Preparing for Kindergarten

My oldest son will be starting kindergarten this year.  I am so excited for him and want make sure he is prepared for this new milestone. Listed below is a checklist of the things your little one should know before starting kindergarten. Don't get worried if your child doesn't know everything on the checklist.  All kids learn at different paces and hit milestones at different times.  What is most important for teachers is a healthy child that is ready to learn.

1. Know the alphabet
2. Know the difference between uppercase and lowercase letters
3. Counting and number recognition.  Your child should be able to count to 10 at a minimum, although 20 is becoming more mainstream.
4. Random letter recognition. This means your child actually knows her letters, instead of just memorizing the order of the alphabet.
5. Pencil grip: If your child learns improper pencil grip, it's hard to unlearn it.
6. Social skills: Social skills are almost more important than the academic.
7. Be able to focus: Listen and sit still for at least 15 minutes.
8. Responsibility: Children need to be responsible for their belongings.
9. How to use classroom tools.
10. Confidence. Children are more confident when they are familiar with something, teachers echoed.
11. Listen to stories without interrupting
12. Recognize rhyming sounds
13. Pay attention for short periods of time to adult-directed tasks
14. Understand actions have both causes and effects
15. Show understanding of general times of day
16. Cut with scissors
17. Trace basic shapes
18. Begin to share with others
19. Start to follow rules
20. Be able to recognize authority
21. Manage bathroom needs
22. Button shirts, pants, coats, and zip up zippers
23. Begin to control oneself
24. Separate from parents without being upset
25. Speak understandably
26. Talk in complete sentences of five to six words
27. Look at pictures and then tell stories
28. Identify rhyming words
29. Identify the beginning sound of some words
30. Recognize some common sight words like "stop"
31. Sort similar objects by color, size, and shape
32. Recognize groups of one, two, three, four, and five objects
33. Bounce a ball

http://www.childup.com/blog/Things-your-Child-Should-Know-before-the-First-Day-of-Kindergarten

http://school.familyeducation.com/kindergarten/school-readiness/38491.html

http://www.babycenter.com/0_kindergarten-readiness-is-your-child-ready-for-school_67232.bc