Kindergarten Readiness

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Play & Learning Activities Preschool Age Children

Learning begins at birth.

Children are born with a great ability to learn and grow and by the time they turn three, they have already begun laying the foundation for life-long learning and success. By supporting all areas of their children’s development, parents are helping their children prepare for school.

At a glance

Rather than worry about whether your child is ready to read and write, think about their skills as a whole.
Ensure your child is both socially and emotionally prepared for school.
Kindergarten readiness includes motor skills like holding a pencil and using scissors.
Self-care, like getting dressed and toileting independently, are important kindergarten skills.

CCA helped me find the right kindergarten program for my child. She is now thriving in the right environment thanks to your help.

Amanda

parent

Developing Skills

Skills kids need going into kindergarten

Learn about the different kinds of skills kids are expected to have when they start kindergarten, including social-emotional skills.

Language skills

Speaks in complete sentences and can be understood by others most of the time
Uses words to express needs and wants
Understands and follows directions with at least two steps
Makes comparisons and describes relationships between objects like big/little, under/over, and first/last
Makes simple predictions and comments about a story being read
Retells a simple story after listening to a story with pictures
Participates in repeating a familiar song, poem, finger play and/or nursery rhyme

Reading readiness skills

Enjoys listening to stories
Recognizes familiar logos and signs, like stop signs or familiar store logos
Recognizes and tries to write their own name
Recognizes when two words rhyme (like cat and bat)
Starts to connect letter sounds to letters (like the sound of the first letter in their name)
Uses symbols or drawings to express ideas
Demonstrates book handling and awareness:
- Knows how to find the first page of a book and which way to flip the pages
- Understands that words are read in left to right order and top to bottom
- Holds books right side up
- Understands that stories have both a beginning and ending

Math skills

Counts from one to ten without skipping numbers
Matches a number to a group of five or fewer items (“I see three cats.”)
Organizes objects that go together in groups (color, category, size, etc.)
Understands more than and less than
Arranges three objects in the right order (like from smallest to biggest)
Recognizes, copies, or repeats patterning sequence
Demonstrates an understanding of “adding to” and “taking away” using objects up to five

Self-care skills

Demonstrates independence in personal care (washing hands, bathroom use)
Gets dressed on their own (but may still need help with buttons, zippers, and shoelaces)
Makes needs known and is beginning to self-advocate

Social and emotional skills

Separates from parents by appearing comfortable and secure without parent
Interacts with other children
Pays 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
Knows first and last name and age
Knows parent’s first and last names

Fine motor skills

Uses a pencil or crayon with some control
Uses scissors
Copies basic shapes, like a straight line, circle, x, and +
Puts together a simple puzzle (more than four pieces)

Gross motor skills

Runs
Jumps with feet together
Hops on one foot
Climbs stairs
Bounces a ball and tries to catch it

Featured Infographic

Is my child ready?

Readiness starts at home. Check out our printable readiness infographic, perfect for sharing with friends, hanging up on the refrigerator, or using at your next parent-teacher conference for your preschooler.

Supporting readiness at home

It’s all about experiences!

Encourage independence

Opportunities to develop independence are important for building a sense of self and self-esteem — not to mention frustration tolerance and perseverance!

Focus on self-help skills

Children need to know how to engage in basic self-help skills, including dressing and undressing, toileting, handwashing, etc. This includes knowing how and feeling comfortable asking for help!

Support emotional development

Validate and label your child's feelings, like “I know you don’t want to put your pajamas on. It’s hard to go from playtime to bedtime.” When you do this, you are telling your child that you both see and hear them, while you also continue to set clear and consistent limits.

Learn More

Provide play-based literacy activities

From scribbling to pretend writing, support your child's developing literacy skills by offering a variety of writing materials, reading together often, and playing with playdough and other fine motor materials.

Literacy Development

Teach responsibility

Start transferring small responsibilities over to your child and let your child accept the responsibility for an age-appropriate tasks. Praise and acknowledge when your child takes the initiative.

Provide play-based math activities

Play is critical to mathematical development in young children. Provide opportunities to count, sort, stack, sing, rhyme, and compare during play and routine care.

Math Play and Learning

Featured Resource

Preschool Guide

Families seeking a preschool program are often looking for a part-time or school-year program that will support their child's social and academic skills in the two years before kindergarten. Check out our guide to local Indy preschools, including school-based, cooperative preschools, and Montessori programs.

Building Your Child’s School Readiness Skills from Birth

When kids are getting ready for kindergarten, many families wonder about academic skills. Self-care and social and emotional skills are important for kindergarten readiness, too! Come learn about the different kinds of skills kids are expected to have when they start kindergarten and how you can support these skills from birth!

Sibling Play: Activities for the Whole Family

Helping Your Child Achieve Nighttime Dryness

Top Hacks for Packing Lunches

Developmental Skills

Readiness signs for all children

Readiness doesn’t mean just knowing the academic basics. It means a child has a willing attitude and confidence in the process of learning. Here are some skills to work on with your child as you help them prepare for school.

Physical readiness for school
- Can concentrate on school activities and attend to teacher-directed tasks for a short period of time
Age appropriate gross and fine motor skills
- Skilled at running, climbing and jumping
- Can control a pencil and cut with scissors
Responsibility and respect
- Can listen to instructions and can carry them out independently
- Can be aware of how their own behavior impacts on others
Readiness to explore new things
- Self-confidence and willingness to try new things
Pro-social behavior
- Plays well with others
- Has the ability to take turns and engage in cooperative activities
- Has basic friendship skills, like knowing how to enter into play appropriately
Ability to manage emotions
- Can control their own emotions, such as anger or frustration, in many situations with minimal adult assistance
- Has some ability to stop and think before deciding how to act
Interest in general knowledge about the world
- Has an understanding of their place in the world and has curiosity about the world around them
Ability to clearly communicate one’s own needs and understand others
- Has the verbal and social skills to advocate for their needs, including with peers and teachers
Basic literacy
- Begins to understand that:
  – a story has a beginning, a middle, and an end.
  – language can be used symbolically to represent real or even imaginary events
Basic numeracy
- Has an understanding of categorization and can reliably sort by color or shape

Kindergarten brings big changes for kids. For some, it’s their first time in a structured school setting. For others, it’s going from a small classroom in preschool to a big room with lots of kids.

Kids all respond differently, too. Some are excited by new experiences and can’t wait. Some have a tough time with change and are nervous. And kids may react differently once they walk in the classroom door.

Here are nine ways to make the transition easier.

Featured Resource

Kindergarten Transition Guide

Choosing, enrolling, and getting your child ready for kindergarten can be overwhelming - but don't worry! Child Care Answers is here to help. We have created this document to help prepare and support you as your child transitions to their first day of school.

Delaying Kindergarten: Experts Weigh In

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.