This is the burning question for parents who are about to send their son or daughter off to school for the first time. Naturally you want to do everything you can to make sure your youngster is prepared for what lies ahead, but since there are no formal entrance standards, it’s a guess at best. Nevertheless, here’s a breakdown of what most kindergarten programs expect from your child as he or she enters kindergarten.

Personal Skills

• Communicates so that others can understand him
• Knows how he will get home on the first day of school (bus, car, or after-school program)
• Can tell you his bus number
• Takes care of his own personal needs such as going to the bathroom, washing hands, and handling a plate and silverware without assistance
• Handles clothing without assistance: hangs up coat, zips up pants or jacket and buttons clothing

Social Skills

• Plays well with other children
• Follows a daily routine
• Gets along with other children in an appropriate manner
• Shares with others
• Picks up activities when finished working

Academic Skills

• Expresses ideas using descriptive words and complete sentences
• Listens to a story without being interrupted
• Concentrates on a task for 10 minutes
• Recognizes his own name in print
• Names basic shapes: triangle, square, circle and rectangle
• Identifies colors: red, yellow, blue, black, brown, green, orange and purple
• Counts to 10
• Locates print on a page and can explain why it is used
• Recognizes numbers up to 5
• Tells how two objects are alike and how two objects are different