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Easy Prep Homework For Kindergarten

Homework in Kindergarten: is it a good idea and how you should do it to make it valuable to your students and their families? Take a look at this monthly homework  for kindergarten printable and editable calendars .

Giving homework in kindergarten can be hard. You need parental involvement, and it can be difficult for some families to find time to complete it. One of my co-workers wanted a monthly calendar that students could do with their families. I created these editable monthly homework challenges so that families can complete the activities on their own time. They won’t need a lot of materials, and they can easily be done in a few minutes.

Keep reading to see what these are all about !

Homework for Kindergarten Printable Calendars

There are 16 challenges to complete every month. Some of them involve writing, some of the activities are hands-on. There is a mix of literacy, math and science challenges.  You only print and send home 1 page per month, no more worrying about photocopying a whole packet for each student.

They are editable!

I have made them editable so that you can change up the challenges to match up with what you are teaching that month. It is editable in PowerPoint, and all you have to do is type in the activity you want your students to complete.

Most asked questions:

Is this mandatory homework for your students? No. We don’t enforce homework for our students, if parents want something to work on at home, they can do these activities. I don’t believe in punishing kindergarten students for not doing their homework – that’s something out of their control.

What do you do when students bring back the completed homework calendar? We celebrate! We highlight their work to the rest of the class, I put a sticker on it and write an encouraging note and send it back home.

Try It Free

I am offering the Summer Challenges page as a FREEBIE! Send it home to families at the end of the year so that students can keep practicing skills that they learned over the summer months.

There is an editable version of this page included in the  paid product . If you would like to change out the activities to match the needs of your students, you can adapt it to fit your needs.

Find this free download in my  Resource Library !

Get students reading too

Encouraging students to read at home with their families is also very important. I have always sent home some leveled readers with students, on top of these calendars. Read about how I use Reading Log bookmarks to support home reading.

Want to try it out with your class? You can get it in my store now:

Do you assign homework in kindergarten? Let me know in the comments!

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10 comments

Do you have these available in Spanish also? I send my homework home in both English and Spanish.

I do not, but they are editable so you can change the activities to Spanish if you would like to use it!

I love this idea and I do want to try it in my classroom. I’m just curious on how you track it to see if they have been doing the things on the calendar. Honor system? Not much parent involvement in my school area. Just seeing how to get my parents and the student show me what they have done the work at home.

I don’t check to make sure all students do it. We do not have mandatory homework in kindergarten, so this is just for families that need ideas for home.

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I used these and they were amazing. Parents who wanted more homework liked the challenge. Thanks.

That’s amazing! Thank you for sharing!

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Tips for Using Homework In Kindergarten

How do you set up homework in kindergarten that is appropriate, fun, and meaningful? This seems to be the million dollar question among many kindergarten teachers. It is hard to know what is too much or too little all while making sure it’s engaging and developmentally appropriate! Keep reading for some food for thought as you make the homework decision for your own classroom.

Should There Be Homework In Kindergarten?

When you first started out as a new kindergarten teacher , you likely noticed that there are two camps when it comes to homework in kindergarten: Those who like it and those who don’t! However, some districts require either daily or weekly homework, so you might need to regularly send work home no matter what camp you’re in.

I am a true believer in kids learning through play, and sometimes I think giving them the opportunity to play after school is MUCH more important than sitting down to do homework.

However, if you are required to send something home with your kinders or you DO like the idea of homework in kindergarten, let’s look at the positives!

Benefits Of Homework In Kindergarten

I used to dread assigning homework to young students and struggled with how to make it work. I learned over the years that there are some amazing benefits to having homework in kindergarten.

Grow in Responsibility

Sending work home for your students to work on after school can help teach them responsibility.

Homework isn’t all about academics, it’s also about helping students become responsible, lifelong learners. Teaching your students how to “be in charge” of something and take pride in it is an important life skill. They begin to learn that it feels good to do a good job and get work done on time!

I like to talk with my students about what it means to be responsible when doing homework. It means that you:

• Put your name on your paper first
• Complete all of the work on the page
• Keep the paper looking neat
• Check your work
• Turn it into the appropriate place on time

Practice Problem Solving

Homework allows students to practice being problem-solvers at home as they work independently and blast through challenges.

We all know those students that come running to us at the sight or sound of any problem. As teachers, it is our instinct to help them, but allowing them to be challenged is a GOOD THING! Homework in kindergarten encourages your students to problem solve, whether they are at school or at home.

Since this is a skill your students are still developing, it’s helpful to prepare students for being more independent problem-solvers when they are working on their homework at home. This will help keep your students (and their families!) from becoming frustrated with the homework process. One way to do this is to model different problem-solving strategies during your daily routine. Some ideas are:

• Reading or listening to the directions again
• Looking at similar problems
• Using anchor charts or posters around the room
• Using manipulatives
• Drawing a picture

Build Routines

Homework can provide a foundation for structure and routine as they progress through school.

By starting homework early on in their school years, you are helping to set up your students for success in the future. Having homework in kindergarten allows them to start learning and using those problem-solving strategies right away.

It is important to know your students, their abilities, and their families when assigning homework in kindergarten. You don’t want your students and their families to develop negative feelings toward having a routine of skill practice at home. You can avoid this by sending home developmentally appropriate homework that doesn’t place an undue burden on families.

3 “Musts” for Kindergarten Homework

Now that we know the benefits of homework in kindergarten, I am going to share my three musts for making homework actually WORK in kindergarten.

Homework Must Be Easy to Prep

This first must is all about you, teacher friend! No kindergarten teacher has time to prep, print, laminate, and hole punch homework! Just the thought of it makes me cringe. Keep homework prep simple! My Kindergarten Homework Weekly Bundle is designed to be low-prep and easy to manage. In fact, you can print off an entire week of homework on one page, front and back. Check it out  here  to get your homework for the entire year covered.

Homework Must Be Engaging

Homework tends to have a bad reputation for being boring and hard. It doesn’t have to be, though! Homework that is fun for your students will engage them in the learning, thus becoming more purposeful for them and you. It will also make it more likely that they will keep up the routine of grabbing their homework from their backpacks when they get home.

You can make homework more engaging for students by using kid-friendly printables with space to color. Students also love being allowed to use different writing tools on homework. (This is helpful for families who might have pens more readily available than pencils.) You can also incorporate a little bit of seasonal fun to your homework by using themed printables.

Homework Must Be Aligned to Standards

If you give your students random homework assignments, it just feels like busywork. Make sure that it is aligned to the standards and skills you are teaching. My weekly homework covers reading and math standards and follows a common sequence for spiral review. It is also editable to meet students’ needs every year. You’ll be able to ensure that you’re sending home developmentally appropriate homework that students can complete mostly independently.

Printable Kindergarten Homework Bundle

You can check out my year-long homework bundle that includes 32 weeks of weekly homework practice. These printables come in two size options, so you can decide how you’d like to assemble the homework. The activities in this bundle could also be repurposed for other parts of your daily routine.

For example, you could bind the printables into a packet that’s perfect to use for morning work, fast finishers , centers, and more! Click below if you’d like to take a closer look at this resource in my shop.

Classroom Management Tool Fast Finishers Activities

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Kindergarten Homework for August

The beginning of the school year is an important time to set the tone for your students’ daily learning routines. One routine that you might want to get up and running as soon as possible is homework. In this post, I’m sharing ideas for developmentally appropriate kindergarten homework for August that will help you get this routine started for your students.

