Preschool Education Tips

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Social Studies Objectives

The following is a list of the Social Studies objectives covered in the kindergarten curriculum. This is not what a child needs to know upon entering kindergarten. Rather, it is what a child should be introduced to and master during the year to prepare him or her for first grade. Some concepts are more difficult than others, but if you begin to introduce these objectives to your child in the preschool years, it will be much easier for your child to master them in kindergarten.

1. tell his/her own name and the names of of his/her parents
2. tell his/her address, phone number, birthday
3. will describe him/herself and draw a picture of him/herself
4. compare him/herself to another by appearance
5. tell the names and location of objects/areas in school
6. tell ways to improve order, beauty, and joy in the environment
7. tell how to ask for help appropriately when needed
8. tell how to choose right person to help in a situation
9. tell the reason why there are rules in school and at home
10. tell which tools and objects are needed for school and work
11. tell how each person is dependent on others
12. tell how classmates help each other
13. tell the names and jobs of people who fill your needs
14. explain the need for affection, belonging, success
15. explain ways to keep oneself healhty and safe
16. name specific emotions and describe the feeling
17. tell the consequences of specific emotional reactions
18. explain why communication is necessary
19. name ways people communicate: oral, written, nonverbal
20. explain inappropriate behavior between friends/people
21. describe characteristics and roles of family members
22. draw the type, location, rooms, furnishing of homes
23. think of a problem and tell how to solve it
24. name things you have that you can share
25. tell how where you live effects how you live
26. name forms of life that no longer live on this planet
27. tell how, when, and why groups celebrate special events
28. identify places where people learn
29. compare types of homes: house/apartment/igloo/mobile home/tent
30. memorize emergency phone numbers/strategies
31. locate community on map, globe
32. tell relative direction: right/left/up/down
33. tell relative distance: long/short/closer/farther

   

Science Objectives

The following is a list of the Science objectives covered in the kindergarten curriculum. This is not what a child needs to know upon entering kindergarten. Rather, it is what a child should be introduced to and master during the year to prepare him or her for first grade. Some concepts are more difficult than others, but if you begin to introduce these objectives to your child in the preschool years, it will be much easier for your child to master them in kindergarten.

The student will learn:
1. to care for the earth
2. to work to keep the earth balanced
3. that human life evolves free, self-aware, unfinished
4. that earth's balance is now enhanced or destroyed by us
5. that future life will be determined by our decisions
6. tell what he/she observes about living/non-living creatures
7. classify creatures as living/non-living
8. identify, draw the human body structure
9. name, draw picture of the: head, face, eyes, nose, mouth, teeth, tongue, chin, ears, and hair
10. name, draw picture of the neck and trunk
11. name, draw picture of arms, hands, fingers
12. name, draw picture of legs, feet, toes
13. experience setting up an ecosystem in a terrarium or aquarium
14. explain human responsibility to keep balance of earth
15. name five abilities of living creatures
16. classify things as animal, plant
17. describe the needs of all living creatures
18. compare the needs of plants/animals
19. observe the life cycles of frogs, fishes, mammals, and birds
20. describe the needs of plants: air, water, light, nutrients
21. describe the functions/abilities of plants
22. identify parts of the plant that are useful to man
23. explain the life cycle of a plant
24. describe the needs of animals: food, air, water, space
25. explain how animals are used and misused
26. compare/contrast animal eating habits and habitats
27. compare/contrast ways animals protect themselves
28. state ways animals are useful to man
29. associate sight with eye and proper eye care
30. exercise skill in visual perception, visual discrimination, visual memory
31. associate hearing with ear and proper ear care
32. exercise skill in auditory perception, auditory discrimination, auditory memory

   

Math Objectives

The following is a list of the Mathematics objectives covered in the kindergarten curriculum. This is not what a child needs to know upon entering kindergarten. Rather, it is what a child should be introduced to and master during the year to prepare him or her for first grade. Some concepts are more difficult than others, but if you begin to introduce these objectives to your child in the preschool years, it will be much easier for your child to master them in kindergarten.

1. classify, sort objects by size, color, and shape
2. place/move: to left and right
3. place/move: over, under, on
4. place/move: above, below, between
5. place/move: inside and outside
6. place/move: first to tenth place
7. place/move: beginning or last/end
8. follow a 2-step direction
9. follow a 4-step direction
10. sequence smallest to largest
11. sequence events in a story
12. contrast size as same/different
13. contrast size as smaller/larger
14. contrast distance: near/far
15. contrast quantity: all/some/none
16. contrast quantity: one more than, one less than
17. contrast quantity: more/less
18. repeat a given pattern seen
19. repeat a given pattern heard
20. complete a pattern of shapes, color, and size
21. create an original pattern
22. define a group and give example
23. recognize/name group of objects, pictures, and ideas
24. describe group characteristics
25. show equivalent/nonequivalent groups
26. show groups greater than given group
27. show groups less than given group
28. show empty set as zero
29. match concrete objects: 1 to 1
30. match pictured objects: 1 to 1
31. count in sequence to twenty
32. replace number in sequence
33. recognize/draw: circle/curve
34. recognize/draw: square/rectangle/triangle
35. tell the value of pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters
36. sort coins by name, by value
37. match number/set of objects
38. read/write numbers through 20
39. tell time to the hour
40. name/count days of the week
41. name/count months of the year
42. define numeral as number name
43. match numeral and number word

