What Should My Kindergartener Know?

People often wonder, “Is my kindergartener doing enough? Are they behind? What do they need to know?”

We are answering that question today!

First off, let’s establish a timeline, a base age. When we’re talking about this, we’re talking about what kids should be able to do by the end of kindergarten or by the end of age 5. This is an important distinction because kindergarten is different depending on your area. For example, where we live in Ontario, kindergarten is a 2-year program. So these are the things that they should be able to do by the end of the second year.

The big focus during the kindergarten years should be on play and exploration. It’s a time to focus on introducing kids to new ideas, materials, adventures, and experiences. It’s the time to follow their lead and dive into different things they are interested in. Daily reading, talking about things you see and discover, and lots of play are the best ways to inspire learning.

At the end of kindergarten, here are a few things that they should know:

• counting to 20
• basic primary and secondary colours (red, blue, yellow and green, purple, orange)
• 2D shapes
• basic money values
• basic time (1 hour vs. 1 minute vs. 1 day)
• memorize a simple song, rhymes, poems, or play
• sit and listen to a short story with pictures
• explore various art materials
• sing ABCs and identify a few letters
• identify their own name when written
• understand how a book works and that there are words on the page and those words make up the story

Hopefully, that helps reassure you that your kindergartener is on track and that you really are qualified and capable of teaching your kids at home!