Using Kindergarten Homework in August

In many school districts, the school year is just beginning in August. It might feel a little bit early to start a homework routine for your kindergarten class. However, it’s actually the opposite! Setting up a homework routine at the beginning of the year can help your whole school year go more smoothly.

• Encourage Parent Involvement: Starting your homework routine as soon as possible will help you set the tone for regular parent communication and involvement. Parents and guardians will be kept in the loop about the skills you’re working on in the classroom.
• Review Important Skills: Homework isn’t intended to teach new skills. Instead, it’s an opportunity for students to review important concepts that they’re working on in class. Many of the foundational skills that kindergarten students are working on in August require a lot of repetition. Homework can be a helpful way for students to get more practice.
• Build Independence and Responsibility: Whether you send home individual homework pages daily or assemble packets that go home weekly (or even monthly), students will need to be responsible for getting their work home, completing it, and then returning it to school. Many students are so excited to be in school and have homework, especially when the assignments include tasks that they can complete independently.

Ideas for August Kindergarten Homework

One of the biggest challenges for kindergarten homework is to send home developmentally appropriate tasks. The activities should be something that students can complete without frustration, and the amount of time spent on homework should be appropriate for their age.

Here are some examples of the types of skills you can practice with kindergarten homework in August.

Number Sense

Number sense is something that young kindergarten students can review at the beginning of the year. They can practice representing numbers in different ways. These foundational skills will help you make the most of math instruction all year long!

For example, this Finding Groups homework assignment has students color the apples that show groups of the number shown. They can choose from tally marks, dice dots, ten frames, and fingers. This is a simple activity for students to complete at home while getting the important number sense review they need.

Number Identification and Formation 

It’s important for students to get plenty of repetition with identifying and writing numbers . Adding this practice to the homework routine is a great way for students to get a few more repetitions into their day.

This Count and Color activity is a great way for students to practice number identification, counting, and number formation all in one activity! Students will identify the number on each row, then color the number of objects to match the number. The numerals on the worksheet are also outlined so students can use them for rainbow writing. They can write each number multiple times using a different color each time. 

Phonemic Awareness 

Homework can also help students review early literacy skills like phonemic awareness. When students get a chance to practice these skills at home, their parents can see what you’re working on with the students in the classroom. They are more likely to point out these things when reading with their children at home.

For example, after completing this beginning sounds activity, parents might start looking for opportunities to ask their children about the beginning sounds in words. All of this repetition is so helpful for young students as they develop their foundational literacy skills!

Letter Identification 

Learning the letters of the alphabet is another huge part of the kindergarten curriculum at the beginning of the year. However, this is another skill that requires a lot of repetition! You can add some letter identification practice to the August homework routine in order to ensure your students are getting the repetition they need.

This Letter Match homework activity is a fun way for students to practice identifying uppercase and lowercase letters. They will cut out the lowercase letters and add them to the page next to the correct uppercase letter.

Fine Motor Practice 

As you might have noticed with the activities pictured in this post, homework can also provide additional opportunities for students to practice their fine motor skills. As students write, color, cut, and paste, they are improving their coordination and hand strength. These skills will help students complete classroom learning activities more successfully all year long!

This ten frame activity is a perfect example of how you can include some fine motor practice in your homework assignments. Students will count the number of dots in a ten frame, then cut and attach the correct glue bottle that corresponds to that number. As students cut out the individual pieces, they are developing important fine motor skills.

Printable Kindergarten Homework for August

Would you like to start an effective kindergarten homework routine in your classroom? You’ll definitely want to check out my recently updated kindergarten homework for August! It includes enough printable literacy and math activities to put together four weeks of homework practice.

There are multiple cover sheets to choose from if you’d prefer to use them as homework packets, including editable cover page options! There are also answer keys to make it easier to check your students’ work and provide timely feedback.

If you’d like to take a closer look at everything included in this set of kindergarten homework for August, you can find it in the A Spoonful fo Learning shop or in my TPT store .

Save These Tips and Ideas for August Kindergarten Homework

Be sure to save this post if you’d like to come back to it later! Just add the pin below to your favorite kindergarten board on Pinterest. You’ll be able to quickly find these kindergarten homework ideas when you’re putting together your August lesson plans .

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Kindergarten Homework: Is It Appropriate?

• April 11, 2015

Homework has become somewhat of a hot topic lately. I’ve read articles about schools adopting no-homework policies. I’ve seen research on the ineffectiveness of homework. I’ve found infographics on the absence of homework in other successful nations.

All of this has made me question whether or not my students should have homework. I’m a reading specialist, so I don’t assign homework in my current position. But as a Kindergarten teacher, I did give out a very brief weekly homework packet. Was it a waste of my time? Did I damage my students’ learning or home lives? Should Kindergarteners have homework at all?

I believe that Kindergarteners  can benefit from a very small, purposeful amount of simple homework. No, I don’t mean 5 meaningless worksheets a night. No, I don’t mean elaborate projects that their parents end up doing. But I do feel that a very small amount of Kindergarten homework can be valuable, particularly when the homework is reading . And here’s why:

• Homework is an opportunity for parents to show kids that they value education.  When a parent (or other family member) sits down with a child to work on homework, that adult figure is telling the child, “Hey, this is important. This is something I value.”
• Homework can give parents an idea of what students are working on in class.  Kindergarten was a long time ago for many parents! Kindergarten expectations have also changed greatly over the years. By assigning meaningful homework that is relevant to what is going on in class, we can give parents a window into their children’s daily lives and learning.
• Homework can provide students with additional practice and repetition.  I don’t know about you, but my Kinders sure need a lot of repetition to master concepts! Having my students spend 5-10 minutes practicing something outside of school is an opportunity to get in some of that extra practice.
• Homework can send kids the message that learning needn’t be restricted to school.  When you assign kids meaningful homework that encourages them to interact with their families and home environment, this sends the message that learning happens  everywhere – not just at school. Here’s an example of a simple homework task that sends this message:  “Find 4 things in your house that start with the letter g. Draw them on this paper.”

What Appropriate Kindergarten Homework Looks Like

Okay, so what kind of homework is appropriate for Kindergarten? Here are some suggestions for designing positive homework experiences:

• Emphasize reading.  It’s so valuable for kids to spend time reading with their parents. Maybe for homework you request that parents read with their children for 10 minutes a night – and that’s it!
• Give assignments that are SUPER brief!  Kindergarteners’ attention spans are short. So their homework should be short, too! If I send home a task, I try for something that can be completed in about 5-10 minutes. If you do send home a small weekly homework packet, make sure to educate parents about the importance of doing some each night (rather than all of it on Thursday night!). Check in periodically with students and parents to make sure that the homework isn’t taking too long. (And don’t feel like you “have to” give homework every day…many kids have a long day at school already.)
• Provide tasks that are meaningful.  An assignment like “Find 4 things in your house that start with the letter g. Draw them on this paper” is more fun and engaging than a worksheet on the letter g! When possible, involve family members in completing the homework. Games and scavenger hunts can get everyone in the family involved!
• Assign tasks at the right difficulty level. Why assign homework at all if it’s way too easy or way too hard? It may take a little time, but giving students slightly different homework can help maximize its effectiveness.
• Create a “homework bag” to provide necessary materials. If you think that students may not have pencils or crayons at home, why not send a few home with the homework? Also, reading with an adult makes for a wonderful homework assignment, but make sure to send home books. Many families do not have access to books in the home.

