Skills kindergarten should know
Kindergarten Readiness Checklist | Understood
When kids are getting ready for kindergarten, many families wonder about academic skills. But self-care and social and emotional skills are important for kindergarten readiness, too. For example, does your child need help using the bathroom? Learn about the different kinds of skills kids are expected to have when they start kindergarten.
Language skills
- Speak in complete sentences and be understood by others most of the time
- Use words to express needs and wants
- Understand two-step directions
- Make comparisons and describe relationships between objects like big/little, under/over, and first/last
Reading readiness skills
- Enjoy listening to stories
- Know how to find the first page of a book and which way to flip the pages
- Recognize familiar logos and signs, like stop signs
- Recite the alphabet and identify most of the letters
- Recognize and try to write their own name
- Recognize when two words rhyme (like cat and bat)
- Start to connect letter sounds to letters (like the sound of the first letter in their name)
- Draw a picture to help express an idea
Math skills
- Count from 1 to 10 without skipping numbers
- Match a number to a group of five or fewer items (“I see three cats”)
- Recognize and name basic shapes (square, circle, triangle, rectangle)
- Understand more than and less than
- Arrange three objects in the right order (like from smallest to biggest)
- Name or point to the colors in a box of eight crayons
Self-care skills
- Use the bathroom and wash up on their own
- Get dressed on their own (but may still need help with buttons, zippers, and shoelaces)
- Know and can say their first and last name and age
Social and emotional skills
- Separate from a parent or caregiver without getting overly upset
- Interact with other kids
- Pay attention for at least five minutes to a task an adult is leading, like listening to directions for an activity or discussing the day’s weather during circle time
Fine motor skills
- Use a pencil or crayon with some control
- Use scissors
- Copy basic shapes
- Make distinct marks that look like letters and write some actual letters, especially the ones in their name
- Put together a simple puzzle
Gross motor skills
- Run
- Jump with feet together
- Hop on one foot
- Climb stairs
- Bounce a ball and try to catch it
How to help your rising kindergartner
Kids develop skills at different rates. It’s not unusual for kids to have strong skills in one area and weak skills in other areas. Some states use kindergarten readiness tests to get a sense of which early learners might need extra help in some areas.
If you’re concerned your child isn’t ready for kindergarten, talk with your child's preschool teacher and work together to come up with a plan to address any trouble spots. You might also want to talk with your child’s health care provider. Learn about the pros and cons of delaying kindergarten for a year.
If your child is headed for kindergarten, explore these steps for a smooth transition. You might also want to see a set of videos on what kindergarten academic skills look like in action.
Key takeaways
Kids develop skills at different rates and might be strong in some areas and weak in others.
Some states use kindergarten readiness tests to see if kids need extra help in certain areas.
If you’re concerned your child might not be ready for kindergarten, talk to your child’s preschool teacher about how to help.
Tell us what interests you
About the author
About the author
Amanda Morin is the author of “The Everything Parent’s Guide to Special Education” and the former director of thought leadership at Understood. As an expert and writer, she helped build Understood from its earliest days.
Reviewed by
Reviewed by
Kristen L. Hodnett, MSEd is a clinical professor in the department of special education at Hunter College in New York City.
Kindergarten skills checklist
- Reading & Writing
- Mathematics
- Logic & Problem Solving
- Science
- Social Studies
- Creativity & Life Skills
- Personal & Social Skills
- Language Learning
Is your child ready for kindergarten? Refer to this skills checklist.
Is your child ready for kindergarten? Although each child is unique and develops at his or her own pace, most educators and developmental experts agree upon a certain set of skills as essential tools for further development and achievement in school. Here’s a checklist of the developmental skills children need exposure to and knowledge of before they enter kindergarten.
Social skills
- Uses words to solve problems or conflicts
- Uses words like please, thank you and excuse me
- Adjusts to new situations
- Attempts new tasks knowing it’s okay to make mistakes
- Shows pride in accomplishments
- Follows a simple direction
- Stays with an activity to completion
- Asks for help
- Interacts appropriately with adults and peers
- Respects the rights, property and feelings of others
- Works cooperatively (listens to others, shares and takes turns)
- Demonstrates increasing self-control
- Participates in clean-up activities
- Takes responsibility for own belongings (lunch, coat, etc.
