What every first grader should know

45 Things Your Child Should Know Before Entering First Grade

The transition from kindergarten to first grade is a big step for any child. Your child will now be a part of a “big school,” meaning they are surrounded by more students, can eat in a cafeteria, and play outside during recess. They will also adjust to a longer school day, receive more homework, and learn to get around without much help. These changes in routine will cause your child to start feeling independent.

Your child has applied what they have learned in preschool to kindergarten and has now gathered more information in kindergarten to apply in first grade. It is important that children have learned certain facts and information in kindergarten so they can apply those skills next year to help them grow. By the end of kindergarten, their knowledge of reading, writing, numbers, and problem-solving have grown, along with being introduced to other subjects like social studies and science.

Here is an example checklist of what your child needs to know before starting first grade.

Reading and Reading Comprehension Skills

Recognize upper and lower case letters
Know, identify, and increase sight word vocabulary (sight words are words that often are spelled differently than how they sound and children must recognize them by sight. Common sight words are: "their", "if", "of", "each")
Know the alphabet and basic features of letters and words
Memorize and correctly spell around 130-150 words
Decoding or sounding new words out (being able to use letter sounds and patterns to recognize and pronounce written words)
Rhyming more words (ex: frog and clog)
Tell the difference between facts and fiction
Recall the sequence of events in a story (first, second, third, ending, etc.)

Writing Skills

Write upper and lower case letters
Write their name
Use letters and shapes to detect different objects
Create simple words and sentences
Write in complete sentences

Fine Motor Skills

Hold a pencil, crayon, or marker correctly
Hold scissors correctly

Mathematic Skills

Recognize that addition means putting two groups of numbers together (5+4) and that subtraction means taking away from one group (5-4)
Add and subtract numbers 1 through 10
Use objects to show how to break up numbers less than or equal to 10 in different ways (ex: 6 apples = two groups of 3 apples, or 6 apples = a group of 4 apples and a group of 2 apples. )
Use objects or draw pictures to help show addition and subtraction
Count simple money
Know numbers from 1-30
Recognize different patterns (ex: blue square, red square, blue square; should know what comes next)
Recognize more shapes and master previous knowledge of shapes (square, circle, sphere, star, rhombus)
Know the tools to measure time and temperature

Social Studies Skills

Social Studies is a subject that is gradually introduced to children in kindergarten. They will learn about past history and events that took place in America. Your child should be able to:

Understand what history is and know some stories, events, and people in history
Know important people in United States history (George Washington)
Understand broad categories of time (past, present, and future)
Know basic cultures and their traditions
Know people and events honored in commemorative holidays
Recognize American symbols (the flag, the eagle, the Statue of Liberty)
Understand that there are other instruments used to locate places (maps, globes)

Science Skills

Science is another subject that is introduced to children in kindergarten. Science teaches about the universe and the natural world through experiments. There are many different areas of science that are introduced upon grade level. Your child should be able to:

Do easy, hands-on experiments
Know the four seasons and their different climates
Know the importance of the sun and what it provides the Earth with
Know the difference between living and non-living things (a plant vs. a teddy bear)
Recognize how we impact the Earth in terms of recycling and pollution

Social Skills and Abilities

Participate in group activities
Share and communicate appropriately with other students
Respect their peers
Raise their hand before being called on
Seek help with assignments when needed
Show eagerness and willingness to learn
Sit for a longer period of time than in kindergarten (15-20 minutes.

Read the Rest of the Series!

Have multiple children in multiple grades? Read the rest of the series!

21 Things Your Child Should Know Before Entering Kindergarten
45 Things Your Child Should Know Before Entering First Grade
45 Things Your Child Should Know Before Entering Second Grade
43 Things Your Child Should Know Before Entering Third Grade
48 Things Your Child Should Know Before Entering Fourth Grade
49 Things Your Child Should Know Before Entering Fifth Grade

Sources:

“1st Grade Skills Checklist. ” LeapFrog. Web. 29 Aug. 2017.
“Preparing for 1st Grade.” Scholastic. Web. 29 Aug. 2017.
"Model Curriculum English Language Arts Units," New Jersey State Government, http://www.state.nj.us/education/modelcurriculum/ela/1.pdf
Model Curriculum Grade 1 Mathematics Units, New Jersey State Government, http://www.state.nj.us/education/modelcurriculum/math/1.pdf

We wrote a guide answering the most common questions we've gotten from 100s of of parents of first graders. Download it for free today!