Challenges of Assigning Kindergarten Homework

In theory, the suggestions above can be relatively easy to implement. But it’s never quite that easy, is it? Here are some of the challenges that I (and my colleagues) have encountered when assigning homework to our students:

• Not all students have parent or family support to complete homework. I believe strongly in educating parents during Open House and other school events about the importance of devoting home time to learning. However, some parents are still not able to help students with homework for a variety of reasons (language barrier, time, education, etc.).
• Finding or creating differentiated homework assignments is very time consuming.   I always have a huge range of abilities in my classroom, and I want to provide homework assignments at my students’ individual levels. I don’t want students to become frustrated by the homework, or completely bored by it. But differentiating homework takes a TON of time!
• Keeping up with missing assignments can be challenging.  Kids don’t always turn in their homework. I can’t tell you how many times I inquired about a missing homework assignment, only to find out that it had been in the child’s backpack for a week! Kids also don’t always do their homework. Trying to track down missing assignments can take up a lot of time.

Conclusions

In spite of these challenges, I still believe that a small amount of homework or time spent reading with parents can be very valuable for Kindergarteners. Because I know firsthand how time-consuming it can be to find the right homework for students, I’ve created a Leveled Literacy Homework series that you can use with your Kindergarten (or 1st grade) students.

The idea behind the series is to give you materials that are engaging and meaningful (like family games), can be used to differentiate your homework assignments, and are ideal for students who either do or do not have family help with completing their homework.

All activities (except for simple worksheets) come with parent instructions in English and Spanish. They also have links to optional videos that parents can choose to watch to learn how to read with their child or play the literacy games together. To learn more about the series, click on the image below.

What do you like to use for homework in your Kindergarten classroom?

Related Posts:

Good information

…i love the information😘😘

Can you specify the age of the child i can apply these techniques upon??

Hi Diana, this article is mostly about 5-6 year old children.

[…] specialist (and former kindergarten teacher) Alison at Learning at the Primary Pond advocates for a small amount of meaningful homework in elementary school, even for kindergarteners, […]

Being the mum of a kindergartener, single mother infact, that works full time shift work and 2 hrs away from any family or friends, I genuinely disagree with homework at this age. I have enough to juggle let alone adding an hour into an already stretched out day, where my son has been at school and then oosh all day, to argue about him not wanting to do homework and IF he sits long enough to attempt the homework.. it strains our relationship. There is no one else around to help with homework, there is always copious amounts of homework …  Read more »

All great points you bring up – thanks for sharing!

We’ll Said. I found the reasoning above to be so thin and void of true reasons for having a 5-year old do homework. They’ll have so many more years to learn homework and the value of education. We send our kids to school for 8 hours a day, I’m sure they’ll understand someday that we as parents value education. I don’t need to do a silly exercise with them to get that point across.

I’m Alison, a literacy specialist. I love getting kids excited about reading and writing – and sharing teaching ideas with other teachers!

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Teacher Tips for Common Kindergarten Reading Challenges

Help your child overcome obstacles with these expert strategies..

Kindergarten will be a big step for your child, especially when it comes to reading. They’ll likely start the year by reviewing the alphabet and each letter’s corresponding sounds, vowel teams, and consonant blends.

Next, it’s off to the races with  sight words , book features, decoding unknown words, and more  beginning reading skills . Before you know it, your child will be reading independently!

Of course, a few challenges may spring up along the way. Luckily, kindergarten teachers like Michele Johnson and Greg Micek have seen it all. Below they share five everyday reading challenges kindergarteners face, and solutions for parents to help their young readers overcome them.

Challenge 1: Understanding some letters may have two sounds.

Though your child may know every letter of the alphabet and its corresponding sound, some letters like “c” and “g” have two sounds — one hard, one soft — which may confuse them during reading. 

Johnson, a kindergarten teacher in Florida, recommends pairing visuals that children can associate with the letter’s distinct sounds, such as a picture of a goat (soft “g”) and another of a giraffe (hard “g”). In the classroom, she always reminds her students to “flip it out” if they encounter one of these letters during reading, which means encouraging them to try a letter’s second sound if the first one doesn't sound quite right.

Challenge 2: Remembering sight words.

Sight words like “the,” “is,” or “and” that appear frequently in text can often trip young readers up. While learning strategies like  flashcards and  learning mats are effective, you’ll also want to focus on sight words while reading books with your child at home as well. 

“I have them find those words in the text before we even read the book, so they have confidence in knowing a handful of words already coming in,” says Johnson, adding that books with repetitive text are a great way to build confidence with sight words.

Challenge 3: Getting interested in books and reading. 

“Sometimes when kids are exposed to or asked to read books that do not connect to their passions, they are turned off from reading," says Micek. "Then they start to show the traits of reluctant readers and avoid new texts.” 

Micek lines his classroom library shelves with a variety of books at all different reading levels to make sure he’s catering to his students’ interests. At home, he suggests finding ways to show your child how much joy can be found in reading, which starts with modeling. 

“Parents need to have their kids see them reading,” he says. “Make reading a part of their day that is not forced upon them.”

Challenge 4: Handling texts that feel complex to them. 

If you notice your child is struggling with grade-level text and their confidence wanes as a result, there are a few things you can do at home to coach them. Micek suggests helping your child review decoding strategies when they encounter a challenging word and to break a story up into smaller parts so kids can take their time to work with the text. 

“To help with this, turn your yard or another outdoor space into a book walk,” says Micek. “Break the story up into parts and read them in order around the yard. Have questions be stopping points between each section for students to talk about what they’re reading.”

Challenge 5: Being okay with making mistakes. 

Kindergarten is often the time when your child will begin reading text on their own, and they’ll need some help — especially when they encounter new or challenging words. But don’t overdo it!

“I would encourage parents to allow their kids to struggle,” says Micek. “By jumping in too quickly, we do not give students a chance to solve problems and figure things out on their own. Parents should take on the role of a coach to support them through the struggle.”

Also, make sure you’re letting your child choose the books they want to read. 

“If you’re selecting the text for them, some kids really don’t have a connection to that book," says Johnson. "A lot of kids need that, especially at this age." 

Find more expert-approved kindergarten books, tips, and resources at our guide to  getting ready for kindergarten . 

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25 Kindergarten STEM Challenges That Little Ones Will Love

They’re never too young to create and explore!

STEM challenges are such a fun way for kids to explore how the world works. By building and creating, they learn problem-solving skills and get hands-on experience with physics, engineering, and more. These kindergarten STEM challenges prove that even little ones have plenty of ingenuity and inspiration.

The best part? These challenges are so easy to set up. They require only basic supplies, like wood craft sticks, pipe cleaners, or blocks. Just post one of these kindergarten STEM challenges on your whiteboard, explain the requirements, pass out the supplies, and watch young minds grow!

Want this entire set of STEM challenges in one easy document? Get your free PowerPoint or Google Slides bundle of these first grade STEM challenges by submitting your email here, so you’ll always have the challenges available.

Just a heads up, WeAreTeachers may collect a share of sales from the links on this page. We only recommend items our team loves!

25 Kindergarten STEM Challenges

Fold a sheet of paper to make a column that supports the most books..

Use pipe cleaners to make a new kind of bubble wand.

• Zees 1000 Pipe Cleaners in Assorted Colors

Take a walk outside and find at least five items to use as paintbrushes.

Use pool noodles cut in half lengthwise to make a toy car race track that includes a ramp. You can also use blocks and masking tape.

