How to Prepare Your Child for Kindergarten
If your baby is getting ready to go to kindergarten I would imagine you are having a lot of different emotions running through you right now. Kindergarten is a huge deal, a right of passage, a new phase in life, so it is fully understandable that you are having a hard time adjusting to the thought. You still need to help your child prepare for this momentous occasion though!Here are some of my favorite tips for preparing your child for kindergarten and at the bottom of the list, you will see that I have even included some great books that can help make the transition even easier:
Teach them their personal information. Before you send your child off to kindergarten, be sure that they know their name, age, address and phone number. This is all important for your child to know.
Help them to socialize. To make sure that your child is ready, socially, before kindergarten starts, be sure that they are socializing with other kids their age. Set up play dates with other kids (classmates if possible), take them to birthday parties, encourage them to play with other kids at the park, etc.
Practice letters and numbers with them. Besides, their names, kids should be fairly comfortable in recognizing and reciting their letters and numbers. They should also have begun to use their letters and numbers as they might in school. For example, ask them to count how many doors are in your home, or have them alphabetize the cans in your cupboard. These simple tasks are actually teaching them a lot!
Read to them. Reading to your child is one of the smartest things that you can do to help ensure their academic success and this extends well beyond kindergarten. After reading your child a story, ask them about it and have a conversation regarding what you just read. This activity will help introduce them and familiarize them with words as well as helping them build their comprehension.
Tour the school. Becoming a kindergartner is a big deal and your child is likely nervous, even if they are excited. Try to take a tour of the school and set up a meet and greet with the teacher before school begins so that your child can become familiar with their new surroundings before the first day to help ease those first day jitters. Many schools offer a special day for incoming kindergartners to come and get to know the school, but I prefer to do an additional tour beyond that so that your child can become familiar with it without all of the other kids and busy-ness that comes with all of that.
Practice your routine. If your child is going straight from pre-school or daycare to kindergarten, then the change of routine may not affect you as much, but if your child is going from no school straight to a kindergartner their entire routine is likely to change. Be sure to practice the new routine with them beforehand so they know what to expect. Set their alarm for the correct time, take them to the bus stop or drive to the school. When a child is familiar with what is expected of them, it is less of a shock to their system when the time comes for them to start.
If you want a little help in the kindergarten prep game, there are some really great books out there that will help with the transition too! Here are my favorite books for preparing your child for kindergarten:
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