Readiness Skills. Writing Name. Using a Pair of Scissors

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1 Readiness Skills ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Kindergarten Readiness Checklist: School Readiness Writing Name Your child should know their own name and recognize their name in print. Practice writing their name using the capital letter first and all the rest lower case letters. This is their name, teach it correctly the first time. Please review each letter in their name by having them say as they write it. If your child is having difficulty, then work on one letter at a time. See the letter formation guide included in this booklet. Using a Pair of Scissors All children are individuals and develop at different rates. Using a pair of scissors is a skill that children develop over time with practice and support! It is very important to motivate and encourage children. This can be achieved with praise and encouragement at each milestone. Please do not worry if your child has not mastered this skill by the time they start school but awareness of this skill will be helpful. Your child will get plenty of support when they start school. Cutting with scissors takes a great deal of finger coordination and control. This task can be frustrating for young children especially in September. They are adjusting to our school day and the teacher wants me to what - CUT! Working on this over the summer will help your child be more comfortable with this skill. Please show your child how to hold the scissors correctly so that they use their pointer finger as the helper finger (see picture above) or two fingers in the bottom hole (if they fit). Readiness Skills Page 1

2 Personal Information It is very important that your child knows their first and last name as well as their address and telephone number, please include the zip code. This is for your child s safety, please review over the summer. Correct Position for Holding a Crayon or a Pencil 1. The pencil should be held loosely. It should not be gripped tightly by the fingers. 2. Your child should have plenty of practice writing on a chalkboard or white board before writing on smaller size paper. This will encourage greater freedom of arm movement. 3. Please encourage the correct way to hold a crayon with the 2 fingers holding (a pinch grip) and the other 3 fingers tucked under - see picture above. Sequencing Days Events or Activities Arrange a series of picture cards into the logical order to create the story from beginning to end or review the sequence of events of a daily activity such as getting ready for bed. Encourage your child to speak in full sentences. Readiness Skills Page 2

3 Rhyming Learning to rhyme is an important skill that will help your child learn to read. Here are a few suggestions that you can do with your child at home. 1. Read nursery rhymes or sing songs with rhyming words. Exaggerate the rhyming words. See if your child can tell you which words rhyme. 2. Vary the above activity by leaving out the rhyming words and letting your child fill in the blanks. For example, say "Jack and Jill went up the." 3. Read Dr. Seuss books or other books with a lot of rhyming words. Help your child find the rhyming words. 4. Help your child think of words that rhyme with his or her name, names of family members, animals, etc. Throw in some nonsense words for extra fun and practice. Before Learning to Read Before your child can learn to read, he or she needs to understand the connection between words we say and what is printed. Below are three activities that you can do with your child that will help with this skill. 1. When reading a book or story to your child, read a phrase or sentence and help your child clap out syllables in words. Children participate in a series of activities that help them realize that words are made up of syllables. a. Syllable Clap Talk with your child about why knowing about syllables can help them when they read and write. Ask them to clap with you as you say these words: sunshine calendar vacation delicious dinner astronaut alphabet communication school wonderful merry-go-round television b. Syllable Count Have children clap for each syllable you say. Begin with two or three syllable words and build up to longer words with more syllables: airplane air plane 2 Readiness Skills Page 3

4 table ta ble 2 porcupine por c u pine 3 communication com mun i ca tion 5 piz-za to-mor-row yes-ter-day 2. Go through some photographs and ask your child for a sentence that describes the photo. Write the sentence down (i.e. "That s me going down the slide."). Together, count the words in the sentence and write the number beside the sentence. 3. As you are reading to your child please point to each word. Books Books provide information and enjoyment in our lives, and they are just as important to children. Even if children cannot read, they enjoy looking at the pictures and having someone read to them. It is important to read everyday to your child. Reading before bed will allow them to calm down and relax before falling asleep. This is a special night time activity. Look for and encourage the following behaviors as you read books with your child: Does your child: *describe actions shown in illustrations? *take part in reading by inserting words and phrases? *gain information from books about real things? *recite familiar books in an attempt to read from memory? *indicate an interest in different kinds of books (fantasy, realistic fiction, and informational books)? *follow along in a book as it is read? *attempt to read by looking at illustrations? *read some words by sounding them out? Readiness Skills Page 4

5 Here are some activities that will help your child develop some of these behaviors: 1. Recite a familiar poem or nursery rhyme and allow your child to insert the missing word or words. For example, say, Hey diddle diddle, the cat and the, the jumped over the moon. When you re reading to your child you can point to the words, so your child will begin to follow along, reading from left to right. 2. Share a variety of picture books with your child. If your child shows a particular interest in a specific topic, gather picture books that reflect your child s interest area. 3. Reading and telling stories to your child not only provides enjoyment, but helps develop listening skills and increases vocabulary. As you read or tell a story, stop and talk about the pictures or new vocabulary words. After your child has heard a book or a story told several times, your child may want to tell it to you. 4. To help create an interest in books, provide a bookcase for your child s own books. As you enjoy the books with your child, stress the importance of taking good care of books. An inexpensive way to make a bookcase is to cover a box with contact paper. 5. Take your child to the local public library. Edited and revised - Originally from Curriculum Associates, Inc. - Readiness Strategies and Practice Readiness Skills Page 5