   

Reading Objectives

The following is a list of the Reading objectives covered in the kindergarten curriculum. This is not what a child needs to know upon entering kindergarten. Rather, it is what a child should be introduced to and master during the year to prepare him or her for first grade. Some concepts are more difficult than others, but if you begin to introduce these objectives to your child in the preschool years, it will be much easier for your child to master them in kindergarten.

1. develop receptive/expressive vocabulary skills
2. match identical geometric shapes, numeral forms, letter forms, word forms
3. match like objects in assortment of four
4. match identical pairs in mixed assortment
5. match same colored squares and pictures
6. match objects facing same direction
7. distinguish same letters from similar
8. name pictured objects in background and foreground
9. recognize own name in printed form
10. classify by color, shape, and size
11. sequence picture cards
12. tell difference between unlike shapes, unlike numerals, unlike letters, unlike words
13. move hand in left-right progression
14. move eye in left-right progression
15. classify sounds: alike/different
16. classify sounds: loud/soft
17. discriminate sound: long/short
18. compare pitch: high/medium/low
19. recognize rhyming words
20. identify repetitive words
21. enjoy stories
22. be silent when another speaks
23. look directly at the speaker
24. concentrate on what is said
25. question what is not clear
26. applaud politely when appropriate
27. give requested feedback
28. speak in complete sentences
29. speak with correct pronunciation
30. speak with clear enunciation
31. speak with good phrasing
32. speak with appropriate tone/pitch
33. dictate stories
34. name the alphabet letters
35. match small/capital letters
36. identify letters when seen
37. print alphabet letters
38. sequence letters alphabetically
39. recall the stated main idea
40. retell and remember three fables
41. memorize Mother Goose rhymes
42. visually differentiate vowels and consonants
43. hear, name, repeat, and print initial consonants
44. tell specific details of a story
45. audibly discriminate vowels and consonants

   

English Objectives

The following is a list of the English objectives covered in the kindergarten curriculum. This is not what a child needs to know upon entering kindergarten. Rather, it is what a child should be introduced to and master during the year to prepare him or her for first grade. Some concepts are more difficult than others, but if you begin to introduce these objectives to your child in the preschool years, it will be much easier for your child to master them in kindergarten.

1. retell information heard
2. discriminate: beginning, middle, end
3. discriminate: top, bottom, up, down
4. discriminate: first, next, last
5. discriminate: on, over, under
6. discriminate: far, near
7. discriminate: positions in pictures
8. discriminate: before, after
9. tell the difference between unlike shapes
10. tell the difference between unlike numbers
11. tell the difference between unlike letters
12. tell the difference between unlike words
13. recall picture details from a 5-second look
14. recall removed object from group
15. assemble a seven piece puzzle
16. trace between parallel lines
17. trace between curved lines
18. outline a figure
19. copy a given shape
20. reproduce letters as shown
21. color within lines
22. cut with scissors on line
23. discriminate: left, right
24. move eye in left-right progression
25. enjoy stories
26. distinguish various sounds
27. speak in complete sentences
28. speak with correct pronunciation
29. recite rhymes within the group
30. share riddles with the group
31. share ideas with the group
32. retell stories heard
33. roleplay situations
34. name/read/print color words
35. name/read/print shape words
36. name/read/print number words
37. name/read/print size words
38. capitalize first word of sentence
39. recognize and know days of the week
40. recognize and know months of the year

   

Teach Your Child To Read

The sky's the limit when introducing the written word to your preschooler. Don't think your child has to wait until Kindergarten to learn how to read. Basic skills and knowledge of letter sounds can be taught beginning at age 2! It may seem overwhelming at first, but if you take it step-by-step, you will see how easy it really is. The important thing to emphasize is making reading fun. Start out slow to build your child's confidence and enthusiasm. You can teach your child to read in no time!

The first step in teaching your child to read is making sure your child can recognize all the letters of the alphabet, uppercase and lowercase. You can make this fun by using flashcards or a variety of computer games that specialize in letter recognition.