Topics: Problem Solving, Number Writing, First Grade, New School Year, Elementary School

Ready for 1st Grade: Skills Kids Need

A lot of learning happens in kindergarten to help kids hit the ground running when they go into first grade. Some of the skills kids need going into first grade are social skills, like listening and taking turns. Others are more academic — the skills kids need to develop as they do more work in reading, writing, and math.

Here’s a sample of what kids should be learning by the end of kindergarten to be ready for first grade.

Literacy skills kids need for first grade

Literacy skills include both reading and writing. The two are taught together because they’re closely connected. In kindergarten, kids practice breaking words into small chunks and identifying the sounds each letter makes. (This is known as decoding.)

That’s because kids going into first grade are expected to know the alphabet and the basic features of letters and words. They’re also typically able to recognize and provide rhyming words. These are all skills that help emerging readers learn new words and read simple books.

When it comes to writing, incoming first graders are expected to be able to write and share information in a variety of ways. This includes drawing, writing letters and words, listening to others, and speaking out loud. To help build these skills for first grade, kids do activities like these:

Write and recognize upper- and lowercase letters.
Match letters to sounds, make rhymes, and recognize some words without having to sound them out (teachers refer to these as sight words, and some of the first ones kids pick are and, the, and it).
Learn and use new words to express thoughts, feelings, and ideas clearly.
Ask and answer questions about a story the teacher reads aloud, and talk about the characters, settings, and major events in the story.
Name the person, place, thing, or idea in a picture.
Follow the rules of conversation by listening and taking turns talking.
Give information about an event, topic, or opinion by drawing, talking, and writing about it.
Participate in shared reading and writing activities (for example, the teacher reads a big picture book aloud and students take turns sharing ideas about it).

You can help your child build literacy skills at home, too:

Learn about ways to help kids connect letters and sounds.
Get tips to help your child develop good reading habits.
Use fun multisensory techniques to practice writing.

Math skills kids need for first grade

There are two big math concepts kids need a strong grasp of as they go into first grade. The first is number sense — learning numbers and what they stand for, like connecting the number “5” with a picture of five apples. The other big one is addition and subtraction. Kindergartners also learn to identify and work with shapes.

Here are some activities kids do to build math skills going into first grade:

Count how many objects are in a group (one by one) and compare it to another group to figure out which is greater or less than the other.
Recognize that addition means putting two groups together and that subtraction means taking away from one group.
Add and subtract numbers 1 through 10.
Use objects to show how to break up numbers less than or equal to 10 in more than one way (for example, 8 erasers = 2 groups of 4 erasers, and 8 erasers = a group of 2 and a group of 6).
Find the number of objects to make any group of 1 to 9 into a group of 10.
Use objects or draw pictures to represent and solve simple addition and subtraction word problems.

You can help your child build math skills at home, too:

Explore fun picture books to get your child excited about math.
See how to use everyday household items to practice math.
Play board games that build math skills.

Working with your incoming first grader

Take a look at your state’s academic standards to see what skills are expected for kids going into first grade. Not all states use the same standards, but many of them have similar expectations for students.

Keep in mind, too, that kids develop skills at different rates. But if your child doesn’t have most of these skills down by the end of kindergarten, it’s a good idea to check in with your child’s teacher to speak about your concerns. Together you can come up with a plan for keeping track of your child’s progress and getting ready for first grade.

Key takeaways

Incoming first graders typically know the alphabet and can add and subtract numbers 1 through 10.
There are fun ways to practice language and math skills to help your child get ready for first grade.
If you have concerns about your child’s progress, talk to the teacher to come up with a game plan.

