Lisa asks: What did your kids know (and not know) before kindergarten?
Lisa’s getting a bit anxious about Addy going to JK, and doesn’t want her kid to be behind.
Addy in the classroom.
In seven weeks my kid will start kindergarten. Math’s not my thing, but I know that’s only 49 days. I’d be full of it if I didn’t admit that I’m seriously starting to panic. I’m also seriously starting to think that I’m a crappy parent.
Here’s why.
I was reading a couple of the “Welcome to Kindergarten” presentations that schools presented to parents in my region, and under the “I’m ready for kindergarten” category are skills like:
“I can go to the bathroom and flush the toilet by myself.”
“I can dress myself.”
“I can sit and eat my lunch by myself.”
“I can use scissors to cut paper.”
“I can print my name.”
“I can print all the letters of the alphabet.”
“I know the sound each letter makes.”
“I can count to 10.”
“I can print numbers 1 to 10.”
“I know my colours.”
“I know my shapes.”
So. Yeah. Let’s start at the top:
- Addy has peed a couple of times now on the potty (yay!!!!) but she’s definitely not going to the bathroom on her own. Let’s not discuss poop. We can’t even get pee to be a regular thing. Crap. (Pun intended.)
- I guess she can dress herself, but she generally doesn’t… because we’re always in a hurry and she’s still in diapers. I wish she could change her own diaper. If she could, she’d be fully potty trained by now.
- She can eat on her own, obviously, but doesn’t like getting her hands dirty. Will she freak out if some of her ketchup or mayo spills out of her sandwich? Most likely.
- She can kind of hold scissors. Guess I better get out the scissors.
- “I can print my name.” BLANK STARE
- “I can print all the letters of the alphabet.” BLANK STARE (Does my kid even know all the letters of the alphabet? She recites the alphabet song, but that doesn’t mean she can look at a letter and say, “Oh, of course I know that’s a ‘Y,’ Mommy.”)
- She can definitely count to 10… and much higher on her own. Finally I’ve done something right. She can even add. She’s way more advanced in math than I was at her age. She also sometimes says “eleventeen,” but nobody’s perfect.
- She’s known her colours and shapes since she was, like, one. The kid knows the difference between fuchsia and magenta. She knows that a stop sign is an octagon. I’m not worried about this one.
Addy’s smart. She’s sassy, funny, super intelligent, perceptive, etc. Her mother, on the other hand, has apparently been lazy. Or too busy working. Or not patient enough. (Or all of the above.)
How do kids Addy’s age know how to write their name? And every letter of the alphabet? Here I was just worried about the whole bathroom situation, and now I’m completely anxiety-ridden about all the things that my kid doesn’t know that she’s supposed to have under her belt in a mere 49 days. It appears that we have some serious work to do before September rolls around.
I’m not suggesting every single three-turning-four-year-old masters these things before starting JK. I certainly didn’t when I was four turning five. I guess this is where the kids who have been in daycare and preschool have the upper hand — some of these kids have been learning these skills for years. I guess I should’ve been working on these things too. I’m hoping it’s not too late to start — I’d hate to have to pull her out; she’s so excited about going to JK.
So tell me: Did your JK-to-be know all of these skills before starting school? If not, what happened?
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Lisa van de Geyn says ....
MommieMeMe: Nope, she hasn't been around young kids. (That's one of the reasons we put her in soccer this summer.) There are no other kids in our family (except for her little sister), and she's been home with either me or with my mom (when I went back to work) since she was born.
Lisa
G.G. (not verified) says ....
Nothing to worry about, she is smart and will pick them up in no time, that is what school is for and you know how competitive she is, there will be no letting the others know more than she does.
Don't go trying to cram it all in now because that will be too much added stress along with the potty thing. She is just fine and probably knows much more than most of the young ones coming into JK.
This is supposed to be a fun time, let her enjoy it and she will show you how smart she is and how quickly she picks up things.
Relax and enjoy this time, just think you have the teenage years to look forward to, that is when your kids get even for all the things you did to your parents and gives us time to smile.
love ya
MommieMeMe (not verified) says ....
Does your daughter spend much time around kids here own age on a regular basis? Day care, preschool, something frequent and the same group of kids?
Dianne (not verified) says ....
My son just finished JK and is the youngest in his class ( a December baby). He could not print his name prior to JK but can now. He definitely could not print the entire alphabet before starting JK, but I would say can now do most of the letters. As for potty, it was a requirement that they be potty trained but there were 1 or 2 accidents at the beginning of the school year - but we had to send extra clothes at the beginning. As for lunches, half the time most of it came back. The cheese and crackers would be eaten, sometimes the fruit, always the yogurt. Put finger foods in, not elaborate sandwiches. I would put a bun with butter, some cubed chicken, cucumber, a yogurt and/or cheese, a fruit (grapes) and a drink. I stressed at the beginning, too, but as he got into the routine he was fine. Also, dress them in clothes that are easy to get on and off (no buttons), velcro straps on shoes, slip on boots. The teacher has 20+ kids to get dressed to go outside and if the kids can do most of it, the teacher can help with zippers.
Lisa vdG (not verified) says ....
Thank goodness for you parents; I've calmed down a tad. (I think.) I'm trying not to stress, but the potty thing is still an issue. Oy.
