This is a very exciting time for families as they look forward to registering children for kindergarten. As you prepare, there are many developmental milestones that are important to your child’s success in school. I am sure your child has already mastered many of these skills or you have been working on the rest to get your children ready for kindergarten. It’s always great to hear from kindergarten teachers on the skills they want to see your child possess. So here is a listing of the most important ones.

Help your children develop their reading and writing skills by having many books in their space. Read or picture-read to your child every day and talk about new words from the book and their meanings; use these words in conversations. Help your child write their full name and know their telephone number and address. Assist your child in developing fine motor skills by using the pincher grasp when holding a pencil or crayon. Have your child play with a small turkey baster or small tongs, using a container with small objects and water. Play games by stacking small blocks or cutting coupons with scissors.

An incoming kindergartener who has good self-help and social-emotional skills will excel in school. Knowing how to use the bathroom by themselves, open lunch containers and Ziplock bags, button and zip coats, and knowing to cover their mouth and nose when they sneeze are all important. Regarding children’s social-emotional development, students who can separate easily from an adult, who play with other children, can identify and understand others’ feelings, are beginning to work out problems with others, know how to follow routines and directions, self-engage and maintain activities, and, lastly, who can self-regulate and be cooperative with others, are ready for kindergarten.

Spend time practicing large motor skills by climbing stairs, jumping and hopping, standing on one foot and learning to move from left to right, etc. Practicing terms such as “beside,” “next to,” “behind.” and “in front of,” helps children to be able to get in a line and understand their position in it. While doing gross motor activities, it is a wonderful time to do some counting: play “how many steps can you take?” or count blocks one by one. Encourage your children to make patterns out of different pairs of socks, and sort objects, like pots and pans. Always work by size, from smaller to larger. Setting the table and placing one napkin or fork at each place helps children learn one-on-one counting.

Lastly, help your children develop their language skills by introducing new words, so they may begin to recognize some sight words, speak in complete sentences, and ask and answer open-ended questions. Have simple conversations of 4-5 exchanges with your child.

Kindergarten registration for September 2022 will begin at Danbury Public School at the end of February. If your child turns 5 on or before January 1, 2023, they are age eligible to register. All registration is conducted online, followed by an in-person visit. To access registration, visit https://sites.google.com/a/danbury.k12.ct.us/schoolregistration.

Anne E. Mead, Ed. D., is the administrator for the Early Childhood Education and Extended Learning Programs of the Danbury Public Schools. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact her at 203-830-6508 or meadan@danbury.k12. ct.us.