) - Is able to dress self
- Adheres to a routine and schedule for personal hygiene, eating meals and going to bed
- Uses good hygiene habits and table manners
- Uses appropriate bathroom skills
- Follows simple safety rules
- Offers to help peers and family
- Tries to regulate emotions properly and articulates feelings in words
Motor skills
- Puts puzzles together
- Cuts with scissors
- Holds and uses crayons, markers, pens and pencils correctly
- Builds using blocks
- Tries to tie own shoes
- Bounces, kicks, throws and catches a ball
- Rides a tricycle
- Enjoys outdoor activities, like running, jumping and climbing
Reasoning & concept development
- Matches or groups objects according to size, shape or color
- Groups objects that are the same
- Understands concepts of in/out, under/over, on/off, front/back, etc.
- Shows an understanding of the passing of time, including concepts of before and after, and today, yesterday and tomorrow
- Experiments enthusiastically with new games and toys, sometimes in a trial-and-error manner
- Describes how objects are the same or different
Language skills
- Talks in sentences
- Follows one- and two-step oral directions
- Uses sentences that include two or more ideas
- Uses descriptive language
- Knows by heart and recites some common nursery rhymes and songs
- Pretends, creates and makes up songs or stories
- Tells or retells stories and/or everyday experiences
- Asks questions and expresses curiosity
- Expresses ideas so that others can understand
Reading skills
- Looks at books or pictures on their own
- Pretends to read books by reading the pictures
- Tries to read in everyday situations (signs, labels, etc.)
- Recognizes rhyming words
- Blends sounds into words
- Recognizes some common words in print
- Recognizes many uppercase and lowercase letters
- Recognizes some letter sounds
- Describes characters’ actions and feelings in a story
- Relates stories to personal experiences
- Puts events of a story in order
Writing skills
- Tries to write, scribble or draw
- Asks you to write words or notes to others
- Attempts to write own name and recognizes own name in print
Mathematics concepts
- Compares the size of groups of objects using language such as “more,” “less” and “same as”
- Arranges objects in size order (big to small, or small to big)
- Uses comparison words, like "bigger," "smaller," "heavier," etc.
- Understands concepts of none, some and all and more than and less than
- Identifies and draws a square, circle and triangle
- Correctly counts four to ten objects
- Knows that the final number counted represents the total number of objects in a set
- Recognizes some numbers, 1 – 10
- Can distinguish numbers from letters, and understands that numbers relate to quantity
- Understands the effects of addition and subtraction
Science
- Shows interest and asks questions about objects and events observed in their environment
- Notices common properties and differences among objects and materials
- Knows some facts about common plants and animals, such as what they eat and baby names
- Recognizes some objects in the sky such as the sun, moon, clouds and lightning
Creative arts & music
- Recognizes and names basic colors
- Draws recognizable shapes and simple objects
- Tells a story with pictures
- Moves to a beat
- Explores with common musical instruments
- Enjoys improvising or copying musical patterns
Social studies
- Recognizes basic traditions such as birthdays
- Understands that people live in different parts of the worlds and have different customs and traditions
- Explores simple maps and visual representations of neighborhoods or communities
What is important for a child to know and be able to do before kindergarten
As a rule, the decision that a child will go to kindergarten is not taken spontaneously by parents.
This has been known for at least a few months. Therefore, responsible parents have 2-3 months left to slowly prepare the baby for kindergarten.
Of course, a kindergarten is not a school, and the child does not need any special knowledge. But parents should take care to facilitate his first experience of communication in a team. To make it easier for the baby to adapt, in advance: accustom the child to the daily routine that is set in the kindergarten of your choice; instill in him elementary self-service skills; learn how to communicate with other children and caregivers.
Why the routine is so important
Even if your family doesn't accept or can't follow a certain routine, it should be one of the steps in preparing your child for kindergarten.
