READY, START, SCHOOL! NURTURING AND GUIDING YOUR CHILD THROUGH PRESCHOOL & KINDERGARTEN

Table of Contents

Part 1: What Parents Need to Know About Their 3-to-5 Year-Olds

  • Developmental Milestones of 3-to 5-Year-Olds
  • Enrolling Your Child in Kindergarten or Waiting Another Year?
  • What Are General Kindergarten Readiness Skills?
  • What Schools Expect of Kindergartners by the End of the School Year

Part 2: Creating a Learning Environment Where Children Feel Confident

  • The Most Important Gifts You Can Give Your Young Child
  • Creating a Home Environment That Encourages Success
  • Building Your Child’s Confidence and Self-Esteem
  • Protecting and Influencing Your Impressionable Young Child
  • What are Learning Styles?
  • Recognizing and Nurturing Your Child’s Strengths and Interests
  • The Importance of Music, Art, and Movement/Dance Activities
  • Developmentally Appropriate Games, Books, Songs, Manipulatives, and Other Activities/Resources
  • Valuable Resources for Parents

Part 3: Advice on Social, Behavioral, and Discipline Issues

  • Communicating So Your Child Will Listen Better and Pay Attention
  • How to Prepare Your Child for the Social and Behavioral Expectations of School
  • Effective Behavioral Strategies and Positive Discipline Practices
  • Developing Your Child’s Problem-Solving Skills and Ability to Get Along with Others
  • Preventing Behavioral Problems at Home and Other Places
  • Tips for Parenting Challenging Children

Part 4: Everything a Parent Needs to Know on How Children Learn to Read

  • Language and Literacy: The Building Blocks of School Success
  • What is Phonemic and Phonological Awareness?
  • Playing with Sounds and Language
  • Helping Your Child Learn the Alphabet
  • What Research Says About Preventing Reading Difficulties
  • What to Expect in the Emergent and Beginning Levels of Reading Development
  • Getting Them Off to a Good Start: Strategies for Developing Emergent and Beginning Reading Skills
  • What Good Readers Do – Positive Reading Behaviors
  • The Importance of Read-Alouds and Shared Reading: Strategies for Reading to and with Your Child
  • Building Vocabulary and Comprehension Skills
  • How to Ask Questions that Guide Your Child in Developing Good Reading Habits and Thinking Skills
  • Beginning Phonics, Word Recognition, and Word Study Skills

Part 5: Getting Your Child Organized and Ready for Writing, Math, and Homework

  • What to Expect in the Emergent and Beginning Levels of Writing Development
  • Getting Them Off to a Good Start: Strategies for Developing Emergent and Beginning Writing Skills
  • Strategies for Building Fine Motor and Prewriting/Writing Skills
  • Beginning Number and Mathematical Concepts
  • Beginning Time Awareness and Organizational Skills
  • The Value and Purpose of Homework

Part 6: What to Do if You Suspect Your Child Has a Developmental Delay or Disability

  • Children with Learning Disabilities, Attention Deficit Disorders, and Other Special Needs
  • When You Are Concerned About Your Child’s Development
  • Working with Your Child’s School: A Team Approach

Part 7: What The Experts Say…Advice for Parents from Interviews with Preschool and Kindergarten Teachers and Directors

Editorial Reviews

In Ready… Start… School! Nurturing and Guiding Your Child Through Preschool & Kindergarten, Sandra F. Rief emphasizes that “[t]he message of this book is to enjoy your young child.” This educator, who specializes in learning disabilities, concentrates on the crucial years from three to five, when great brain activity occurs and kids absorb enormous amounts of information. The most important thing is learning language, which facilitates reading, and each child develops individually within predictable stages. Enrolling a child in preschool or kindergarten can be a difficult decision and depends on the readiness of the individual child. Rief offers reassurance in short simple sections with checklists for each stage of development and an emphasis on talking with children and listening to them. She also provides ideas for developing cognitive and math skills, lists of resources and advice on what to do if there are signs of disabilities or difficulties.

From Publishers Weekly

Reader Reviews

Sandra Rief’s Ready Start School!: Nurturing And Guiding Your Child Through Preschool And Kindergarten is a comprehensive parent’s guide to helping children ages 3 to 5 start out right. From fostering confidence to priming reading skills and what to do if you suspect your child has a learning disability, Ready Start School! covers it all. A special section of advice directly from interviews with preschool and kindergarten teachers makes Ready Start School! a stand-apart guide and a highly recommended “how to” reference for concerned parents. A highly recommended how-to reference for concerned parents.

A reader from Oregon, WI USA December 10, 2001