Kindergarten Readiness and the Transition to Kindergarten

Entering kindergarten ready to learn is essential to ensure that the child experiences a positive, happy, and academically successful year. The kindergarten year has been shown to have important consequences for a child's acquisition of knowledge and skills that are powerful determinants for later school success. Readiness skills at the start of kindergarten are associated with educational outcomes in later years.

Young children develop and mature at very different rates and in very different ways. There are many factors that contribute to a child's readiness for school besides age and preschool experience. Consulting with the family, communicating with the preschool, and working with the child to understanding the child's strengths, challenges, and areas needing further development all facilitate the process of making an informed and knowledgeable decision about kindergarten entry. Assessing a child's skills and abilities in all the domains of early learning and development are important in determining a child's readiness for the expectations the child will encounter in kindergarten. Informal assessment in the critical areas of early learning and development include:

Social Development
Emotional Development
Approaches Towards Learning
Language and Communication Skills
Emergent Literacy Abilities
Cognitive Abilities
Physical and Motor Development (gross motor, fine motor, and graphomotor)

The transition to kindergarten is an important component of kindergarten readiness. The collaboration between the family, preschool, and kindergarten has important consequences for the child's adjustment to the new demands of kindergarten. Transition practices are the use of specific activities designed to facilitate a smooth and successful adjustment to kindergarten.

Dr. Cappelloni is available for the following:

To consult with families to discuss their child's readiness for kindergarten and/or to help them in their decision about choosing a kindergarten
To meet with the preschool age child to assess the child's readiness for kindergarten
To work with the preschool age child to strengthen specific readiness skills and abilities
To provide professional development for preschools and kindergartens regarding all aspects of kindergarten readiness, including implementing kindergarten readiness programs, transitional kindergarten, kindergarten readiness assessments, and transition practices supporting the move from preschool to kindergarten.

Preschool

Preschool is an important milestone in your child's life. For most children, this is their first formal introduction to reading, listening, following directions, sharing, interacting with others outside of their family, and learning developmentally appropriate social skills. Preschool serves both to broaden the child's general knowledge about the world and as a bridge, or transition, from the security of the home to the more formal kindergarten classroom. A good preschool will nurture the child through developmentally appropriate activities; encourage play, creativity, discovery, and exploration; help develop social skills, self-help skills, and independence; and will give the child a foundation in language development and emergent literacy skills.

In choosing a preschool for your child, there are many factors that go into the decision. For a consultation to discuss your concerns and your individual child's needs,

contact Nancy Cappelloni: nrlcapp@gmail.com or (415)366-0266