It is important that the baby knows how to fall asleep without a mother, especially during the day. In kindergarten, no one will lull him to sleep. If the child begins to wake up, fall asleep, walk, play and study at a certain time, this will greatly facilitate his period of getting used to new conditions.
Compliance with the regime will help to adjust the baby's biological clock, he will be less tired, it will be much easier for him to learn and acquire new knowledge and skills.
Of course, it is better if the parents immediately accustom the child to the daily routine that is set in the kindergarten where he is going to go. Therefore, find out the daily routine in the group and adapt the crumbs to it in advance. So he will get the first idea about the discipline, the observance of which is necessary already starting from kindergarten.
It would be useful if your baby knows the words "can't", "should" and "possible". This will make it easier for him to interact with caregivers and help avoid conflicts with other children. The ability to comply with generally established requirements will ultimately reduce the period of adaptation, make attending a kindergarten a pleasure for a child, and not a heavy duty or punishment.
What self-care skills will be required for kindergarten
By the age of three, when the majority of children are ready to attend kindergarten, parents themselves try to ensure that the baby has the necessary skills: to put on and take off clothes without adult help; use cutlery; wash your face, comb your hair, brush your teeth.
From an early age, children already enjoy being independent. Starting to walk, they are already trying to do without the help of adults, including taking off or putting on their clothes, socks and shoes. Encourage this effort by making it easy for your child to wear comfortable clothing and shoes with a minimum of buttons, zippers, Velcro and elastic bands that can be easily removed and put on.
Teach him to recognize your belongings and make sure they look neat and clean. Explain that outer clothing should be hung in a special closet or on a hanger, and lower clothes should be neatly folded on a chair or hung on its back. Even a three-year-old kid can be taught how to clean shoes, wipe them with a special cloth from dust and dirt. Of course, in most cases, his shoes will have to be washed, but the sooner you start teaching your child about neatness, the easier it will be for him in kindergarten.
Children begin to use cutlery, a spoon and a fork, drink from a cup on their own after a year.
During this period, you need to gradually abandon the use of bottles with nipples, special mugs with lids for babies. By the time your child enters kindergarten, these skills to use "adult" cutlery, although smaller, should already be well developed if you do not want your baby to remain hungry. Buy him a special children's service, a spoon and a fork, teach him to immediately hold them correctly while eating.
When teaching him to eat on his own, stop trying to turn the process into a game. You should not entertain him by trying to feed him “to satiety”, kindergarten teachers will not encourage this approach. Teach your baby to eat carefully, trying not to spill anything either on clothes or on the table. Teach him how to use napkins.
Parents should also take care of their baby's diet. He will not have the opportunity to choose dishes in the garden. Therefore, teach him to eat what is offered. Explain that for games and activities he will need a lot of strength, and for this he needs to eat well.
Hygiene skills are also taught to the child before kindergarten. One particularly important habit is hand washing. This should be done not only before each meal, but also after walking and playing. Teach him to roll up his sleeves so that in kindergarten he does not walk around with wet sleeves after every wash. Brushing your teeth will be more difficult - not all young children enjoy this process. Therefore, provide your child with a soft toothbrush and toothpaste that tastes good.
One of the most essential skills is the ability to go to the toilet on your own. Diapers, of course, are a convenient thing, but after two years the child should be accustomed to a potty or a toilet with a special seat. In kindergarten, he will be able to use the potty that he is used to at home, the teachers will not mind. Teach him to use toilet paper carefully, to remove and put on panties and tights on his own.
The child must be able to communicate
The first communication skills the baby receives in the family.
The more relatives and friends you have, the easier it will be for him to socialize in kindergarten. But a child can also learn to communicate during joint walks with his mother, meetings with other children on the playground. The more open the parents are to contact, the easier it will be for the baby.
Set an example for your child, communicate actively with strangers in front of him, get to know other parents and children. Encourage the initiative of your child, if he shows interest in the people around him and other children, he should not be shy himself and close up when strangers turn to him. Go with him to visit, spend children's holidays in your family. Leave him for some time alone at a party, with friends or relatives who do not live with you. The child should not be afraid that parents, mother are not always there.
