for Kindergarten By: Cindy Johnson
1. Encourage responsibility by assigning daily chores.
• Model the proper way to carry out each task and make a job chart, adding a sticker for each chore completed.
2. Incorporate reading, writing, and math activities into their daily curriculum.
•Identify colors and shapes, recognizing letters of the alphabet, counting numbers 1-10, and writing their first name in print are all skills that will be beneficial for a beginning kindergarten.
3. Model and practice good manners.
•Teach children to say "please" and "thank you", to walk while inside, to not interrupt while others are talking, to take turns, and to use "indoor" and "outdoor" voices.
4. Develop a consistent discipline plan at school and home.
•Praise positive behavior and have specific consequences for undesirable ones.
5. Teach and practice school skills.
•Kindergarten teachers everywhere will thank you for teaching to open a lunchbox, open juice boxes/milk cartons, properly wash their hands, complete toilet needs independently, and tie their shoes.
6. Encourage children to follow directions the first time given.
•Give a direction, have the child repeat the direction, and follow through with it. Also practice multiple directions.
7. Plan a field trip to a local kindergarten class, or recommend that parents and children tour the new school.
•Sit in on a kindergarten class in progress and meet the kindergarten teachers. Being familiar with the school and the teachers will help ease parents' and children's anxiety.
8. Talk to parents about the importance of establishing bedtime and morning routines.
•Practice these routines for at least two weeks before school starts. Having a plan will create much less stress for everyone.
9. Distribute a list of ideas for parents to do at home two to three months before the start of kindergarten.
•Examples may include getting a library card.
10. Offer parents strategies for coping with separation anxiety.
•Separation anxiety is painful for everyone. Parents should be encouraged to have a short goodbye with their preschoolers. The teachers will always comfort your child. "No crying" mornings may be rewarded with stickers or other positive reinforcement.
Listed below are some links to gauge if your child is ready for our programs at NELC.
www.mpls.k12.mn.us/before_kindergarten.html
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