Build the tallest tower you can using wood craft sticks and clothespins.

• Whitmore 100 Natural Wood Clothespins
• Pepperell 1000 Natural Wood Craft Sticks

Mix red, blue, and yellow finger paints to make as many new colors as you can.

Use toothpicks and marshmallows to make as many different shapes as possible.

• 1000 Count Natural Bamboo Toothpicks

Use one can of shaving cream to build the tallest structure you can.

Stack 15 plastic cups into the tallest tower possible.

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Gather twigs outside and use them to build a house for one of the Three Little Pigs.

Use 5 pipe cleaners to make the longest chain you can. The chain must be able to hold a small cup of jellybeans.

Build the tallest tower possible using buttons and Play-Doh.

Use a cardboard box, wood craft sticks, construction paper, and supplies like scissors and glue to build a monster trap.

Make a domino chain reaction that includes two curves.

• Lewo 1000 Pcs Wood Dominoes Set

Use newspapers and masking tape to make a tent for a stuffed animal.

Build a bridge that can hold 100 pennies using wood craft sticks and toilet paper tubes.

Scoop up one cup of random LEGO bricks and use it to make a new kind of animal.

Use plastic straws and masking tape to build the tallest possible tower.

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Design a repeating pattern necklace from Cheerios and colored beads.

Find three different things to fill plastic eggs to make them sink to the bottom of a tub of water.

Make a snowflake from toothpicks and mini marshmallows.

Chicka Chicka Boom Boom! Use blocks and wood craft sticks to make a coconut tree that holds as many alphabet magnets or beads as possible.

Construct a house from drinking straws and Play-Doh. You can cut the straws if you like.

Build a fence for toy animals using wood craft sticks and Play-Doh.

100 Day Challenge! Use 100 of something (blocks, LEGO bricks, pipe cleaners, etc.) to make a creation that celebrates your 100th day of school.

Loved these kindergarten grade STEM challenges? Check out the 23 Best Kindergarten Science Projects and Activities .

Plus, 50 easy science experiments kids can do with stuff you already have ..

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10 Tips to Improve Kindergarten Reading Comprehension

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• Reading Strategies
• Classroom Organization
• Becoming A Teacher
• Assessments & Tests
• Secondary Education
• Special Education
• Homeschooling

Learning to read is an exciting milestone for kindergarteners. Early reading skills include letter recognition, phonemic awareness, decoding, blending, and sight word recognition. Go beyond worksheets to improve kindergarten reading comprehension and skill through hands-on learning activities, games, and targeted techniques.

Key Takeaways: Building Comprehension

• Build a foundation for comprehension by providing explicit phonics instruction and reinforcing new knowledge through interactive games.
• Select books with repetitive text that focus on topics your child enjoys, and read each one multiple times. Repetition encourages comprehension.
• While you read, help your child make connections by asking questions about the story and encouraging them to visualize it.
• Use anchor charts for reading comprehension . These can include reminders about decoding techniques, making connections, or visualizing the story.

Start with a Strong Foundation

Overall reading success, including strong comprehension skills, begins with phonemic awareness. More than merely reciting the alphabet, kindergartners need to learn the sounds that each letter makes. Phonemic awareness also includes:

• Blending individual sounds
• Isolating beginning and ending sounds and recognizing words that start or end with the same sounds
• Segmenting words into individual sounds

Children need explicit phonics instruction. This instruction builds on phonemic awareness to teach the relationship between letters or groups of letters and sounds. The most effective phonics instruction follows a specific sequence beginning with vowel and consonant sounds and building to two- and three-letter blends, double consonant ends, plural words, and diagraphs (letter blends such as ch , sh , bl , and th ).

Kindergarten students should work on recognizing high-frequency words commonly known as sight words. Fry words and Dolch sight words are two such word lists. 

Play Kindergarten Reading Games

Get young children involved in hands-on activities that improve their phonemic awareness and reading comprehension skills.

Roll Word Families

Start with two blank dice. On one, write word-beginning consonant sounds, such as b , s , t , m , p , and r . On the second, write word-ending vowel-consonant sounds, such as at , op , an , in , ap and et ). Ensure that the child will be able to combine the beginning and ending sounds to create consonant-vowel-consonant (CVC) words.

To play, invite your child to roll the dice and read the resulting word. Some of the combinations will be nonsense words, but that’s OK. Nonsense words still provide practice blending sounds. If desired, ask students to identify which words are real and which are nonsense.

Send children on a CVC or sight word scavenger hunt through classroom books with a simple I Spy game. Ask them to search the books for CVC or sight words, then report back on the words they find.

Act Out Passages

Encourage students to act out a scene from a book they are reading. This fun, simple activity adds meaning to the words on the page and helps children focus on and visualize those meanings.

Use a preprinted sight word bingo card or fill a blank template with sight words or CVC words. Create a few different card options and give one to each student, along with marker chips. Call out the words one at a time. As students locate each word on their card, they will cover it with a marker until they have five in a row.

Reading Recommendations for Kindergarten

When looking for books that kindergarten students can read independently (or with a little help), it’s important to keep a few things in mind:

• Use the five-finger rule. If a student makes five errors reading a page from a book, it’s too hard. One error is too easy. Four errors might mean the book is acceptable for the student to try with some help. The sweet spot for a "just right" book is only two or three errors per page.
• It's OK for children to read the same book multiple times. It may seem as if this isn’t helpful for reading comprehension because they are memorizing the text. Becoming comfortable and familiar with text improves reading fluency, vocabulary, and word recognition. 
• Reading books with repetitive text, such as "The Foot Book" or "Hop on Pop" by Dr. Seuss , improves reading comprehension. Include books with familiar sight words such as "Big Brown Bear" or "Big Pig, Little Pig," both by David McPhail. 

Help students select children's books on topics that interest them. Keep in mind that some children prefer fiction books while others thrive on nonfiction. Try nonfiction books written for early readers such as "Baby Pandas" by Bethany Olson, "Big Shark, Little Shark" by Anna Membrino, or "On a Farm" by Alexa Andrews.

Kindergarten Reading Comprehension Assessment

One of the easiest ways to assess reading comprehension in kindergarten students is the Informal Reading Inventory, also known as a Qualitative Reading Inventory. The IRI allows instructors to individually assess a student’s fluency, word recognition, vocabulary, comprehension, and oral reading accuracy.

Kindergarten students should be assessed in the middle and at the end of the school year. Children are usually asked to read a passage aloud. Reading fluency rate is determined by how many correct words a student reads in one minute. Oral reading accuracy can help an instructor determine a student’s reading level and ability to decode words.

Comprehension can be checked by asking questions about the passage or asking the student to summarize what he read. Vocabulary is assessed through open-ended questions about words in the passage.

Model Good Reading Habits

It is important for children to see that their parents and teachers value reading. Teachers can help by setting aside 15 to 20 minutes for silent reading each day. During this time, students and their teacher choose books to read silently. Parents can help by ensuring that children see them reading at home.

Teachers and parents should read aloud to students regularly so that children can hear the role that reading rate and voice inflection play in fluency. Choose books that are above the level that children could read on their own to expose them to new vocabulary. Parents should make bedtime stories part of their nightly routine.

Ask Questions

Improve kindergarten students’ reading comprehension by asking questions. Before reading, look at the book’s title and illustrations and ask students to make predictions about what will happen.