Instill in your child a sense of empathy, empathy, the ability to put yourself in the place of another person. Even a three-year-old person is able to realize that not all of his whims and desires should be fulfilled, especially to the detriment of other children.
Set him up to be friends with other boys and girls and not offend them, share treats and toys with them.
Accustom the child in the family to group forms of interaction: joint games, cleaning the apartment, evening gatherings, reading books, watching movies. The kid should enjoy communicating with both relatives and strangers, whether they are adults or children.
At the same time, your child should be able to play and study independently by the age of three. Leave him alone with toys more often, because even at home, mom does not always have the opportunity to spend with the child all the time. Find him things that he can do for some time on his own: for example, drawing, coloring, modeling, assembling a designer, folding and moving objects, toys.
Prepare your child for the fact that the teacher is responsible for all children and cannot pay attention only to your child. Maintain the authority of educators in the family, do not allow them to speak badly about them in the presence of the child.
And, importantly, teach him to formulate and express his desires. This is necessary so that the baby can ask for the toilet in time, inform the teacher about his other needs.
Intellectual development of the child before kindergarten
The level of development of your child must also meet certain requirements. Of course, all children are different, but by the age of three, the child should already take part in thematic games, memorize the proposed plot and follow it during the game. He must know and be able to show parts of the body, distinguish between gender and age of people, distinguish and draw various geometric shapes - vertical and horizontal lines, circles.
Babies at this age are open to everything new. Tell your child stories, read books, he should be able to listen carefully to what he is told. Pick up for him to listen to audio performances and productions intended for the smallest. Develop his memory, learn poems and songs with him.
Expand his vocabulary by repeating new words, explaining concepts new to him. By the time you send your little one to kindergarten, he should already be able to form sentences of at least three or four words.
Conclusions
Preparing a child for kindergarten does not require much time or special knowledge from parents. But the knowledge and ideas about discipline instilled ahead of time will greatly facilitate and shorten the process of adaptation to new conditions for the baby.
9 Skills Every Child Should Be Prepared For Before Entering Kindergarten — Inna Koshuba on vc.ru way. Kindergarten gives children the opportunity to grow and develop through play and interaction.
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Photo: Ecovillage Nikolino Park in Krasnodar
At preschool age, children learn to strengthen their social and emotional development. Children learn to show respect and solve problems. Kindergarten provides children with an environment in which they can explore, gain self-esteem, play with peers, and develop self-confidence.
1. Recognize name
Your child's name will be everywhere in the kindergarten group - on boxes, folders, tables and much more. Help him to know his name at a glance, say the letters in his name and write his name as best as possible.
2. Name the letters of the alphabet.
To be ready for kindergarten, your child must know at least half of the alphabet.
3. Determine the dominant hand
Is your child right or left handed? Hand dominance is determined in utero before the baby is born. But the precise, skillful use of one hand over the other may not be fully established until your child is 4-6 years old - around kindergarten. If your child's hand dominance is already clearly established, your kindergarten teacher will readily recognize this. If this is still unclear to you, be sure to let your child's caregiver know.
4. Know how to properly hold and use scissors
If you haven't given your child scissors yet, it's time to start.
Pretty safe scissors with rounded ends are sold now.
5. Name and recognize colors
The child should be able to recognize and name the primary colors - red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, black, brown and white. Color recognition helps kids with one of the earliest basic math skills – sorting.
6. Count and recognize numbers up to 10
Most preschoolers learn to count, recognize numbers up to 10. This skill is the easiest to teach, we have 10 fingers and toes. We count!
7. Make rhymes
Nursery rhymes have been the beginning of literacy for many generations. Recognizing words that rhyme is an important first step in preparing for kindergarten and reading. If nursery rhymes are not part of your family's repertoire, you can play a simple rhyming game. Say any word ("Cat") and ask the child to tell you a rhyming word ("Mouse") in response.
8. Play and share with peers
Kindergarten is not only preparation for studies, but also social development.
