School Sparks - Kindergarten Readiness

Each child has her own personality. (That is so clearly seen in a classroom of twenty children!) But as a seasoned teacher of 4 and 5 year olds, I believe that regardless of a child’s innate personality traits, all children can be helped to become caring, compassionate people. While it is true that some children seem to care about others more naturally and other children need more direct instruction, helping children recognize and respect another person’s feelings is an important skill set that contributes to success with peers and ultimately success in school.

Reading to children is an extremely popular activity. Playful stories and engaging characters capture the attention of children of all ages and reading to a child is a perfect way to not only help him develop a love of reading and some early reading skills, but it also helps him develop many other important skills.

For many families, and for a variety of reasons, children attend daycare for a large part of each week. Most daycare programs provide fantastic opportunities for your child to gain a sense of independence and develop necessary social skills. Regrettably, many daycare programs are not designed to foster a young child’s development in all of the other 7 key developmental areas linked to success in school.  With 4 easy tips, you can ensure your child’s daycare is providing him with the attention necessary to make sure he is prepared to begin school once he graduates from daycare.

Young children are full of questions and quick to become upset. Alternatively, most parents are full of answers and quick to generate solutions. Our typical response is to quickly intervene when we see our child struggling or upset and this desire to get involved is natural. This may make you (and even your child) feel better in the short run. However, it will likely hinder your child’s development in the long run.

During 20 years in the classroom, I’ve read hundred of children’s books. This list represents my Top 10 favorite children’s picture books. Each book is impeccably illustrated and brilliantly written. Also, unlike more basic board books you may have read to your child as a toddler, each book on this list contains a full story line that will capture your child’s attention while conveying an important lesson. These books are perfect for children ages three and older.

Board games are a common playtime staple in most households. However, many parents often overlook the hidden difficulties in productively playing a game with a young child. After many years of “chuting and laddering” my way around a game board with my own children and helping countless kindergarten children learn to play games peacefully among themselves, I settled on four “rules” for successfully playing games with young children.