During the story, ask questions about what is going on, what students think will happen next, or what they would do if they were the main character. After the story, ask questions about what happened, how the story made the children feel, or why they think the book ended the way it did.

Help Kindergartners Make Connections

Helping students make connections is another effective technique for improving comprehension. Give students a foundation for what they’re reading. Talk or watch a video about unfamiliar experiences before reading about them.

Help children connect stories to their own experiences. When reading a book about a boy getting a new puppy, for example, talk to students about who has a pet. Ask where they got their pet and how they chose it.

Teach Comprehension Strategies

Teach children what to do when they don’t understand what they’re reading. Instruct students to:

• Reread the passage
• Look at the pictures for clues
• Think about what happened before or read what happens next

If those tips don’t help, students may be reading a book that is too difficult. Don’t forget the five-finger rule.

Build Vocabulary

Increasing a student’s vocabulary in an excellent way to improve their reading comprehension. Give students confidence in their budding reading skills by defining unfamiliar words ahead of time so that they don’t lose the meaning of the story.

Teach them to infer the meaning of a new word from the context of the story. For example, if a student reads, “The tiny ant goes in the little hole,” he may be unfamiliar with the word tiny but recognize little from his sight word list.

Teach kids to ask themselves questions such as, “What could go through a little hole? Would it be something small or something big?” By reading the word in context, kids can learn to infer that tiny must mean small or little.

Encourage Visualization

Teach children to create mental images, often called brain movies or mind movies, when they are reading. Ask them to draw a picture of what is going on or what the character is thinking or feeling. Instruct them to use their five senses to picture the action of the story in their mind.

Envisioning the action of a story is a fun way to improve students’ reading comprehension.

• How to Assess and Teach Reading Comprehension
• What Are Fry Words?
• 7 Reading Strategies and Activities for Elementary Students
• 7 Independent Reading Activities to Increase Literacy
• How to Improve Your Reading Speed
• Setting a Purpose for Motivated Reading
• Teaching Reading Comprehension
• Develop Fluency and Comprehension With Repeated Reading
• How to Read a Difficult Book
• How to Boost Reading Comprehension With Reciprocal Teaching
• How to Stay Awake While Reading
• How to Use a Running Record to Assess Beginning Readers
• How to Become a Critical Reader
• How to Keep a Reading Log or Book Journal
• Essential Elements of Guided Reading
• 10th (or 11th) Grade Reading List: American Literature

How To Create Kindergarten Homework That Parents And Kids Will Love

Kindergarten homework is not developmentally appropriate.  There I said it.  Five-year-olds are not meant to sit down to do paper and pencil tasks about reading and writing.  Somewhere along the way, someone who was most definitely not a kindergarten teacher decided that five and six-year-olds MUST read by the end of kindergarten. 

This created unrealistic expectations of teachers to somehow overcome brain science and teach students how to read.  Teachers began assigning sight word homework in addition to leveled readers and math worksheets.  Suddenly, kindergarten kids have as much homework as older elementary students.  Yet, there are no studies to support the notion that homework in kindergarten helps kids to achieve more. 

Some teachers have stopped assigning homework altogether but others are required to assign kindergarten homework.  Read on to find developmentally appropriate ways to assign kindergarten homework that parents will love.

Teachers Under Pressure

The pressure put on teachers to have all kindergarten students meet the same high academic standards at the same time is completely unrealistic.  Then that pressure was transferred to teachers who decided that in order to achieve this goal, they needed to share the responsibility with parents.  Then parents decided that they need  kindergarten homework to help them to achieve this goal.

This notion isn't all bad.   Sharing learning responsibilities with families is a productive way to help students achieve and giving parents activities and skills to practice at home is certainly helpful.   The problem is that we've lost sight of what we know is natural child development.   

So what can teachers do to help their young students to practice skills at home but still allow them to be kids?  We can start by giving students a variety of homework options rather than requirements.  In distance learning or remote learning situations, teachers are under even more pressure!  Check out this page for some distance learning types for Kindergarten teachers. 

Keep Homework Fun!

Kids work hard all day (or for half the day) at school.  They don't need to go home to sit with worksheets and pencils to continue to practice sight words (which the latest brain research doesn't support anyway, but that's a blog post for another day). 

In school, we know that all kids have different learning styles so we need to remember this when assigning homework.   Sending the same worksheet with each student is not differentiating.  You can differentiate homework by giving students options and allowing families to choose the activities that are the best fit for their students.

Keep “assignments” fun and engaging with a variety of ways to practice important foundational skills.  Think about how you design engaging centers and apply that to homework.  Practice writing letters and numbers in sand, finger paint or shaving cream!  Create math problems with toys or breakfast cereal.  Play games with dice to develop number sense and social skills like taking turns.  There are so many fun possibilities!

Give Families Homework Options!

Think about your academic goals for the week or the month.  Then create a list of 15 – 20 choices full of skills you want your students to practice.  This can be a list, a chart, or even a calendar!  You can send this list home to give families options and give kids some choice in their assignments. 

You can choose to include only academic tasks but I like to include some more developmentally appropriate skills that are often overlooked.  Skills like memorizing phone numbers and addresses are important things kids do not often do anymore.  You can add life skills like practice playing games (winning and losing with grace), tying shoes, helping to fold laundry and more.

I try to limit paper-pencil options.  However, when I do include them, I try to keep them open-ended.  For example, instead of practicing writing letters with a pencil, encourage students to write letters in sand or pudding.  If you want kids to practice writing, give them fun writing prompts or open-ended options.  For math practice, instead of doing a page of addition problems, have students tell and solve their own addition story problems using their favorite toys.  There are a lot of easy, no extra materials needed ways to practice these skills that won't stress kindergarten kids or parents.

Need to know more about assigning Kindergarten Homework?

How Do You Find the Time to Revamp Homework?

Time is one of the biggest challenges any teacher faces.  Finding time to rework your kindergarten homework assignments is difficult.  I can help!  Sign up for my e-mail list here and I will send you a completely free, editable homework menu to try in your classroom!  If you don't have time to create your own, I have monthly homework menus in my TPT store.  You can check them out here. 

I am hopeful that the pendulum is swinging back to more developmentally appropriate practices in kindergarten.  I'm happy to see that many districts across the country are returning to play-based learning in kindergarten.  This gives me hope!  In the meantime, let's try some new homework options for our youngest students.  What other suggestions do you have for homework in kindergarten?  I'd love to hear them!

One Comment

Your first statement in the last paragraph says it all! I have been making some noise about developmentally appropriate practices for years. We are beginning our school year with testing, testing, testing! I will be teaching students face to face and online at the same time. I have no idea where to start so I decided to do some research and found your site. I'm liking what I'm seeing so far. Please keep up the good work!!

Comments are closed.

