Preparing Your Child For Kindergarten

Educating Your Baby

Scientist are now telling us that we may be able to increase our child's future intellect by reading, playing music and rhymthic sounds to them while they are in the womb! Many books such as "What to Expect When You Are Expecting" by Eisenberg, Murkoff, and Hathaway suggest that babies are able to hear sounds from the outside world beginning in the late second to the early third trimester. The book also states that "some researchers in the field believe that it is actually possible to stimulate the fetus prior to birth to produce, in a sense, a super baby." "At least one has claimed to turn our babies who can speak at six months and read at a year and a half, by exposing the fetus to increasingly complex rhythmic imitations of a mother's heartbeat." If you are interested in finding out more information on educating your unborn baby, baby and toddler here are some sites that contain updated articles on current research in this field:

Educating Your Preschool and Kindergarten Child

Since I have been teaching I have found that many parents do not know how to prepare their child for school. If your child is in or has gone to preschool it is very likely that he/she has been exposed to the beginning Kindergarten Curriculum. Although it is still very important for you to help your child learn the basic readiness skills whether or not your child has gone to preschool. Your child will be at a disadvantage if he/she comes to school not knowing any letters, shapes, colors, and has never used a pencil or cut with scissors. Kindergarten standards have risen beyond playtime!! Students leaving Kindergarten are now suppose to be able to read predictable and patterned texts, write, and problem-solve!! To get to this end result children must come to school with the basics so we can meet the ever rising standards. To help you get your child on the right track I have complied a list of activities that I have and will use with my own children. I hope you have fun starting the learning at home:)

Read to your child at least once a day! While you are reading they are learning how to hold a book, that pictures match the text, that print goes left to right!

Fill your house with reading material such as books, magazines, newspapers, etc.. Put reading material at your child's eye level to inspire curiousity. If you cannot buy books visit the local library.

Put cheap magnetic letters on your refrigerator or with a magnetic cookie sheet so he/she can use them to explore learning letters and making names.

Write your child's name on a special paper so it can be used as a reference when writing her/his name.

Set aside a special drawer, basket, or tub to keep paper, pencils, markers, crayons, safety scissors, glue, and any other materials that will generate an interest in writing and creativity.

Use everyday situations as a learning experience for example "There is only one piece of paper left how can you and your brother both get a to draw a picture?"

When walking down the street or in the car talk about the things you see: colors, shapes, street signs, weather and nature are just a few!

Make up stories together or talk about the sequence of his/her day.

In the grocery store talk about colors, letters, numbers of the isles and the shapes of food or packages.

Let your child find numbers or letters in old magazines or newspapers. A yellow marker can be used to highlight or circle!For example, "Find all the m's and circle them, now count how many you found."

Count Cheerios, crackers, or anything like this you serve for breakfast as you place them in a bowl or plate.

Sort M&M's or Skittles by colors.

Talk about the letters in friends and relatives names. Ask questions like: What does aunt Sue's name start with? or What sound does the J make in your brother Jason's name?

Use the above activity to help your child learn other names. For example: Susie's name starts with the same letter as aunt Sue's name, can you tell me what letter Susie starts with?