Kindergarten Readiness Skills

Is your child ready for kindergarten? Listed below are skills we will work on throughout kindergarten. Working on these areas at home may help your child be prepared. All children progress at different rates.

Language & Communication

• Knows and says first and last name
• Uses complete sentences when speaking
• Expresses frustration/anger with words
• Follows two to three-step directions
• Understands questions and responds to them

Pre-Reading/Literacy

• Matches some letters to sounds or sounds to letters
• Recognizes own name when it’s written or typed
• Writes own name and can identify the letters in his/her name
• Recognizes rhyming words
• Listens to stories/books
• Holds a book correctly
• Can use cover and pictures to talk about a book
• Plans and tells, draws, or writes a story

Math

• Counts from 1 to 20
• Knows written numbers from 1 to 10
• Identifies basic shapes
• Identifies colors

Behavioral

• Able to initiate and participate in school tasks
• Usually able to follow rules and multi-part directions
• Understands right and wrong, takes ownership for actions
• More independent and able to take on more responsibilities at home
• Sticks with chosen activities, even when they get hard

Self Care

• Responsible for personal belongings
• Uses the bathroom without help
• Includes washing hands
• Gets dressed on own, sleeps in own bed at night, brushes teeth

Fine Motor

• Traces lines and basic shapes
• Square, circle, etc.
• Is able to copy basic shapes and lines
• Holds a writing utensil with a non-fisted grip
• Uses scissors to cut on lines and around shapes/simple objects

Social

• Able to play with others as well as alone
• Able to interact appropriately with other children
• Able to share/take turns/wait for turn
• Able to wait for adult 

Emotional

• Separates from caregiver easily or without undue stress
• Knows own preferences and abilities
• Can suggest simple solutions to conflict
• Can follow rules and routines