QUICK LINKS

Monthly Homework

) but many of the activities were "unstructured" and my parents just weren't following through with them. I needed something more structured that I could actually see was done. I used the concept of a monthly homework calendar but paired it with a packet for recording the work. I did include some "unstructured" assignments (like counting or singing) but there is one paper/pencil activity for each day. Each day has a specific page in the packet to complete. The skills reflected in the homework are based on the scope/sequence of Open Court phonics and our shared reading program. I send the complete packet home at the beginning of the month and have children return it each Friday so I can check that the work is being completed. This system has worked wonderfully! I have much better participation and it is far less time consuming for me. font installed. on her site.
(explaining the monthly homework calendars)
	Return to Kelly's Kindergarten Kindergarten Sight Words Kindergarten Curriculum Kindergarten Worksheets Free Kindergarten Worksheets Free Kindergarten Worksheets for all subjects! You'll love our free printable kindergarten math worksheets, sight word worksheets, phonics worksheets, science worksheets, writing worksheets, spelling worksheets because they are filled with hands-on fun!  Use our PDF printables, activities, and games to help you teach kindergarten at home or in the classroom. Kindergarten Math Worksheets Free Kindergarten Math worksheets and printables. Students work on addition, subtraction, numbers, number recognition, skip counting, comparing, graphing, ten frames, tally marks, number lines, shapes and more! Kindergarten Addition Worksheets Addition worksheets for kindergarten, addition color by number worksheets, kindergarten addition games, kindergarten addition drills worksheets, kindergarten subtraction worksheets, kindergarten skip counting worksheets, kindergarten shape worksheets, kindergarten make 10 worksheets, kindergarten number worksheets. Free printable sight word lists, flashcards, worksheets, games, activity pages and more!  These free preschool and kindergarten sight word PDF printable are based on the Dolch 220 sight word list. Kindergarten Sight Word Worksheets Kindergarten sight word games, kindergarten sight word flashcards, kindergarten sight word playdough, kindergarten sight word printables. Kindergarten Phonics Worksheets Free printable kindergarten phonics activities, worksheets, handwriting pages, mini-books, and more!  Your students will learn over 30 word families with our free kindergarten reading printables.  Kindergarten Alphabet Worksheets Kindergarten Alphabet Worksheets and printables for kindergarten skills and standards. Your students will work on letter recognition, letter order, ASL, beginning letter sounds, phonics, handwriting, and more.  Kindergarten Writing Worksheets Learning how to write a sentence is an important skill to hit during the kindergarten year!  We've created fun and free kindergarten writing prompt exercises for learning capitalization, punctuation, strong sentences, and more!  Kindergarten Writing Prompts Kindergarten directed drawing prompt, kindergarten picture writing prompts, paragraph writing prompts, silly monster writing prompts. Kindergarten Spelling Worksheets Free kindergarten spelling worksheets, spelling lists, activities, and more. Your students can build their own spelling journal for simple writing references.  Kindergarten Science Worksehets Free printable kindergarten science worksheets for kindergarten. Students will learn insect life cycles, recycling & composting with our free science printables. Leave a Reply Cancel reply Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked * Editable Spring Break Homework Printable Editable Spring Break Homework Challenge How to Complete the Spring Break Challenge Grab Your FREE Copy 3 Responses This is awesome! Thank you for all your great resources! You’re welcome! We hope you and your kiddos love this activity. It’s one of our favorites! This is fantastic! Thank you for sharing. Leave a Reply Cancel reply Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked * Search Search thekindergartenconnection 🖍️ If you teach Pre-K, TK, or Kindergarten, hit the follow button and let’s be friends! ⭐️ Professional Development ⬇️ © 2024 THE KINDERGARTEN CONNECTION  Why 1000 Books Before Kindergarten is so Important? Depending upon where you live, public education is only provided over an age range starting... Please keep in mind that it is never too early to start reading to your children! If your child learns early to associate reading with pleasure... Are you Ready to Host a 1000 Books Before Kindergarten Challenge? We provide libraries, schools, day cares, churches, non-profits, and other... Complete the Journey to Reading… from the blog Phonics Course Updated and Expanded Children’s Picture Book Day: A Celebration of Imagination and Wonder The 1000 Books Foundation Partners with WAYB to Support Early Literacy Initiatives The Big Read 2023® Ten (10) Books That I Remember from my 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten Early Literacy Challenge The 1000 Books Foundation Receives $10,000 Literacy Grant to Promote 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten Early Literacy Challenge October 2, 2024, the big read, learn how you can get involved with the 1000 books foundation.. Copyright © 2013 - 2024. 1000 Books Foundation . All Rights Reserved. Subscribe Today! Subscribe to our mailing list to receive the latest news and offers from the 1000 Books Foundation. You have Successfully Subscribed! The 1000 Books Foundation respects your privacy. Skip to secondary menu Skip to content Skip to primary sidebar Coffee and Carpool: Intentionally Raising Kind Kids Helping Busy Parents Intentionally Raise Kind Kids//Bully-Proof Your Kids//Bullying Prevention How to Help Kindergarteners Do Homework Without Tears Inside: New students have a hard time working on homework. Kindergarteners especially have no desire to sit still and often refuse to do their homework. But there are tips and tricks to help new Kindergarteners do homework without complaining or without tears. Congrats! You’ve survived the huge parenting milestone of sending your child off to Kindergarten! But now there’s a new challenge for parents: homework. Some Kindergarteners come home with no homework ever, some start it a month or two into school, and some schools start to send home homework Day 1. There’s a huge debate over the purpose and benefits of homework in general and many, many parents are frustrated homework starts in Kindergarten. Related: Here’s What You Need to Know About Homework and Why Teachers Assign It  But if homework is being assigned to our youngest learners-and it is being assigned in the majority of our schools- we need ideas to help our Kindergarteners do homework without complaints and without tears.  Because while a few kiddos might be excited to do homework because it makes them feel like a big kid, many kids balk at the idea of sitting down to do more work after their hours at school. Our Kindergarten kids may fight us every step of the way to complete their homework, mostly because they’re absolutely exhausted . They are mentally and physically drained. These new students have been told what to do all day. They have probably had to sit still on a tiny rung spot with their legs folded under them way longer than they’ve ever had to. They have to actually work. And think. And answer tough questions. They have to memorize a long list of Kindergarten sight words.  And now we expect them to do more work at home? More thinking? More sitting? Of course they’re going to complain or flat out refuse or revert to tears and a tantrum. But there are ways to help ease them into this new transition of coming home from school and helping kindergarteners do homework. General Homework Tips To Help All Students: Before we get into Kindergarten specific tips, there are several things you can do to help set your student up for homework success for years to come . The first and most important is to create an afternoon schedule and routine and be consistent with it. My kids know they come home, hang up their backpacks and empty them, wash their hands, get a snack, and start their homework. Because if it’s something that happens every day, my kids know what to expect. They know it’s coming. You will set yourself up for a lifetime of homework ease if you instill in them now the expectation that homework is done right after school. If you’re unsure how to set up an afterschool routine, use this one. My kids love to check things off their Afterschool Checklist almost as much as I love crossing things off my to-do list because they are in control of how fast they move through the list. The faster they get their checklist done, the sooner they can go play. For more general tips and tricks for homework solutions, like setting up a homework station and a homework supply box, click here . Encourage Your Kindergarteners to Do Homework Without Complaining: If you set the expectation that homework is something we do and we do it without complaining , it will benefit everyone in the family. For you, you don’t have to hear the whining and can get through the afternoon without pulling your hair out or needing a cocktail by 4pm. For them, they get a treat. Try punching a hole in a sheet of paper every time they finish their work without complaining. When they get five, they get a special “date” with mom or dad or get to go somewhere they love. Every month, you can increase the number of holes they need to earn the date. Whatever it takes to discourage the complaints. Homework Strategies to Help Kindergarteners Do Homework: For our Kindergarteners, we need to help them actually finish their homework. This is new, so there are going to be some growing pains. Keep in mind, not all tricks will work for all kids. You need to choose what you think would motivate your child the most. And if that doesn’t work, try another trick. 