Helping Your Child Get Ready for School continued...

Ready-for-School Checklist

This checklist, although not exhaustive, can help to guide you in preparing your child for school. It's best to look at the items included as goals toward which to aim. They should be done, as much as possible, through everyday life or by fun activities you've planned with your child. If your child lags behind in some areas, don't worry. Remember that all children are unique. They grow and develop at different rates--and no one thing guarantees that a child is ready for school.

Good Health and Physical Well-Being

My child:

• Eats a balanced diet.
• Receives regular medical and dental care and has had all the necessary immunizations. Gets plenty of rest.
• Runs, jumps, plays outdoors, and does other activities that help develop large muscles and provide exercise.
• Works puzzles, scribbles, colors, paints, and does other activities that help develop small muscles.

Social and Emotional Preparation

My child:

• Is learning to be confident enough to explore and try new things.
• Is learning to work well alone and to do many tasks for himself.
• Has many opportunities to be with other children and is learning to cooperate with them. Is curious and is motivated to learn.
• Is learning to finish tasks (for example, picks up own toys).
• Is learning to use self-control.
• Can follow simple instructions.
• Helps with family chores.

Language and General Knowledge

My child:

• Has many opportunities to play.
• Is read to every day.
• Has access to books and other reading materials.
• Has his television viewing monitored by an adult.
• Is encouraged to ask questions.
• Is encouraged to solve problems.
• Has opportunities to notice similarities and differences.
• Is encouraged to sort and classify things (for example, by looking for red cars on the highway).
• Is learning to write his name and address.
• Is learning to count and plays counting games. Is learning to identify shapes and colors.
• Has opportunities to draw, listen to and make music, and to dance.
• Has opportunities to get firsthand experiences to do things in the world--to see and touch objects, hear new sounds, smell and taste foods, and watch things move.

Notes

Text Notes

The following notes refer to the text portion of this booklet.
Pages 1-12 draw from Powell, Douglas R., (1991). "Strengthening Parental Contributions to School Readiness and Early School Learning."
Page 3. The National Education Goals Panel.
Page 3. Katz, Dr. Lilian G., (1992). "Readiness: Children and Their Schools," in ERIC Review, Volume 2, Issue 1. U.S. Department of Education.
Pages 6-7. Rich, Dorothy, (1988). Megaskills. Houghton Mifflin, Boston.
Pages 8-9. Belbas, Nancy, Smerlinder, Julienne, and Stranik, Mary Kay, (1986). Middle of the Night Baby Book, The Body Press, Tucson, AZ, 70-71.
Pages 10-11. Binkley, Marilyn R., (1988). Becoming a Nation of Readers: What Parents Can Do. U.S. Department of Education, Washington, DC.
Page 11. Charren, Peggy, and Hulsizer, Carol, (1986). The TV-Smart Book for Kids and Parents' Guide for The TV-Smart Book for Kids. E.P. Dutton, New York.
Pages 15-44. The following publications were used to develop the "What to expect" and the "What they need" features found throughout the activities section:
Karnes, M.B. (1979, 1981). Small Wonder! 1 and Small Wonder! 2. American Guidance Service, Circle Pines, MN.
Miller, Karen, (1984, 1984, 1985). Things to Do with Toddlers and Twos, More Things to Do With Toddlers and Twos, and Ages and Stages. Telshare Publishing Co., Inc., Chelsea, MA. MYM/MELD, (dates unavailable). Parent/Child Activities (when baby's three months old or younger), Toys and Games for Babies (3-12 months old), and Toys, Activities, Books, Etc. (for toddlers). Brochures. Minneapolis, MN.
North Carolina Department of Human Resources, Child/Daycare Section, (date unavailable). Children, Children, Children:
Understanding Them--Helping Them Grow. Series of brochures on child development.
Oklahoma State Department of Health, (date unavailable). For Parents' Sake. Oklahoma City, OK.
Sears, William, M.D. (1989). Your Baby: The First Twelve Months. Barron's Educational Series, Inc., Hauppauge, NY.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, (1988). Picturing Development, Washington, DC.
University of California, Cooperative Extension, Parent Express, A Month-by-Month Newsletter for You and Your Baby.
Page 47. "Good Television Habits" is drawn in part from Belbas and Charren.
Pages 48. "Choosing Child Care" is drawn in part from National Association for the Education of Young Children brochures.

"Activities" Notes

The activities were adapted in part from the following sources:

Bananas Guide, written by staff of BANANAS Child Care Information and Referral Service for Families in Alameda County (1982).
Becoming a Nation of Readers: What Parents Can Do. Early Learning Fun Pre-School Readiness Kit by the E.L.F. Task Force (1976). West Aurora Public Schools, Aurora, IL.
Encouraging the Artist in Your Child by Sally Warner (1989). St. Martin's Press, New York.
Growing to Love Books by the New York Public Library's Early Childhood Project.
Helping Children Learn About Reading by Judith A. Schickedanz, a brochure from the National Association for the Education of Young Children.
Middle of the Night Baby Book.
More Than 1, 2, 3--The Real Basics of Mathematics by Janet Brown McCracker (1987).
More Things to Do With Toddlers and Twos.
101 Amusing Ways to Develop Your Child's Thinking Skills and Creativity by Sarina Simon (1989).
1001 Things to Do With Your Kids by Caryl Waller Krueger (1988). Abingdon Press, Nashville, TN.
Parent/Child Activities (when baby's three months old or younger).
Playtime Learning Games for Young Children by Alice S. Honig (1982). Syracuse University Press, Syracuse, NY.
Small Wonder! 1, Small Wonder! 2.
The New Read-Aloud Handbook by Jim Trelease (1989). Penguin Books, New York.
Things to Do With Toddlers and Twos.

What We Can Do

To Help Our Children Learn:

Listen to them and pay attention to their problems.
Read with them.
Tell family stories.
Limit their television watching.
Have books and other reading materials in the house.
Look up words in the dictionary with them.
Encourage them to use an encyclopedia.
Share favorite poems and songs with them.
Take them to the library--and get them their own library cards.
Take them to museums and historical sites, when possible.
Discuss the daily news with them.
Go exploring with them and learn about plants, animals, and geography.
Find a quiet place for them to study.
Review their homework.
Meet with their teachers.
Any other ideas?