St. Barbara Catholic SchoolOpen Arms. Open Minds. Open Hearts.

A PARENT’S GUIDE TO KINDERGARTENERS

• How They Grow in Kindergarten
• Where They Are
  The average five-year-old is enthusiastic, helpful, and conforming. He:
• Attempts only things he knows he can do.
• Needs attention, affection, and praise.
• Is energetic and fidgety.
• Has a short attention span.
• May show opposite extremes of behavior.
• May become less well-behaved as the school year progresses.
• Where They're Going
  At five years old, your child is learning to understand herself. You can help by encouraging her as she:
• Develops a positive, realistic self-image.
• Learns to respect herself.
• Begins to understand her own uniqueness.
• Gains awareness of her feelings.
• Learns to express feelings.
• Learns how to participate in groups.
• Begins to learn from her mistakes.
• Your Child's Communication By the end of kindergarten, your child should be able to do the following:

• Listening
• Follow 1-2 simple directions in a sequence
• Listen to and understand age-appropriate stories read aloud
• Follow a simple conversation
• Speaking
• Be understood by most people
• Answer simple "yes/no" questions
• Answer open-ended questions (e.g., "What did you have for lunch today?")
• Retell a story or talk about an event
• Participate appropriately in conversations
• Show interest in and start conversations
• Reading
• Know how a book works (e.g., read from left to right and top to bottom in English)
• Understand that spoken words are made up of sounds
• Identify words that rhyme (e.g., cat and hat)
• Compare and match words based on their sounds
• Understand that letters represent speech sounds and match sounds to letters
• Identify upper- and lowercase letters
• Recognize some words by sight
• "Read" a few picture books from memory
• Imitate reading by talking about pictures in a book
• Writing          
• Print own first and last name
• Draw a picture that tells a story and label and write about the picture
• Write upper- and lowercase letters (may not be clearly written)

• Parenting and Behavioral
• Listen to and show respect for your child.
• Continue reading to your child or read together. Get a library card and use it regularly. Ask the librarian to pick out age appropriate books.
• By the end of this year many 5-year-olds can recognize simple words and may even be reading. Praise your child's progress.
• Children this age show concern for each other so parents should encourage diversity, respect and tolerance.
• The 5-year-old enjoys crafts, coloring and painting. He or she may also begin enjoying simple board games (like "Candyland," etc.).
• It is not unusual to have occasional accidents at night and during play. Be understanding and do not make a big deal out of it. However, if it happens frequently, it would be a good idea to discuss the matter with the child's doctor.
• Enhance your 5-year-old's experience with trips to parks, libraries, zoos and other points of interest.
• Teach your child the difference between right and wrong.
• Begin age appropriate chores.
• Always show affection.
• Development
• Skips, can walk on tiptoes and jumps forward.
• Throws a ball overhand.
• Washes and dries hands and brushes teeth unassisted.
• Can cut and paste.
• Can name four or five colors.
• Can state his or her age.
• Has a vocabulary of six to eight word sentences.
• Can tell a simple story.
• Can dress and undress without supervision.
• Knows his or her own phone number, address and several nursery rhymes.
• Can copy a triangle from a picture.
• Draws a person with a head, body, arms and legs.
• Understands right and wrong, fair and unfair.
• Understands games that have rules.
• Engages in make-believe and dress-up play, in which your child may assume a specific role ("mommy or daddy").

For additional information go to http://www.education.com/grade/kindergarten