1. Physically Be Nearby We can’t expect these five-year-olds to sit and work independently in September . We need to build up to it. For the first week, sit next to them as they finish their work. Then the next week, sit across from while they work. During the third week, don’t sit with them, but stay in the same room. You can then graduate to being in and out of the room as needed. If they balk at you moving further away, take a step closer to them until they feel more confident. The end goal is for them to not need you to be monitoring their every move. 2. Visually Reduce the Amount of Homework If a whole math sheet overwhelms them, cover some of it up with another paper. You can cover up half of the paper or you can cover it all and just show one line at a time. As they finish their work, slide the paper down until they get to the bottom of the sheet. 3. Reduce the Amount of Time They Have to Work It can be intimidating to sit down and finish all their work at once . Set a timer and have them work for five minutes. Then take a “brain break” for five minutes. Repeat the pattern until the work is finished. For the next week, extend the work timer to six minutes, but keep the brain break time the same. Some brain break ideas: listening to music, dancing, coloring, building Legos, exercising, jumping, or these really cool brain breaks on youtube. 4. Let Kindergarteners Do Homework and Move Around While They Work Who says kids have to sit still to do their work? Let them stand to finish their work. Let them do their work on a bosu ball or on an indoor trampoline with a clipboard. Standing, jumping, bouncing, stretching, spinning…whatever their little bodies need. If they can’t do these things while they actually work, encourage them to be active before and after homework time. 5. Let Kindergarteners Do Homework Outdoors Who says homework has to be done inside? They’ve been stuck inside all day. Let them finish their work while breathing in the fresh air. Fresh air and oxygen will wake them up, refresh them, and get their brain moving. Try working at a picnic table or on your back patio or balcony. 6. Use Their Whole Body to Finish Their Work Since many kids learn best when they’re moving, encourage them to use their bodies to learn. Let them stomp their math answers using this fun activity from the SuperKids Activity Guide . 3 + 4 = Stomp the 7! Then they can write it on their paper. Use chalk to practice their letters and sounds. If you write letters on the ground, have them run to the “C” or run to the letter that makes the /b/ sound. When they’re starting to read, have them spell words by running to each letter. Use chalk to practice their numbers and addition and subtraction. Write the numbers on the ground and have them run to the 4. Or have them run to the answers of  “1 + 1” or “6-2!” 7. Give Them Counters to Finish Their Math When it’s time to start adding and subtracting, let them use real tangible things that they can move to add or subtract. They can add and subtract with coins, Cheerios, crackers, or even their favorite toys. 1 Shopkin + 3 Shopkins = 4 Shopkins 8. Give Them Colorful Markers Grey pencils can be so boring. Let them use markers–or better yet, smelly markers –to trace their letters, write their name, or write their spelling words. Rainbow colors make monotonous work more enjoyable and your kids will be used to “Rainbow Writing” from school.  9. Offer them a Healthy Snack While Kindergarteners do Homework: My kids live for snacks, so they love to eat snacks while they do their work. They do a problem and then take a bite. Offer them “brain food” during this time to boost their minds and memories: berries (especially blueberries), bananas, trail mix, sunbutter and jelly, and avocado (try guacamole and chips). 10. Use Rewards (for a short period of time) Offer up rewards for when they finish a row of their work…stickers, stars, or even a treat. Put their favorite food at the end of a row of problems. ..  I’ve used Goldfish Crackers, fruit snacks, and even jelly beans. When they finish the row, let them eat the treat. The following week, only put the treat on every other line of work. Eventually, just put a treat at the end of the page. The goal is to wean them off of needing or expecting the treat. With these 10 tips, kindergartner homework will get done sooner without complaints, and without tears. And your afternoon will go much smoother. Need more Back to School Help and Ideas? We’ve got you covered: Reader Interactions Shelby @Fitasamamabear says September 14, 2017 at 12:28 pm There’s homework in kindergarten now?? Actually?! Oi Nicole Black says September 15, 2017 at 12:33 pm In some classes, yes! A lot of Kindergartners don’t start right away though…. Erin Burton says September 28, 2017 at 12:49 pm I like that so many of your strategies involve moving. You are correct! Children have already had to sit still for hours at school, listening, following orders, and mentally concentrating (sometimes on things they care nothing about). They need time to get up and move! I am actually an ex-public educator who now homeschools my children. My children will often pace while reading, and sometimes we take it a bit further and study while we take a walk outside. My children are able to concentrate much longer when they move. We probably have an hour’s worth of sit-down time each day. The rest is spent moving, exploring, and playing. Children (well… and adults) are not built to sit for hours without moving. Nice post! 🙂 September 28, 2017 at 1:23 pm Yes!! A lot of kids have to move to do everything. I force them to sit while they’re eating (I’ve given the Heimlich one too many times) but other than that, who cares if they’re standing or jumping while they spell or read or practice math facts??? Not only will they focus more for some kids, it will actually help them retain the info!! Flossie McCowald | SuperMomHacks says September 28, 2017 at 1:18 pm OK, let me just get out of the way that having homework in K is SICK SICK SICK. (I’m a mama of a 3rd grader and a K student.) But – having said that – your tips are SO great and SO spot-on. Our third grader has ALWAYS struggled with homework; some of these are tricks we have tried with her in the past, some we still use with her now, and some I WISH I’d thought of when she was in K suffering through (what to her was) busywork! Thanks for the great post! 🙂 September 28, 2017 at 1:21 pm I know a lot of people get angered by this post because of it’s premise. I’m not trying to take a stand in favor of Kinder homework. But if it’s getting assigned–and it is getting assigned– I wanted my readers to have some tips to help them get through it. And you’re right, these tips will apply for anyone trying to do homework… Glad you liked the tips! Becca @ The Married Cat Lady says September 28, 2017 at 2:38 pm I don’t have kids yet, but I definitely want to remember some of these great tips for when I do someday! Żarty O żydach says January 29, 2022 at 4:33 am Definitely, what a great blog and illuminating posts, I will bookmark your site.Best Regards! Leave a Reply Cancel reply Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked * Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. 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Each badge earns tickets you can enter into prize drawings. Earn any combination of 15 badges to complete the challenge and earn a completion prize. Plus, get entered to win a Barnes & Noble Gift Card just for registering! All reading, reviews, and activities must be tracked via Beanstack to receive badges and prizes. This challenge is for all ages. You’ll see a range of activities listed under each activity badge. Complete the ones that are most appealing to you. You can download a paper log here to track your reading. Read 1,000 books before your child starts Kindergarten and track your progress using Beanstack. Register by clicking here. Note: in Beanstack, log reading by logging books For every 100 books you read, earn a sticker and a free book prize. Complete the challenge by reading 1,000 books. Visit your local branch to get a completion certificate. Want to keep track of your reading progress on a paper then log your activity online? Click here to print a paper log. Looking for book suggestions? Start with this booklist: Books Your Child Should Hear Before Kindergarten Genesee District Library Rating Count Price (Ascending) Price (Descending) Most Recent Editable monthly homework challenges for kindergarten Resource type. EDITABLE Monthly Homework Challenges for Kindergarten Monthly Reading Bingo Challenge - Editable Monthly Reading Logs for Homework Editable monthly homework challenges for grade 1 February's EDITABLE Monthly Homework Board Challenge January's EDITABLE