Kindergarten Readiness Checklist

Is your child ready for kindergarten? Although each child is unique and develops at his or her own pace, most educators and developmental experts agree upon a certain set of skills as essential tools for further development and achievement in school. Here’s a checklist of the developmental skills children need exposure to and knowledge of before they enter kindergarten.

Kindergarten readiness checklist

Social skills

• Uses words to solve problems or conflicts

• Uses words like please, thank you and excuse me

• Adjusts to new situations

• Attempts new tasks knowing it’s okay to make mistakes

• Shows pride in accomplishments

• Follows a simple direction

• Stays with an activity to completion

• Asks for help

• Interacts appropriately with adults and peers

• Respects the rights, property and feelings of others

• Works cooperatively (listens to others, shares and takes turns)

• Demonstrates increasing self-control

• Participates in clean-up activities

• Takes responsibility for own belongings (lunch, coat, etc.)

• Is able to dress self

• Adheres to a routine and schedule for personal hygiene, eating meals and going to bed

• Uses good hygiene habits and table manners

• Uses appropriate bathroom skills

• Follows simple safety rules

• Offers to help peers and family

• Tries to regulate emotions properly and articulates feelings in words

Motor skills

• Puts puzzles together

• Cuts with scissors

• Holds and uses crayons, markers, pens and pencils correctly

• Builds using blocks

• Tries to tie own shoes

• Bounces, kicks, throws and catches a ball

• Rides a tricycle

• Enjoys outdoor activities, like running, jumping and climbing

Reasoning & concept development

• Matches or groups objects according to size, shape or color

• Groups objects that are the same

• Understands concepts of in/out, under/over, on/off, front/back, etc.

• Shows an understanding of the passing of time, including concepts of before and after, and today, yesterday and tomorrow

• Experiments enthusiastically with new games and toys, sometimes in a trial-and-error manner

• Describes how objects are the same or different

Language skills

• Talks in sentences

• Follows one- and two-step oral directions

• Uses sentences that include two or more ideas

• Uses descriptive language

• Knows by heart and recites some common nursery rhymes and songs

• Pretends, creates and makes up songs or stories

• Tells or retells stories and/or everyday experiences

• Asks questions and expresses curiosity

• Expresses ideas so that others can understand

Reading skills

• Looks at books or pictures on their own

• Pretends to read books by reading the pictures

• Tries to read in everyday situations (signs, labels, etc.)

• Recognizes rhyming words

• Blends sounds into words

• Recognizes some common words in print

• Recognizes many uppercase and lowercase letters

• Recognizes some letter sounds

• Describes characters’ actions and feelings in a story

• Relates stories to personal experiences

• Puts events of a story in order

Writing skills

• Tries to write, scribble or draw

• Asks you to write words or notes to others

• Attempts to write own name and recognizes own name in print

Mathematics concepts

• Compares the size of groups of objects using language such as “more,” “less” and “same as”

• Arranges objects in size order (big to small, or small to big)

• Uses comparison words, like "bigger," "smaller," "heavier," etc.

• Understands concepts of none, some and all and more than and less than

• Identifies and draws a square, circle and triangle

• Correctly counts four to ten objects

• Knows that the final number counted represents the total number of objects in a set

• Recognizes some numbers, 1 – 10

• Can distinguish numbers from letters, and understands that numbers relate to quantity

• Understands the effects of addition and subtraction

Science

• Shows interest and asks questions about objects and events observed in their environment

• Notices common properties and differences among objects and materials

• Knows some facts about common plants and animals, such as what they eat and baby names

• Recognizes some objects in the sky such as the sun, moon, clouds and lightning

Creative arts & music

• Recognizes and names basic colors

• Draws recognizable shapes and simple objects

• Tells a story with pictures

• Moves to a beat

• Explores with common musical instruments

• Enjoys improvising or copying musical patterns

Social studies

• Recognizes basic traditions such as birthdays

• Understands that people live in different parts of the worlds and have different customs and traditions

• Explores simple maps and visual representations of neighborhoods or communities