What a child should know and be able to do by the first grade

In the first grade, parents usually start collecting their children as early as six months in advance. There are so many things to buy for school: uniforms, satchels, textbooks, notebooks, stationery. At the same time, the child, realizing, begins to hastily develop: to teach to read, write, count, learn poetry. To be no worse than others. Of course, there is a conditional norm of what a child should be able to do before school, and it would be nice to reach this bar. But it is even more important not to kill his interest in studies that have not yet begun with his efforts. At the age of seven, a child is interested in everything in the world, he actively explores the world and looks forward to going to school as an exciting and exciting adventure. The best thing you, as a loving mother (or father), can do in such a situation is not to deprive him of this joy, which means trying to calm down yourself and not let your anxiety spread to the child. The life of a first grader is changing a lot, and you will be there and help him prepare for these changes.

First of all, of course, a first grader must learn not to miss the lessons. And this means that the school regime of the day should begin to be established in advance. You can give your child a personal alarm clock, which he himself will start every night before going to bed. This will give the first grader a pleasant feeling of independence, he will know that you trust him. Of course, you will also need to get up early to help your child get ready for school. It's to help. No need to do everything for him, let him take a sip of this adulthood, play mom or dad going to work.

There are no formal requirements for what a child must know before going to school. However, there is a basic set of knowledge and skills that it would be good to master by this time, so that the development of the school curriculum is more effective, and the child feels confident in a new environment.

Ability to tell about himself and his family

A first-grader must be able to give his last name, first name and patronymic, age and date of birth. Say the names and professions of parents and other family members. Talk about pets. Know in which city and country he lives.

Knowledge of nature

Ability to distinguish between seasons. Understanding what time of year this or that weather phenomenon is typical: for example, it usually snows in winter. The ability to name several plants and animals, birds.

Spatio-temporal thinking

Understanding where the right hand is and where the left hand is. How many days are there in a week, and how is night different from day. The ability to distinguish future events from past events.

General knowledge

By the first grade, most children can read and memorize short texts consisting of simple sentences. Knows the numbers of the first ten and will easily understand which is greater: 2 or 9. Distinguish a triangle from a circle and easily name the colors of toys. Will be able to group objects by color and shape and find extra or missing items.

Communication skills

Even if a child is erudite, being among unfamiliar children and a teacher, he may be embarrassed, frightened and unable to speak. It happens that children at home chat - you can’t stop, but at school they are silent all the time. This is caused by fear of strangers and an unusual situation. Therefore, it is important to prepare the child in advance for such a change, to talk about school - as a space where everything is different, but in which it is safe to be yourself. You can share your joyful school experience.

If your child did not have time to master something from this list, do not despair. As practice shows, children with completely different levels of skills come to the first grade, and far from always smart first graders remain such in the future. A child in the period of elementary grades has a great zeal and potential for studying phenomena of interest to him. Therefore, the main goal of the school and parents in these years is to create comfortable conditions for the development of talent.

What a child should know and be able to do by the first grade: knowledge for a first grader

According to the Law of the Russian Federation "On Education", admission to the first class of state and municipal educational institutions is prohibited through a competition. Any child aged 6.5–8 has the right to enroll in a school. But some things should be taught to the baby before the start of training - this will make it easier to adapt to a new rhythm.

Knowledge and skills for life

Knowledge about the family

Kindergarten graduates should easily navigate information about close relatives and their data. Full name, age, date of birth, what mom and dad work for, how old are the brothers and sisters. It is good if the child by the first grade knows by heart the phone number of one of the parents and the home address.

Knowledge of safety rules

It is assumed that the baby is familiar with the basic rules of behavior on the street: in what places and at what color of the traffic light to cross the road, what to do if the traffic light is not visible, whether it is possible to leave with a stranger without the knowledge of the parents. This is the minimum knowledge of safety that a child should have by the first grade.

Speech development

It is important for a child to speak clearly and distinctly, to distinguish between male and female, to determine the sound in a word, to select simple synonyms, to be able to describe objects, build a dialogue, choose the superfluous in a row and generalize.

Soft skills

Soft skills

"Soft skills" develop throughout a person's life. It is important to lay their foundation already at the senior preschool age, so that it would be easier for the future first-grader to adapt to new living conditions.

Mindfulness and the ability to concentrate

This is the basic skill by which all others are formed.

