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Kindergarten Programs |
The Early Childhood Center provides for half day morning and afternoon kindergarten programs for the children in all four villages of Plainfield. The kindergarten program is the initial step into formal schooling and, therefore, must provide for the academic and developmental needs of all children.
The following programs are available at the kindergarten level:
Half day morning and afternoon classes
Early childhood special education classes
The curriculum focuses on providing for the individual needs of each child within the context of a language rich classroom environment. High quality beginning reading and writing instruction is emphasized in order to help all children become successful learners. The kindergarten competencies are based upon the "Connecticut's Blueprint for Reading Achievement." These competencies are a guide in determining which skills and abilities should be addressed at the kindergarten grade level.
Kindergarten Reading Competencies:
Word Identification
Demonstrates phonological awareness:
Rhymes spoken words
Identifies spoken words with similar initial sounds
Identifies spoken words with similar ending sounds
Blends up to three or four orally presented phonemes into a correct word
Demonstrates basic print concepts:
Recognizes that print conveys meaning
Recognizes that printed words are composed of letters
Recognizes that printed words are separated by spaces and that print is read left to right and top to bottom
Begins to use one-to-one match of written and spoken words during emergent reading and writing activities
Recognizes and names all uppercase and lowercase letters
Demonstrates letter-sound correspondences for all single consonants
Has a basic understanding of the alphabetic principle (i.e., the idea that the letters in printed words represent sounds in spoken words)
Recognizes sight words taught as part of the kindergarten curriculum
Fluent and Accurate Word Identification in Context
Recognizes sight words taught as part of the kindergarten curriculum in context
"Reads" familiar books emergently, not necessarily in the conventional sense (e.g., recognizes that the print, not the pictures, tells the story, begins to track print from left to right and top to bottom on a page)
Comprehension
Answers literal and inferential questions about grade-appropriate books read aloud by the teacher
Explains grade-appropriate vocabulary
Identifies common words in basic categories (e.g., can give examples of favorite foods or favorite colors)
Applies comprehension strategies, such as summarization and prediction, to grade-appropriate stores read aloud by the teacher
Uses prior knowledge to aid comprehension of fiction and nonfiction texts
Notices when simple sentences fail to make sense
Follows simple verbal directions
Retells familiar, grade-appropriate stories that have been heard several times
Uses oral language to relate own experiences and construct own stories
Spelling
Writes own name (first and last) correctly
Writes uppercase and lowercase letters when the letter name or sound is dictated
Represents initial and final phonemes of many words correctly when attempting to spell phonetically regular words
Writing
"Writes" emergently, not necessarily in the conventional sense, to express own meaning (e.g., uses letters in writing, represents some sounds correctly, uses left-to-right progression in writing)