Kindergarden This Year! Ack!!

Teachers like it if the child can button tie and zip. so they can get themselves dressed.. as dressing 25 kids takes a long time.. (putting on coats to go outside etc)..

work on writing his name. also the alphabet.. try starfall.com great website..

Nothing at all. If he's gone to school already then he knows what to expect. Some kids that will be entering won't even know their alphabet or have ever been away from their parents.

Have you registered yet? When we went to kindergarten registration we were given a big package containing everything we needed to work on our kids with in preparation for kindergarten. We were also given information on the kindergarten preparation programs. In my division these are free programs offered the summer before kindergarten starts. Kids can attend a weekly Rock and Read session to work on pre-k skills, plus they get four weekly one on one sessions with a Literacy Links facilitator. Our kids were expected to recite the alphabet and numbers 1-10. They were expected to print and identify their own names. The needed to know their address and phone number. They needed to know how to hold a pencil, how to use scissors, how to hold a book, turn pages, follow the sentence from left to right. They needed all of those pre-school skills, such as independent use of bathroom, putting shoes and jackets on independently, standing in line, sitting in a circle and putting up a hand.

Kindergarten will stress independence and behavior.

Start preparing your son now to start doing things on his own, sitting still, being quiet, and understanding and following instruction. He'll need to know how to pack his own schoolbag, carry his own lunch tray (if he buys) or unpack his own lunchbox (if he brings from home), open his own drinks and any kind of individually sealed food packets like ketchup, snacks or cheese sticks. He'll also need to know how to tie his own shoes (which most parents default to buying their kindergarteners Velcro shoes) and keep track of his personal items like his jackets and school supplies.

As for academics and skills, by the end of the year he should know how to read common site words (him, boy, go, ask) and short sentences, counting, basic adding (3-1=2, 2+1=3...), words that rhyme and using scissors.

And of course, respecting the teacher and classmates is very important.

I'm sure Kindergarten teachers have a wishlist of things students should know before starting school!

No need to be overwhemed. If he's in preschool, there is not much you need to do. Make sure he can get his coat on and off by himself, and that he can either tie his shoes or he has shoes without laces.

It's nice if he knows his numbers, letters, and colors, but they will teach that in K, so don't panic if he doesn't.

My sister taught K for many years. She says something along the lines of: If a child knows how to listen and follow directions, I can take care of the rest.

On the other hand, although it wasn't much change for my child, I found K to be really different for ME, because I was used to having that quick one-on-one conversation at pickup every day - how was his day, any issues? And in K, I put him on the bus in the morning and picked him up from the after school program, so I only spoke to the teacher maybe 3 times a year at scheduled conferences. It was weird to me because I was used to daily feedback and that doesn't happen in K. But for my child, it wasn't a big change, just a new teacher.

it's 8 months away!
i hope you're not letting all this panic get to your son. it should be an exciting thing, not a overwhelmy thing!
it IS different from preschool, at least it's supposed to be. preschool should be more relaxed, and introduce educational concepts in a fun fashion so that a kindergartner isn't gobsmacked at being confronted with letters and numbers. i think it's ridiculous how many parents push their toddlers to enter school already reading, writing and ciphering. it's that mindset that produces this degree of unnecessary panic in both parents and littles.
i think you would benefit from a few visits to the school during the spring semester, without your son. get a feel for what goes on. talk to the teacher, observe if that's allowed. talk to parents of current kindergartners and first graders, but don't get so invested in their opinions that it makes you even more overwhelmed.
breathe.
he'll be fine.
khairete
S.

If he has been going to preschool he has all the skills he needs in my opinion and those of the long time Kindergarten teachers I know. Preschool teaches them to follow someone else's routine. The rest will be taught in school. There are kids that start Kindergarten knowing how to read whole books and there are also kids who don't yet know their letters (mine among the latter). Remember that not every child goes to preschool. I would NOT STRESS since you will convey that stress subconsciously to your child. HAVE FUN. Color with him, cut out paper shapes, play with legos, make him sit in his chair with the family at dinner, sing songs, read to him, point out stop signs start with an S and Dunkin Donuts with a D, and find the letters in his name in signs, etc. The actual school subject matter will be taught to him AT school, the J. of learning and being a happy and respectful child is what we as parents model for our kids to follow. Being a child does not mean just being a shorter version of an adult, he NEEDS to play and explore and enjoy new and different things and mess up and do things wrong IN ORDER to learn. Since you are anxious you could ask to speak with the Kindergarten teachers to put your mind at ease and perhaps visit the school so he knows what it looks like. But be careful your anxiety does not squash his natural childish enthusiasm.

