The Foundational Skill standards are directed toward fostering students' understanding and working knowledge of:
Concepts of Print: Recognizing the features print (ex.how to hold a book, knowing where to start reading....)
Phonological Awareness: Understanding how spoken words work (rhyming, hearing the individual sounds in words such as the first sound in the word cat is /c/).
Phonics and Word Study: The relationship between letters and sounds in language. Students will learn to recognize high-frequency words (ex. I, and, go, is, the) automatically.
Fluency: The ability to read smoothly and expressively, and in kindergarten students will participate in shared reading experiences and hear teachers reading aloud. This helps kindergarteners understand that we read with purpose
and understanding.
How to help your child at home with the foundational skill strand:
Re-read favorite books to build awareness of how print works
Have your child play matching games with alphabet letters (matching upper to lowercase)
Point out and read billboards, signs, package labels and any other print encountered, pointing out letters
Play rhyming games together in the car (What rhymes with tree?)
Play word games, taking turns saying syllables and the partner guesses the word (el-e-phant=elephant)
Discuss which letters and letter combinations go with which sounds in what you and your child are reading
Help your child to decode (take apart) common words so that he/she becomes familiar with how to sound words out
Have your child find high-frequency words in magazines or newspapers (kindergarteners work on recognizing 75 words automatically by the end of the year)
Read higher levels of text to your child so that he/she can hear you read with accuracy, appropriate speed, and expression
Strands are larger groups of related standards. The Strand Grade is a calculation of all the related standards. Click on the standard name below each strand to access the learning targets and proficiency scales for
each strand's related standards.
Kindergarten
