1. Ready, Set, Go! Kindergarten Presentation
Preparing for success in kindergarten and beyond

2. Kindergarten Today Kindergarten has changed since we were young
Kindergarten Common Core Standards
ELA
Math
Parents are their child’s first and most important teacher
Partnership between home and school is essential
Age should not predetermine Kinder readiness
Your child needs to be ready socially, emotionally, and academically.

3. It is Not All About Academics..
Gross and Fine Motor Skills-- time to develop large and small muscles
Social Emotional—time to develop skills to get along with others, take turns, interact with peers, deal with emotions appropriately, etc.
Oral Language—vocabulary development, sentence structure, academic language (foundation for success in reading, writing, and other subject areas)

4. Transitional Kindergarten
Transitional kindergarten is the first year
of a two-year kindergarten program that
uses a modified kindergarten curriculum
that is age and developmentally appropriate.
CDE
Transitional Kindergarten

5. Transitional Kindergarten
Eligible Class
Fifth Birthday
Transitional Kindergarten
Born between 9/2/10 to 12/2/10
(summer 2010 birthdays can be admitted to TK if appropriate and space permits)
Kindergarten
Must be five years-old by 9/1/15

6. Kindergarten In MVUSD
Each kindergarten teacher has two sessions—Early Birds and Late Birds
(Transitional Kindergarten classes will take place during the Early Bird Sessions)
This will allow teachers to have a smaller class size in the morning and in the afternoon, with a small overlap with all students
TK and Kindergarten will have different curriculum—Big Day for TK and Journey’s/Houghton Mifflin Math for Kindergarten **

7. Kindergarten Readiness
In order for us to help determine the best placement for your child as an early bird or late bird, we will be scheduling a time for you to bring your child to the site to meet with the kindergarten teachers. At this time we will be looking at your child’s kindergarten readiness. We have a sign in sheet that you can sign up today.

8. Kindergarten Resources
Kindergarten Readiness Calendar
Common Core Parent Roadmap
Summer Readiness Packet (available upon request)
Packet containing concepts and activities to work on at home.
It also includes social and academic skill practice
Can we just put link

9. Alphabet Skills
Exposure to letters—both capital and lowercase (start with lowercase)
New and improved ABC song.
Experience is the goal, not mastery . . yet
Keep it fun!

10. Phonemic Awareness Exposure to oral language Rhyming skills
Play with words and language
Dr. Seuss and other rhyming books

11. Read, Read, and Read Some More
Reading with your child is SO IMPORTANT!
Discuss stories (predict what will happen next, ask questions, talk about the story and pictures)
Remember that re-reading the same book is OK
Visit the library on a regular basis
Murrieta Public Library Eight Town Square Murrieta, CA Phone: (951) 304-BOOK

12. Oral Language Development
Talk to your child : Ask them questions about their day. Who did you play with? What did you do? Help them answer in complete sentences, i.e. I played with Joey and Susie today in the backyard.
When reading – have them retell the story or a part of it – using as much detail as you pull from them. Ask questions to get them to add more details, i.e. where was the cat?

13. Fine Motor Skills Expose your child to cutting with scissors
Provide child-size scissors
Teach to cut away from the body

14. Writing Skills Correct pencil grip
Correct formation of letters and numbers
(form letters from top to bottom)
Awareness of using lines
Writing first name correctly

15. Number Knowledge Exposure to numbers and counting (0-20) Dice games
Dominoes
1 to 1 counting

16. Colors and Shapes
Expose them to shapes and colors in their environment
Real world experiences

17. Social Development Your child should be able to..
interact with other children
take direction from adults other than parents
focus on an activity for at least 10 minutes
have a positive attitude about school
make a non-tearful break from parents
handle bathroom activities by him/herself

18. This Summer
Use Summer Readiness Packet/ Kindergarten Readiness Calendar
Discuss school in a positive manner
Implement appropriate school schedules
Attend Kindergarten Orientation at your school

19. The First Day of Kindergarten
Be sure to follow the school bedtime plan you began during the summer
Try to have a relaxing morning - Be prepared
Smile and say “Have a great day! I’ll see you soon!”
Hold back your tears

20. We’ll see you when school starts!
This summer will go by very quickly! You will continue to be amazed at your child’s growth and progress.
Thank you for coming tonight. You have made an important step in creating a partnership with your child’s school that will ensure his/her success.