They do not need to know a whole,lot. Relax. Your anxiety will rub off on him. He went to nursery school. He will be fine.

I try to have him get ready, pick out his clothes, put his shoes on.
Get velcro shoes if he can't time shoelaces so he can independently put
them on.
Have him follow instructions from you ("go get your shoes & coat on) etc.
I found out key words they needed to know by sight & started working on
them with thim (a, and, the, at, to, go, see, will can etc.)
Point out words in your every day life (street signs, stop signs, words at
the grocery store like "cart", "buy", "free" etc.
Take him to the library for library reading time, to check out a book that
you read to him. First read it to him, then ask him about what you read
& what's going on in the pictures.
Have him try to sit still at the dinner table telling him he'll have to sit still
in his desk chair at school.
Let him watch cartoons that teach. You watch first to see which ones are
best.
Have him count things for you. How many tomatoes do you see on the
counter? How many shoes do we have on our feet together? How many
hands am I holding up? How many forks are on the table etc. See you
can do this all day, even driving around running errands. "You try to find
3 yellow cars" etc.
Spell out for him what's on signs at the park or on the road when taking
walks etc.
Have him put on his jacket by himself, have him hang it up, show him how
to pull the sleeves back out, do crafts with him for a short time each day
so he can use glue, scissors, cut things out, make a picture, have him
draw a face, a picture of you & the dog etc. You're not looking for artists'
renderings. You're looking for him to be able to follow directions, do as
he is told, to actually be able to draw things like a house, face etc & to
follow directions.

Suz is right. He does not need to know how to read, write or do much of anything! That's what kindergarten is for! Preschools that push academics just avoid doing what's really necessary, and they put pressure on kids and parents!

Kindergartners need to be able to separate from Mommy and Daddy, and see their teacher as the loving authority figure. They need to follow directions, be able to sit in a circle, and negotiates their own space without whacking the hell out of the kid next to them. They need to be mature enough and have enough socialization that they can work in a group. That's all! A friend of mine is a kindergarten teacher, and she would much rather have agreeable kids who don't know how how to write their names than academic robots who can't function in a group! She even puts a strip of masking tape down on the floor because they don't even understand how to line up yet!

If your son has been in preschool, he already understands about going to different "station" for different activities - circle time over here, arts & crafts over there, put your coat in the cubby in this corner, wash up after snack, and so on. He has experience with a teacher, and with having a room full of other children, and existence of other classes that are doing different things at the same time. He understands that there is breakfast, getting dressed, going to school, and then home again.

The most important thing is that you relax! Your child does NOT need any stress about this, and he will pick up on your anxiety. You have to be sure that he is emotionally and developmentally ready to start school at 5. If not, he simply has another year of preschool and starts at 6. It is NOT about how smart the child is! Never make that mistake!

There will be a kindergarten screening of some sort - he will probably meet with one of the teachers (you will attend) but not necessarily his future teacher. That is okay. They ask some questions and have him do a few simple things, and they assess his readiness (NOT his intelligence). You will get a notice for this. They will probably have an open house or orientation of some sort, when he and you will get acquainted with the building (just his wing) and see a few classrooms. It's essential that he not be made to believe that he must know everything that will happen in the course of the day.

If he is to take a bus, there will be some provisions for first-time kids. In our district, the kids all get a tag to tie to their backpacks, which has their name and their bus route and their classroom on it. There are aides on the buses, and kindergarteners sit in the front seats unless with an older sibling. The buses are greeted by teachers or aides, and the kids are lined up for the correct classrooms, either at the drop-off point or in an indoor location such as the cafeteria. You will get a list of what they need to bring and what they do NOT need to bring. Follow this list. Do not make it more complicated. Do not go out to buy school supplies or fancy clothes - you will get a list of what's needed (not much on Day 1) and you want him in comfortable play clothes for normal daily functioning.

I suggest you NOT call the school until things get closer - trust that there is a program in place and that you will be notified. I also suggest that you not keep talking about "kindergarten next year" with him until you are assured, by the preschool, the kindergarten screener and your own gut that he is ready. My son was NOT ready (not good at following directions to some degree, but mostly he was a supreme afternoon nap-taker and could not have handled school being that tired). We held him until 6 and never regretted it.

And I agree you should not be listening to every other parent out there about what you MUST do to get him "ready"! Too much pressure!

