Kindergarten: Short and Sweet Activities

Why should the learning stop when the kids leave the classroom? Here are some simple things you and your kindergartner can do at home to build academic skills in reading, math, geography, and science.

READ A STORY,TELL A STORY
Read a story to your child, then ask her to tell the story back to you. This is essentially an effort to see what listening skills your child has developed. Is she able to relate the major elements of the story? Does she understand the story?

CARDBOARD SQUARES
Cut out cardboard squares, triangles, and circles (five of each, at least two to three inches in size). Make a game of putting the shapes that are the same together. This is an exercise in classification. Does your child recognize the difference in the shapes? Does he know what the shapes are called? If not, ask again at a later time.

PHOTO MATCH
Look at photographs of children in other parts of the world. See whether your child knows where these children come from. Ask how she knows.

WHAT DO I SEE?
Close observation is a primary objective of the science program. You and your child can examine a rock, a tree, a leaf, or an insect. Take turns asking, "What do I see?

Reprinted from 101 Educational Conversations with Your Kindergartner -- 1st Grader by Vito Perrone, published by Chelsea House Publishers.
Copyright 1994 by Chelsea House Publishers, a division of Main Line Book Co. All rights reserved.

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