Kindergarten Readiness

Remember, your child's success in school activities often starts with the skills they learn from their first teacher—you, the parent or the guardian. Home is a great place to nurture these skills and provide experiences to help your child succeed in school and beyond. Below, you'll find a variety of fun and engaging activities to help prepare your child for kindergarten. These activities cover key areas they’ll encounter in school. You'll also find some helpful tips to ensure a fantastic start to their educational journey with Sidney City Schools!

8 ways to prepare your child for kindergarten

1. Foster a Love of Reading
Read Every Day: Make reading a part of your daily routine. Pick different kinds of books and talk about the stories.
Library Trips: Visit the library often to find new books and join storytime events.
2. Teach Basic Reading Skills
Alphabet and Sounds: Help your child learn the alphabet and the sounds each letter makes with fun songs and games.
Writing Names: Encourage your child to practice writing their name and simple words.
3. Practice Counting and Math
Count Together: Count everyday items like toys or fruits to help your child learn numbers.
Simple Math: Introduce basic math ideas like shapes, patterns, and easy addition and subtraction.
4. Build Social Skills
Playdates: Arrange playdates to help your child learn to share and play with others.
Turn-taking: Play games and practice taking turns. Model losing with grace.  
5. Strengthen Fine Motor Skills
Arts and Crafts: Do activities like drawing, coloring, cutting with scissors, and playing with playdough to improve hand coordination.
Puzzles and Building Toys: Give your child puzzles and building sets to boost dexterity and problem-solving skills.
6. Set Up Routines
Daily Schedule: Create a daily routine with regular times for meals, play, and sleep to give structure.
Morning and Night Routines: Practice getting ready in the morning and winding down at night to build a sense of routine.
7. Teach Independence and Responsibility
Self-Care: Encourage your child to dress themselves, use the bathroom on their own, and manage their hygiene.
Making Choices: Let your child make choices in daily activities to practice decision-making.
8. Support Emotional Readiness
Talk About Emotions: Discuss different feelings and how to express and manage them properly.
Practice Separation: Gradually leave your child for short periods to help them get used to being away from family.

Practicing two-step instructions with your child will prove to be beneficial for both them at school and you at home. "First brush your teeth, then wash your hands." 

Our kindergarten program focuses on providing a balanced mix of academic, social, and physical activities to help children develop foundational skills for future learning. Below is a general overview of what children typically do in kindergarten. As you read through the list, remember that our staff aims to prepare your child for academic and social success while helping them develop a love of learning; developing that love means having some fun. 

Academic Activities

Literacy Development:

• Reading: Learning the alphabet, letter sounds, basic sight words, and beginning reading skills.
• Writing: Practicing writing letters, simple words, and sentences. Engaging in activities like journaling or storytelling.

Mathematics:

• Number Sense: Recognizing and writing numbers, counting objects, and understanding basic addition and subtraction.
• Shapes and Patterns: Identifying shapes, creating and recognizing patterns, and understanding spatial relationships.

Social and Emotional Development

Social Skills: Learning to share, take turns, and work cooperatively with others. Developing friendships and understanding social norms.

Emotional Skills: Identifying and expressing emotions appropriately, developing empathy, and learning self-regulation techniques.

Physical Development

Gross Motor Skills: Activities that involve running, jumping, climbing, and other large muscle movements. Playground time and physical education classes.

Fine Motor Skills: Activities that require precise hand and finger movements, such as drawing, cutting with scissors, and manipulating small objects.

Creative and Artistic Activities

Art: Engaging in drawing, painting, crafting, and other artistic activities to express creativity.
Music and Movement: Singing songs, playing simple instruments, and moving to music to develop rhythm and coordination.

Science and Exploration

Nature and Environment: Learning about plants, animals, weather, and other aspects of the natural world through hands-on activities and observation.

Basic Scientific Concepts: Exploring basic concepts like sink and float, magnetic attraction, and simple experiments that encourage curiosity and questioning.

Structured Play and Free Play

Structured Play: Guided activities that have specific learning objectives, often related to academic or social skills.

Free Play: Time for children to engage in play-based learning at their own pace, making choices about what and how to play.

Routine and Structure

Number Corner, Workplaces, & Centers: Large and small group activities that involve storytelling, singing, calendar activities, and discussions to build a sense of community and routine, as well as practice what we are learning.

Assessment and Progress Monitoring

Informal Assessments: Teachers observe and record children’s progress in various skills through daily activities and interactions.

Formal Assessments: Periodic evaluations to assess development in literacy, numeracy, and other areas, often to guide instruction and identify any areas needing additional support.