We had an awesome first day in kindergarten!

Preparing Your Child for Kindergarten!

Let’s face it: Kindergarten isn't what it used to be. Right or wrong, it is the world we live in. The following list is intended to help prepare your child in a variety of developmental areas to make the transition into kindergarten as smooth as possible.

Believe it or not, just 15-20 minutes of playing and learning with your child can make a world of difference!

Social/Emotional Development**Encourage your child to persist in tasks when encountering a problem by giving him tasks slightly above his current ability level. When your child cannot find a solution on his own, encourage him to calmly ask for help.

**Play board games to practice taking turns.

**Set up several play dates with friends of various ages.

**Tell your child you expect her to clean up after play. You could implement a ransom box for toys left out like this one:

www.madsmemories.blogspot.com/2009/08/moms-ransom-rubbage.html

Language Development**Verbally give your child specific one-step and two-step directions and encourage him to follow through.

**Read to your child for a combined total of at least 20 minutes each day.

**While reading, point out how to hold a book (right-side up with the spine on the

left) and the orientation in which we read the words and look at the pictures (left to right).**After reading, ask your child what happened in the beginning, middle, and end of the story.**Give your child plenty of opportunities to draw (without coloring books). T

**Teach your child the uppercase and lowercase letters and, most importantly, the sounds each letter makes through play and games.

Cognitive Development**Have your child help you sort items according to color, size, and shape (laundry, blocks, silverware, toys, and other household items work well).

**Teach your child to make various patterns (red, blue, red, blue).

**Practice counting aloud to 20 and beyond while driving in the car.

**Teach your child numerals 1-20(or beyond).

Need some suggestions on how to do this: Go here: www.icanteachmychild.com/numbers

**Count objects in your home. Have your child point to each object as she counts.

**Go on a shape hunt. Point out circles, triangles, squares, and rectangles to your child

**Talk about positional and directional concepts like up/down, over/under, in/out, behind/in front of, top/bottom, beside/between, off/on, stop**Talk about opposite words (big/little, empty/full, slow/fast).

Physical Development (Gross & Fine Motor)**Give your child plenty of opportunities for outdoor play: running, jumping, and climbing.

**Play catch on a regular basis.

**Practice skipping.

**Stack blocks together.

**Let your child use child-safe scissors to cut out a variety of shapes.

**Teach your child to write his name ( To start, write his name using a highlighter and encourage him to trace over it. Be sure that he forms the letters from the top to the bottom.)

**Ensure your child is holding her pencil correctly

**Play with playdough regularly. Roll, squish, stamp, and even cut it!

**Encourage your child to cut out various shapes using child-safe scissors.

**String large beads to make a necklace.

**Play with an interlocking puzzle together.

Creative Arts

**Always encourage pretend play…occasionally join your child in his fantasyworld.

**Teach your child to recognize the following colors: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, black, white, brown, and pink. **Use a variety of materials to let your child paint, draw and explore!

This list was created based upon the following: www.icanteachmychild.com

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Kindergarten brings many new demands, which can sap concentration here are a few ideas that can help your child get into the routine of school and have a more successful school day.

By Elena Jeffries, Ph.D.

Start with the basics. That means a good night’s sleep and a healthy breakfast. New research suggests that kids who miss out on as little as half an hour of needed zzz’s at night can exhibit ADHD-like symptoms (see "Could It Be ADHD?" below); and there are reams of evidence that suggest that students who don’t eat well in the morning have lower test scores and more trouble getting along with friends.

Read together. Ask questions along the way to keep him even more connected to the story. Who’s the main character? Why do you think he did that? What might happen next? Thinking aloud not only improves his comprehension, it also trains him to focus on verbal and visual info and improves memory.

Play games. Being able to follow directions and wait your turn are key skills for school success — and both require focus and patience. Board games, puzzles, and building toys help kids practice both while having some serious fun.

Build in downtime. Kids get fried just like grown-ups do, so having plenty of opportunities to relax (unplugged!) will give their brains a chance to recharge.

Start (and finish) a project. Fun, multifaceted activities will keep your child engaged over time and show her the benefits of sticking to it. Tap into her interests when selecting an activity. If she likes to garden, she can decorate a pot, plant seeds, and chart growth each week. Your mad scientist can make homemade slime after first identifying and buying the necessary ingredients (find a recipe, er, formula at MadSci.org).

Have patience. Yep, you need it, too! A child who can barely sit for 8 minutes at dinner isn’t going to make it to 20 overnight. So set realistic goals and don’t put too much pressure on you or your child. Start where he’s at (say that 8-minute max at the table), set a timer, and see if he can make it to 10 minutes squirm- and complaint-free. He’ll get there soon!

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