At the moment everyone is surrounded by a huge flow of information. Adults absorb it, sometimes without even thinking. And the children repeat. In order to memorize new things and be able to apply this knowledge in practical life, it is first necessary to develop the ability to concentrate and maintain attention. Without this, it is impossible to learn and achieve success.

Critical thinking

The skill helps to defend one's point of view and not take everything on faith. It is worth explaining to the child how important it is to check the information, question it and ask questions.

Logical thinking

Must be developed from early childhood. Logical thinking contributes to the ability to see and build patterns, analyze information, draw conclusions, consider the same situation from different angles. A person with a developed logical thinking has almost unlimited possibilities and easily adapts to various situations.

Communication skills and teamwork

Our whole life from the very first days is connected with communication, without it it is impossible to exist, therefore it is so important to develop and improve the child's communication skills as early as possible. The ability to be friends, empathize, negotiate, resolve conflicts and defend yourself if necessary. In addition, it is important to teach a child to hear, appreciate and respect someone else's point of view, to take the place of another person, to find a common language with different people - all this is about working in a team, a team.

Non-standard thinking and the ability to think creatively

The skill allows a person not only to adapt to changing environmental conditions, but also to find answers to questions of any complexity, generate new ideas, see and find positive even, it would seem , in desperate situations.

Emotional intelligence

It is important to teach a future first-grader to understand his emotions, to be able to cope with them, to talk about his feelings, to experience empathy. Without these basic skills, a future happy life without depression, apathy and neurosis is impossible. Such questions are especially acute and relevant at the beginning of schooling, during the period of adaptation, when the psychological burden on the child increases.

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Intercultural openness

In today's world, with the opportunities to travel and online learning, it is important and necessary not only to know a foreign language, but also to be able to understand the cultures of other peoples. Know the features and respect the religion of other nations, be familiar with the traditions and honor them. This helps to find a common language with representatives of other countries.

Self-organization and time management

The skill can be useful in any area: putting things in order, managing your life, prioritizing things. This will save the child from fatigue, stress, increase self-confidence and teach them to enjoy life.

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Knowledge and skills for school

Knowledge about the surrounding world

It is believed that by the first grade a child knows natural phenomena: snow, hail, lightning. The child should be able to distinguish colors, plants, animals, body parts, clothing and footwear, dishes. To test the knowledge of a preschooler, you can offer offhand to name several types of trees or migratory birds. For clarity, purchase a children's encyclopedia, look at illustrations together and discuss paragraphs.

Knowledge of time and space

Make sure that the child is oriented in the hourly routine of the day, knows how to tell the time using an ordinary clock with hands, can list the days of the week and the names of the seasons without hesitation. Another important skill is to distinguish between “right” and “left”.

Mathematical knowledge

This is an important category, but it often causes problems. It's good if the child:

- Counts up to 100 and knows how to perform elementary addition and subtraction operations within the first ten. At least it is worth knowing the numbers 0 to 10 in forward and reverse order.
- Indicates the number of items as a number.
Distinguishes between "one" and "many". Operates with the concepts of "greater than", "less than", "equal", "up", "down".
- Able to compare objects by size, shape. It is expected that he is familiar with basic geometric concepts - a parallelepiped is unlikely to be needed, but a circle, rectangle, square is quite.

It is also important to teach the child to find patterns in order to train logic: exercises with pictures like “Find 5 differences” are perfect here.

Knowledge of reading and Russian language

It is recommended that a future first grader know the alphabet. Despite the fact that it is not officially required to be able to read, this will definitely be asked at the interview. It is easier for children who have learned to read before school to adapt: as a rule, their academic performance is higher than that of children who read in elementary school in syllables. You should not force your child to pore over books without getting out, but you can try to motivate them to read on their own.

What you need to know to get into first grade at Foxford

Our online school has several learning formats, from which parents choose the one that suits their child the most. These can be recorded or online lessons.

Since Foxford is an online school, it is important to pay attention to how well the child is familiar with the computer and whether he can type on the keyboard and also handle the mouse.

In order to be successful in elementary school, a child must have basic reading, writing, and arithmetic skills. There are no entrance tests, but the family is offered a small test to check the readiness of the child for school.

It is important to equip a learning area for a future first-grader before starting training, think over the daily routine and “pump” self-organization skills.