I'm glad that Addy won't have to know how to spell van de Geyn before school starts -- that's just cruel and unusual punishment.
Lisa
Allison (not verified) says ....
JK / K used to be referred to as 'Preprint' for a reason. The kids are too little to be expected to be writing before going to school. Having friends who were given a laundry list of requirements for their son to begin JK in a different school board, I was terrified that my son would be behind as I was not pushing things such as writing his name and or the alphabet, etc. Speaking with his school at a new parent's meeting, I asked what their expectations were and was so happy to be told, JK / K is when children 3 / 4 / 5 years of age are to be learning these things. Before hand, they are too little. Now there are always exceptions and it depends on the child. Even without my pushing, my son has been spelling (not writing) his name for over a year and he isn't 4 yet. That is solely based on his curiosity and questions. I much prefer to see him learn via exploration and play at his age. He has many years of sitting at a desk doing homework exercises ahead of him. He doesn't need it at this age.
Steffi_B says ....
Nooooo! Not one of my three children could print their names OR print the entire alphabet! My oldest two are going into Gr. 7 and Gr. 4, and both are A/B students. My youngest is headed to Gr. 1 this fall, and she finished JK/SK with the Kindergarten equivalents of A's and B's (M's and C's...for "most of the time" and "consistently").
I'm not even sure they could recognize all the letters of the alphabet pre-Kindergarten. Sit back, relax and don't worry! She'll be fine.
Jen VW (not verified) says ....
Relax, breathe. My son started JK at age 3, he turned 4 eight weeks after school started. He was pretty much in the same boat. The bathroom thing all came together no kidding 2 weeks prior to school and that was it. No accidents or anything. Now he was at school for 1/2 every day so that helped. Probably. He also took his lovey with him for the first 4 weeks of school. A friend who is a kindergarten teacher said if you can get you kid to put their own shoes on, put their own jacket (zipping comes later) they will be head of the class. And dress your kid for success, if she can't pull up tights after using the bathroom then don't wear them to school.
Anonymous says ....
My son starts jk too and he has just mastered going pee in the potty within the past couple of weeks. He is getting better at going on his own without myself or my husband telling him it's time to go. My son can count to 11 and his fav number is 12teen. he can sing the alphabet but gets a couple of letters mixed up, and he knows the basic colours and shapes. As for scissors forget it!
Just relax. She will go eventually. :)
carly (not verified) says ....
I certainly would not be worried about the writing etc. But potty training, um, YES. JK teachers certainly will not be changing diapers! I hope your little one can master that in the next 7 weeks. My daughter won't be 4 until Halloween, so we, too, are anxious about her starting school being so little. She's also my last baby, so that makes it even harder!
Jennifer Pinarski says ....
Yup, don't worry. I was in your shoes 2 years ago when Isaac started JK. Potty training and all. It wasn't until TWO DAYS before school that he did the deed on his own. In fact, I pretended to be on the phone with the school to "cancel" school because he wasn't going and wiping on his own. That solved it.
As for the others, it was hit and miss. He still has problems with scissors and gets his letters backwards.
Socially, it was the best thing in the world. You'll all be fine.
abaigaelsmum says ....
Firstly, I would NOT worry. What she doesn't know going in, she will almost guaranteed figure out by the end of the year. And secondly, all the things you describe above are to me more related to SK, NOT JK. At least here in BC. We don't have JK here, but we do have all day kindergarten which is equivelant to your SK. JK here would be private (pay for yourself) preschool. None of the things you list above are requirements for the under age 5 set that I have heard of. If they have it, great, but if they don't, don't panic.
From my own experiences with my 3 I can tell you I have spent a LOT of time in the kindy classroom in the last couple of years, and the kids range in their skills drastically. I will say that even the ones that don't come in with the skills you've listed above definitely have that growth over the school year even if they don't master the task fully. I have seen kindergarten kids this year go from not knowing the alphabet to knowing only some of it by the end of the year but having learned to spell their name. And even sometimes that is still difficult for them at the end of the year. Same with their numbers, scissors and even dressing themselves.
And many of them still have accidents too.
Do not stress yourself out about what Addy can't do. It will all come together for her. This is just the beginning.....the amazing amount of growth she will experience over the next school year will be something that will shock you and thrill you I am sure. It's amazing how much being in the school atmosphere with their peers and adults who aren't their parents can do for them.
Good luck and enjoy it. It will be less stressful than you anticipate I am sure.
Shannon
Allison (not verified) says ....
I think you might be stressing out too much! Not many kids know all of those things before school starts - it's probably just a guideline. Our Ashley (4.5) doesn't know how to write all the letters or their sounds but I'm sure she'll gradually learn it at preschool this coming fall and I saw how fast they learn it in kindergarten with Sarah. (She used to write her S backwards until the first week of Kindergarten when she switched and printed it perfectly. Thanks Mrs. Eddy for doing what I'd tried for months to correct!) It will go just fine and any bumps in the road are usually expected with little ones - the teachers have just about seen it all I think! Enjoy your next 49 days with Addy before the grind of school begins!
Anonymous says ....
I don't know of any kindergarten teacher that would say printing or writing their names and all the letters of the alphabet is a skill necessary before kindergarten. It is helpful if they can recognize their name and recognize the letters of the alphabet- most teachers would be thrilled with that!