Preparing Your Child For First Grade

Continuing my series Preparing Your Child For School, I wanted to offer suggestions for skills children should have before entering First Grade.

First Grade is the year your mouth will drop open and you will be in constant awe of your child. I always tell the parents at Back To School Night to just "take my word for it!"  Reading, writing, adding and making new best friends...what a fantastic growing time both educationally and emotionally.

Language Arts/Reading

• Knows all letter names and letter sounds.

• Writes first and last name.

• Shows beginning writing skills using pictures, letters and/or words.

• Recognizes and produces simple rhyming pairs.

• Recognizes sight words from the dolce list.

Math

• Identifies and draws basic shapes

• Identifies coins.

• Tell time on clocks to the hour.

• Identifies the days of the weeks and months of the year.

• Identifies and writes numerals 1-10.

• Counts forward to 20 and backward to 10.

As always, read with your child often!

Originally published 7/11/08
Photo Credit © Sandra Gligorijevic | Dreamstime.com