Next, you can move on to letter sounds. Recognizing that each letter has a specific sound attached to it is an important step in the learning process. Once you teach your child the sound for a letter, encourage them to think of words beginning with that sound. Most of the letters are pretty easy to remember, however there are some "tricky letters" that some children have difficulty remembering the sound for, since they differ slightly from the letter name. Those letters are c, g, h, q, w, and y. All the vowels have two sounds, the short sound and the long sound in which they say themselves.

Once your child is able to remember most of their letter sounds, you can begin asking them to sound out short, 3-letter words. Many teachers begin by using word families; for example: -at (cat, bat, rat, mat, sat, hat), -en (hen, men, den, pen, ten), -ot (pot, not, hot, cot, dot). Be careful to choose words that follow the "rules" for the sounds they have learned so far. Now is not the time to confuse your child with all the exceptions of the English language.

You may also want to introduce some sight words once your child starts reading three-letter words. Explain to your child that sight words are common words that we use very often, and they don't always follow the rules. The best way to learn sight words is with repetition, since many of them must be memorized and cannot be sounded out. You can get the Dolch sight word list by doing a search for it online, however it consists of 220 words, which can be overwhelming to a young beginning reader. Instead, begin with the following 50 words:

I, a, the, have, we, is, and, are, you, to, said, for, was, like, does, has, he, she, be, me, see, they, were, not, in, about, there, them, where, why, when, who, go, out, your, no, with, that, do, this, from, or, what, can, all, how, want, some, am, of. Introduce each word, maybe one per day if your child seems to remember them easily, or one per week if you need to work a little slower. In addition to sight words, you may also want to introduce color words (red, blue, green, yellow, orange, purple, black, brown) and number words one to ten.

After your child has mastered letter sounds, and can sound out 3-letter words quickly and easily, he is ready to move on to blends. Begin with th (thumb), sh (shut), ch (chick), wh (whale), ph (phone), tr (truck), and dr (drum). Ask your child to think of words beginning or ending with that sound. You can also teach him the sound for -ing, which will help him read words like sing, king, ring, wing, jumping, having, running, etc.)

The next concept is Silent e. Silent e is used for most short words ending in e (cake, time, stripe, late, hope). The idea to stress is that the letter e gives up his voice to the other vowel and makes it have the long sound.

The final concept is Two Vowels. You may remember hearing the rhyme: two vowels go walking, the first one does the talking. The first vowel has the long sound and the vowel next to it is silent. This is used for words with two vowels next to each other (boat, seat, rain, peel).

Don't try to rush any part of the process. If your child is having difficulty sounding out short words, don't move on until she is ready. Some children have difficulty with the blends, especially pronouncing th. Make sure your child is pronouncing them correctly - have her watch your mouth carefully as you say the word slowly.

That's it! Once you have taught these concepts, your child should have an excellent foundation for reading. Of course, there are many exceptions and rules in the English language, but your child can tackle those as he builds his vocabulary and confidence reading on his own. You're off to a great start!

   

Spelling and Vocabulary Objectives

The following is a list of the Spelling and Vocabulary objectives covered in the kindergarten curriculum. This is not what a child needs to know upon entering kindergarten. Rather, it is what a child should be introduced to and master during the year to prepare him or her for first grade. Some concepts are more difficult than others, but if you begin to introduce these objectives to your child in the preschool years, it will be much easier for your child to master them in kindergarten.

1. name the alphabet letters
2. match small/capital letters
3. identify letter when seen
4. print alphabet letters
5. sequence letters alphabetically
6. discriminate vowels/consonants
7. name/read/define/spell preprimer words
8. name/read/define/spell primer words
9. enjoy stories
10. speak in complete sentences
11. speak with correct punctuation
12. hear/name/repeat/print initial consonants
13. hear/name/repeat/print final consonants
14. hear/name/repeat/print medial consonants
15. hear/name/repeat/print initial blends
16. hear/name/repeat/print final blends
17. hear/name/repeat/print 3-letter blends
18. hear/name/repeat/print long vowels
19. hear/name/repeat/print short vowels
20. name words ending in: ack, ake, all, am, at, ay
21. name words ending in: in, ight, ing, ish, ind
22. name words ending in: ell, et, eck, ook, ock
23. name words to rhyme with any given word
24. capitalize the first word of a sentence

   

January Assessment

The return to school after the holidays is generally considered the half-way point of the school year. This is a good time to evaluate your child's progress and seek out any additional help your child may need. Often, parents wait until the last minute to correct problems or issues that have been persisting throughout the year. This sometimes means that the school will ask your child to repeat the grade, especially if they are not able to keep up with the rest of the class. Take the initiative and speak with your child's teacher. Many teachers will contact you if they see a change in your child's behavior or academic progress, but some will not, and you may not realize anything is amiss until you receive the report card. By then, it is often too late.

   
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Guru Spotlight
Susan Sayour