a weekly webinar

anytime access / work at your own pace

with Read it Again Founder

Michelle Robinette, PhD

You may find this hard to believe, but determining whether or not your child will be ready for kindergarten has very little to do with academics. The “real learning” you’re probably worried about depends largely upon your child’s mastery of the skills listed below. When it’s time for academics, a child possessing these skills starts school ready to learn rather than trying to learn while also working to master these skills that should have already been in place.

• Social Development- Is your child willing to share items, comfortable asking for help or speaking up in a group, comfortable working with others, and willing to meet classroom expectations for behavior? Will your child listen to and follow directions?

• Physical Development - Has your child mastered age-appropriate gross and fine motor skills? Can she hop, skip, run, and jump? Does she have a sense of space and balance? Can she manipulate small objects? (holds a pencil, buttons shirt, etc.)

• Emotional Development- Is your child a good winner and, more importantly, a good loser? Does your child understand and accept when he doesn’t get his way?

• Language Development- Can your child state her first and last name, birthday and address? Can your child express her needs to adults and other children in a way which can be understood? Does she speak in complete sentences?

• Self-Regulation Skills- Can your child pay attention when someone is speaking, stay on task for 5-10 minutes, and respect the property of others? Does your child exhibit self-control?

• Level of Independence- Is your child able to dress, eat, and toilet on their own? Can your child keep track of his own personal items? (coat, lunch box, backpack, notes or work sent home)

My weekly webinar posts will cover a multitude of ways in which you can teach, review, or reinforce the skills listed above. Each session will include easy-to-understand language that gives a more in depth explanation of each of the skill areas and a few simple exercises for you and your child to work on together.

While I’m well on the other side of the “child-raising mountain,” it feels like it was only yesterday. That’s why I can tell you that these are precious years that you can’t get back or rewind and try again. It’s an important time when personalities emerge and character begins to reveal itself. It’s also when your child’s views on learning, respect, patience, and working with others are developed.

Kindergarten is where most children learn to read. While this is not required or expected, some children do learn to read before kindergarten. This is not the norm and usually something the child picks up on their own, it’s not taught by parents. Don’t feel pressured to make reading happen. If you push it, you might end up with a child that views reading as a boring, frustrating and difficult task that should be avoided at all costs. Believe me when say that this type of attitude towards reading is much more difficult to overcome than the alternative which is to allow your child’s teacher the one that teaches your child to read.

Are there academic skills that can be addressed before kindergarten? Yes, there are a few, and I’ll share those during our last session. Right now, let’s focus on the seven areas listed above.

I can’t wait to “meet” all of you.