Kindergarten Readiness

Beginning kindergarten is a great milestone in a child's life, shared by his or her teacher and parents. Kindergarten is the new first grade.


The kindergarten of today is much more rigorous than the kindergarten of even a decade ago. A child's readiness to start school as a kindergartner is paramount for school and life success. The state of Ohio has implemented a Kindergarten Readiness Assessment-Literacy (KRA-L) for all kindergarten students, and it must be administered within the first six weeks of starting school.

  


KReadiness-Board Meeting029CROPPED.jpgIn 2000, FamiliesFORWARD started a four-week summer program to assist in the kindergarten transition with social skills, math and early literacy for 4- and 5-year-olds. Many of our students in the early days of the program did not attend preschool programs, which would've helped with the transition to school.

The summer program starts in June and continues for four weeks. It is designed for about 15 pre-kindergarten students who will be entering their neighborhood schools at Bond Hill and Evanston academies and Hays-Porter and Carson elementaries.

The focus of the program is to build upon some of the skills learned from previous schooling, if applicable, and to reinforce learning over the summer months to help the child feel successful in a more rigorous kindergarten environment. Expectations of kindergarten are explained to our parents, as well as the need for them to be involved in encouraging learning with their children. We also stress the importance of parents being involved in their schools.