Kindergarten should NOT be overwhelming. If your child has been to preschool, then he should be prepared. They do not need to know how to read or do math. Being able to recognize all the letters and digits and count to 20 is fine. What he really needs to start kindy is to be able to close his own pants, zip his own jacket, blow his nose, follow multi step directions (hang up your jacket, unpack your folder, sharpen your pencil) and be able to listen to instructions and not call out. These are things to work on. Good luck. If you're a first time mom, kindergarten may seem like a huge big deal. It's an exciting big deal, but it is not a situation that should make parents feel stressed - trust me, my oldest is off to college this year.

Independence and social skills are more important than academics in ensuring a smooth transition. My younger daughter is in 2nd grade and her teacher still emphasizes at Back to School Night how important it is for students to be able to carry out personal care and "housekeeping"-type tasks (clean up own paper scraps after cutting, sliding chairs under the table, etc.) without her intervention.

They do not need to know that much when starting kinder. If he can write his name, follow directions, and sit quietly during group time, he'll be just fine. He doesn't have to be perfect on day one either. If he's been in preschool and does well there, he's ready for kinder.

If he recognizes his letters and knows some of the sounds, he's in great shape, but it isn't required. You don't need to prepare anything.

Kinder is fun and not as hard as many people make it out to be. We did not have a ton of homework last year in kinder and, while it isn't as play-filled as when we were little, the kids do still have a good time.

You really don't need to do anything. Check if he needs a backpack (if he doesn't have one already) and pencils. It won't hurt for him to learn his phone number and address if he doesn't already. The school should let you know if there is a kindergarten orientation (for parents and/or kids) and you should try to attend. Otherwise, be low key but happy. It's exciting but you don't want to convey your thoughts that it is overwhelming to your son. Have fun, its a great stage.

He goes to preschool. So he already knows about circle time, lining up and keeping his hands to himself. He is good to go.

Most kindergartners do not know how to tie their shoes at the beginning of the year. My son learned in school (thankfully because I am left handed and he is not). The lunch teachers will help them if they have trouble unpacking, repacking or opening anything in their lunches. The teacher will help them on and off with snow boots on days they need them. They will make sure they learn how to get on and off the bus (our school has bus practice for the new kids).

Kindergarten readiness? That means the child is 5. That's it.

Here's what will help. Knowing his colors, shapes, numbers, letters. Being able to cut paper with children's scissors. Being able to hold a pencil.

Play dough is great for helping those little fingers strengthen. Teach him to make necklaces out of paper clips. This works on fine motor skills.

Work with him on two part instructions. When he's good at that, try three part instruction. You want him to remember without you having to tell him each instruction separately.

There are books you can get that help you with this - look them up on-line. Just remember to keep everything fun. You do NOT want to sit down with him and act like it's work. No flash cards. No school-like stuff. Have fun with him so that he enjoys what he's learning. You can teach this stuff in the grocery store, in museums, in the playground as well.

Have fun!

It is and isn't. DD's day is longer and she has more structure, but she still has the option for visiting one of the "centers" in her classroom, including a kitchen setup. They get recess, and a short lunch, and are expected to be responsible for a lot of their own things. Our preschool started doing things like having the kids gather their own stuff and lining up at the end of the year to practice for K.

DD has a HW packet for the week, but it's not insurmountable. Like a quick page a day (she usually goes through them all in a day or two). I agree that if he's been in preschool, he'll have a good foundation. DD did not know how to read when she entered K and now is reading on a first grade level. He'll learn how to read, etc.

There are guidelines that the school should be able to give you about "readiness" but also bear in mind that there's a wide range of abilities, especially the first weeks. When a friend had her DD tested for early enrollment, they were shocked at what was expected, but I think that was in part b/c if the school was going to make an exception, the child had to be exceptional. I guarantee you that not all of DD's at-age classmates would have passed the test, either. They were just a few weeks older and made the cut off.

I would take him to the school before August so he can see it, see where his class might be, meet some staff, etc. Talk to it in positive words but don't belabor the point. Answer questions (my DD wanted to be assured she'd have lunch). If he'll take the bus, talk to him about that, too.

Oh, and find out how enrollment works. We did not have a lottery or testing during our orientation or anything like that. But I know friends have, and some have even sat in line for 2 hours to get the school they wanted. Our school didn't contact me first. I enrolled DD per the guidelines from our district by calling them.

Don't panic. If he can recognize his name (bonus if he can write it), sit still long enough to listen to a story (10-15 min), walk in line, sit in a circle, be independent in the bathroom, and put coat and shoes on independently he is ready. Really the only thing you have to do is get him registered and get all his kindergarten shots. Check with your district. Some districts require a preschool screening that basically just checks for speech and other special ed needs. If he has been in preschool it should be a pretty easy transition.