• Uses the bathroom without help.

• Dresses himself/herself.

• Can snap, button, and/or zip.

• Knows how to wash his/her hands.

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Self-Care Skills:

• Knows and says first and last name.

• Speaks in a way that is fairly understandable by unfamiliar adults.

• Uses complete sentences (5-6 words)

• Expresses frustration/anger with words.

• Can follow 2-to 3-step directions.

• Understands positional words (i.e., below, behind, on top of, next to)

• Understands questions and responds to them.

Communication is a big part of kindergarten.  It is at the heart of being about to make needs knows, interact with friends and teachers, and asking and answering questions.

Language and Communication Skills:

• Separates from caregiver easily or without undue distress.

• Explores new things and is willing to take some risks.

• Is beginning to play and share with other children without the need for constant supervision.

• Is able to ‘wait for his/her turn’ within a reasonable time.

• Focuses on an adult-directed activity for 5 minutes or longer.

• Recognizes other people having feelings.

• Responds appropriately to other people’s feelings.

Getting along with others, sharing, being socially appropriate and independent is a huge part of being a part of a learning community

Social and Emotional Skills:

• Traces lines and basic shapes (circle, square, etc)

• Is able to copy basic shapes, including a circle, straight line and a square.

• Holds a writing utensil with a non-fisted grip.

• Can use scissors for an intentional task, though may not have mastered the task (i.e., cutting on a line)

Small muscle coordination, or fine motor skills, helps to make children more independent in their classroom work and activities.

Fine Motor Skills:

• Is able to run and skip.

• Can do a two-footed jump and a one-legged hop.

• Alternates feet when climbing stairs.

• Can walk backwards.

• Is able to bounce a kickball.

• Attempts a two-handed catch of large ball.

Strong gross motor control is important in helping students have the stamina to learn.  It gives them the ability and balance they need to sit through a lesson and enables them to interact physically (play!) with peers. 

Gross Motor Skills:

• Count from 1 to 10 without skipping numbers.

• Is able to identify basic shapes, either verbally or by pointing to them.

• Can or is beginning to count using one-to-one correspondence (pointing at each item in a pile as he/she counts)

• Can sort items by at least one way they are alike (by common attribute).

• Can identify the colors in an 8-count crayon box (black, blue, brown, green, orange, red, purple, yellow) either verbally or by pointing to the correct color.

Math concepts are important when your child begins to work with numbers, the ideas of “more” and “less,” and learning about fact families.

Math Readiness:

• Recites or sings the alphabet.

• Visually identifies some of the letters.

• Can match some letters to sounds or sounds to letters.

• Likes listening to stories/books.

• Recognizes own name when it is written or typed.

• Can tell if two words rhyme.

• Tries to write his/her own name, with the same letters or symbols each time.

• Can draw a picture to illustrate an idea.

• Recognizes some environmental print (i.e., the logo of favorite restaurant, food or other signs)

• Knows how to hold a book correctly (i.e., right side up, where the front cover is )

Pre-reading skills are a precursor to knowing how to sequence a story, tell a story, understand that letters and words work together to make stories, and eventually begin to read sight words.

Pre-reading and Literacy Skills: