The first day of kindergarten is a big step for parents and children alike. You can help make sure that your child gets off to the right start by doing these simple and fun activities that will help them develop the skills they will need to have a successful and positive kindergarten experience.
1. Teach your child how to manage their clothing and shoes on their own.
Their teachers will likely be too busy to offer much help with zippers, buttons and laces, and your child will feel much more confident if they can do it all themselves. Make a game out of getting dressed each morning and use skills boards and dolls to help your child learn to tie, zip, buckle and snap all on their own.
2. Use a chore or responsibility chart to help your child become more responsible with tidying up and remembering to do simple tasks.
They will enjoy seeing how they are progressing with their big kid jobs, and this will give them a head start in learning how to be responsible for things like putting their folders and lunch boxes in the right spot each day.
3. Your child doesn’t need to know how to read, but they should know how to recognize and write their own name.
Make it fun by helping them write their own name on their artwork and pointing out the letters in their name on signs and in books.
4. Play school with your child to help them understand what to expect and how they should behave.
Let them take turns being the teacher! Fun props like a chalk board or white board, magnet alphabet letters and workbooks can make this activity double as an opportunity to learn numbers and letters, too.
5. If your child has never been in daycare, preschool or parent’s day out, look for opportunities for them to practice being away from you.
This is a big step, and some children find it more difficult than others. An environment with other children will be ideal to get them used to not having one on one care all day long.
6. Work on developing strong fine motor skills so that they are ready to learn how to write.
Coloring, painting, playing with modeling clay or play dough, doing puzzles, stringing beads, peeling clementines, using chopsticks and other activities will help your child strengthen their finger muscles and improve their hand-eye coordination.
7. Use blocks, cars, beads or other small toys to work on counting, sorting and simple addition and subtracting.
You can also use toys to reinforce concepts like shapes, colors, over/under and bigger/smaller.
8. Play games like Simon Says and Follow the Leader to help your child practice following directions, focusing and impulse control.
Board games like Memory and Candyland are also fun ways to help your child learn how to take turns, be a good sport and follow directions.
9. Teach your child to cut with a pair of scissors and how to use just the right amount of glue.
Making collages with old magazines and sales flyers is a fun and inexpensive way to practice. You can also help your child look for the letters in their name to cut out to further reinforce the alphabet, letter sounds and name recognition.
10. Use fun songs, books and nursery rhymes to help your child learn to recognize rhymes and improve their memory.
Let your child be an active participant in story time and help you “read” the story by filling in missing words and discussing what happened and what will happen next.
11. Reinforce good hygiene practices like using tissue, coughing into the crook of the elbow and thorough hand-washing.
Make sure that your child knows how to wipe themselves after going to the bathroom and doesn’t wait until the last minute to race for the toilet.
12. Encourage independence during meal times.
Pack picnics using the same kind of food and drink containers that you will use at their school. If your child will be buying lunch, buy small cartons of milk to teach them how to open them on their own. Find out the procedures for buying lunch so that you can practice them with your child and help them memorize their lunch number if your school uses them to look up accounts.
13. Continue to provide plenty of opportunities for imaginative play.
This will help increase your child’s vocabulary, promote problem solving skills and increase self regulation. Use puppets, dolls or other props to help your child narrate and act out stories.
14. Do simple science experiments with your child to introduce them to the idea of forming a hypothesis then testing it out.
You can also go on nature walks to observe plants and animals and foster your child’s curiosity about the world around them. These activities help your child develop an enthusiasm for learning that will stick with them for life.
15. Work on finding a sleeping schedule that works for your child.
Getting plenty of rest can make a huge difference in your child’s ability to concentrate and regulate their own behavior. In the months before kindergarten, work to get your child on the same eating and sleeping schedule they will be following during the school year. This will make for a much easier first week of school and can make the difference between a positive beginning and a more challenging one.
Jacob Maslow balances his career at Consultwebs with being a loving husband and father of five terrific kids and a dog named Nike.
