Four
Year Olds learn through play and hands-on activities. Few
are ready for formal reading instruction. Let your child’s
interest set the pace for the instruction that you give
him. Four Year Olds can: (a portion of this list comes
from Active
Learning for Fours by Debbie Cryer
Motor/Physical
Skills:
get
dressed without much help
draw
a person with three parts
jump backward
try
to imitate someone who draws a square
walk
downstairs alternating feet
play
alone for 20-30 minutes
fasten
buttons quite well
eat
well with fork, cut easy foods with a knife
usually
stay dry through the night
jump over things
hop
on one foot at least five times
cut
a big circle (4-1/2+)
brush
teeth quite well (4-1/2+)
draw
a person with 6 parts (4-1/2+)
lace
shoes (4-1/2+)
do
a somersault (4-1/2+)
draw
some things we recognize (4-1/2+)
cut
and paste simple shapes (4-1/2+)
print
own name but not clearly (4-1/2+)
print
a few capital letters (4-1/2+)
Pre-reading
Skills:
recognize
print in the environment
distinguish
separate words
recognize
rhyming words
know
some letter names and shapes, including the letters in the
child's name;
begin
to demonstrate reading-like behaviors, such as pretending
to read and write;
begin
to demonstrate understanding of picture books and simple
stories; and
retell
stories, make predictions, and connect stories to background
experiences in a teacher-guided group format.
know
in front of, under, behind, or on top of
recognize
own name in print
tell
you what some words mean (4-1/2+)
tell
the opposite of some words (4-1/2+)
give
understandable home address (4-1/2+)
say
whether two words rhyme (4-1/2+)
recognize
a few printed words (4-1/2+)
General
Guidelines for Kindergarten: Five Year Olds can: (a portion
of this list is taken from Active
Learning for Fives by Debbie Cryer
Motor Skills:
handle
toileting by self, usually dry through the night
prefer
to use either left or right hand
cut
well with scissors. (A resource I highly recommend for scissors
skill is
Tracing and Cutting.
dress
and undress well alone
draw
person with head, body, legs, arms, and other parts
print
name, but not too clearly
write
some, but not all, letters of the alphabet
draw
most easy shapes
Pre-reading
Skills:
answer
the telephone and call correct person to the phone
know
colors and color names well
understand
place words (on top of, over, under)
use
time words (morning, night) to tell when things happen
listen
well to a story read to a large group of children
make
up rhyming words
use
long sentences, tying thoughts together
tell
a story from a picture book very well
tell
left shoes from right shoes
make
only a few mistakes in speaking
confuse
some similar words, such as ask and tell
play
easy table games with a friend and often follow rules.
(Two of my granddaughter's favorites are Candy
Land
andCranium
Cadoo.
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begin
to tell one letter from another
name
most uppercase but not most lowercase letters
read
a few words
know
how to read his/her own name
recognize
upper and lower case letters
hear
the beginning sounds of words, like “d” in
dog
read
some high-frequency words (Dolch
list,
pdf document. This takes a while to load!).
read
the first few levels of decodeable readers for kindergarten;
retell
in simple terms stories that have been read to him/her as
well as make simple evaluations and interpretations of their
content
connect, with your help, what is read to him/her with real
experiences VI. Assessment
General Guidelines for Math Learning
At the end of Preschool, your child should generally:
play
easy table games with a friend and often follow rules.
(Two of my granddaughter's favorites are 
and