Monthly Homework Board Challenge At home challenges - Homework for kindergarten FREE MONTHLY Reading BINGO Challenge | Monthly Reading Logs for Homework | READO Editable HomeFUN Homework Alternative Monthly Menus - Unhomework Options Monthly Homework Calendar ** EDITABLE ** Editable Homework Calendar Editable Reading Challenge Bundle - Seasonal Monthly Book Logs Editable Winter Reading Challenge Bundle - Monthly Book Logs Kindergarten Monthly Homework Menus August- May Monthly Themed Sight Word Challenge * Editable * Editable Homework Calendars Monthly Reading Challenge Bundle Monthly Reading Logs Bundle EDITABLE Reading Logs, Reading Menus, and Reading Journal Homework For Google Reading Log Templates with Monthly Bookmarks Bingo Bundle HOME Reading Logs l Simple Reading Log TEMPLATES First Grade Assessments Year-Long Kindergarten Homework Bingo Boards and Family Discussion Starters We're hiring Help & FAQ Privacy policy Student privacy Terms of service Tell us what you think You're reading a free article with opinions that may differ from The Motley Fool's Premium Investing Services. Become a Motley Fool member today to get instant access to our top analyst recommendations, in-depth research, investing resources, and more. Learn More Prediction: These 2 Challenges Will Become Full-Blown Problems for McDonald's The United States' Federal Trade Commission may be preparing to crack down on franchisors' unfair business practices. McDonald's franchisees are also growing increasingly frustrated with mandated promotions they can't afford to offer or participate in. Current and would-be McDonald's shareholders may want to keep a close eye on this tension, since it poses a long-term threat to the company's potential growth. Motley Fool Issues Rare “All In” Buy Alert McDonald's For years the business model worked well, but its franchisee/franchisor relationships have seemingly become lopsided. There's no denying McDonald's ( MCD 0.50% ) is king of the fast-food industry. Not only has the company clearly mastered the art and science of quick-service restaurants, but with more than 42,000 stores each doing on the order of $3 million in sales per year, it's also the biggest name in the business. It's made for a rewarding long-term investment as well. No great company is guaranteed to thrive forever, however. Indeed, it's possible the very things that once made a company great will eventually turn into liabilities. That's arguably where McDonald's is now. For decades it pulled ahead of its competition by being the premier name in restaurant franchises. Now, though, its once-fruitful relationships with franchisees are strained to the point of becoming problematic. Two specific tensions serve as evidence of the company's deeper-seeded challenges even if their risk isn't readily evident. McDonald's stock could be tough to own until these hurdles are plainly cleared. McDonald's franchisees are growing increasingly frustrated McDonald's doesn't actually own the majority of its stores. As of June 95% were owned and operated by franchisees that not only pay an upfront fee for the right to run a store, but pay the parent ongoing royalties from their restaurants' revenue. The franchisor (that's McDonald's) also requires its franchisees to purchase their supplies from the company itself, and contribute to certain marketing efforts. Perhaps most notably, McDonald's differs from other franchises by virtue of owning the real estate where its franchisees operate, collecting ever-rising market-based rent payments for the right to use its building and land. Whatever the arrangement, the restaurant business is becoming increasingly competitive. This puts more and more pressure on several facets of McDonald's operation, in turn creating tension between franchisees and franchisors... each of which just wants to maximize their bottom lines. Stories of franchisees becoming frustrated with unexpected costs and heavy-handed requirements are nothing unusual these days. Indeed, they're now common enough that the U.S. Federal Trade Commission is getting involved. Just last month the FTC issued an official warning to U.S. franchisors reminding them that the "use of contract provisions, including non-disparagement clauses that prohibit franchisees' communications with the government, violate the law." The regulator also reminded them that "franchisors cannot lawfully impose and collect fees from franchisees that were not previously disclosed." The Commission didn't explicitly name McDonald's as a violator of these standards (nor any other fast-food chain, for that matter). These messages are in the same vein as many of the heated complaints McDonald's franchisees have voiced in recent years, however. The fact that the FTC felt compelled to issue a public statement on the matter at all is a sign that McDonald's increasingly strained relationships with its franchisees may be at or near an impasse that could impede future growth. Franchisees aren't going to take on above-average risk for below-average returns on their investment, after all. And the second stumbling block? Inflation (although once again the complicated franchisee/franchisor arrangement plays a role in this headache). Anyone reading this is certainly aware that higher prices are taking a big bite out of your buying power of late. McDonald's restaurants and its customers aren't immune to this challenge. Just a few months ago the price of a Big Mac meal was nearing $20 in some markets. Other combos were seeing similar price increases, forcing some consumers to forego visits to the fast-food chain. Then in late June the company finally countered, by introducing several combo meals that could be purchased for only $5. And it worked. Customers returned. It worked so well, in fact, that the restaurant chain extended what was supposed to be a short-lived promotion all the way into this month at most locations. But it's not as if the generous offering isn't taking a toll. Several franchisees have voiced frustrations that the cost of making and selling these $5 meals is simply too high without assistance from the corporation itself... which doesn't appear to be coming. In that many of the chain's pricing and menu decisions are compulsory though (effectively, if not literally), relief may not be on the horizon if these $5 value meals are extended again, or made permanent. Again it's more of a symptom rather than the problem itself. Nevertheless, it's another potential source of tension stemming from a business arrangement that offloads much of the cost burden -- and therefore much of the risk -- onto franchisees. Too much potential risk to simply ignore These are obviously philosophical problems at least as much as they're operational problems, making them more challenging to fix. But, they can be fixed. And even if they're not, it's not as if McDonald's doesn't enjoy the sort of stature that inspires franchisees to swallow their frustrations and continue toeing the line well into the future. These seemingly small philosophical challenges, however, can also slowly chip away at a business without anyone noticing until it's too late. Think back to once-great companies like General Electric , IBM , or Blockbuster (which at one point had an opportunity to acquire Netflix for next to nothing). These companies weren't suddenly and unexpectedly upended. They simply suffered a slow demise by ignoring the little things eating way at their top and bottom lines until they became very big things. McDonald's isn't likely to suffer the same fate as Blockbuster, or even GE or IBM, and its attractive dividend isn't in any immediate jeopardy either. Red flags are waving though, and increasingly so. The way it handles franchisees -- and the way it requires franchisees to handle customers -- is evolving into a tangible liability for investors. Shareholders will want to keep an eye on this aspect of the business. The stock may not be your very best bet right now. James Brumley has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Netflix. The Motley Fool recommends International Business Machines. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy . Related Articles Premium Investing Services Invest better with The Motley Fool. Get stock recommendations, portfolio guidance, and more from The Motley Fool's premium services. Work & Careers Life & Arts Unions push for UK public sector ‘pay restoration’ in challenge to Labour To read this article for free, register now. Once registered, you can: • Read free articles • Get our Editor's Digest and other newsletters • Follow topics and set up personalised events • Access Alphaville: our popular markets and finance blog Explore more offers. Then $75 per month. Complete digital access to quality FT journalism. Cancel anytime during your trial. FT Digital Edition Today's FT newspaper for easy reading on any device. This does not include ft.com or FT App access. Global news & analysis Expert opinion Standard Digital Essential digital access to quality FT journalism on any device. Pay a year upfront and save 20%. FT App on Android & iOS FT Edit app FirstFT: the day's biggest stories 20+ curated newsletters Follow topics & set alerts with myFT FT Videos & Podcasts Terms & Conditions apply Explore our full range of subscriptions. Why the ft. See why over a million readers pay to read the Financial Times. Skip to main content Keyboard shortcuts for audio player Harris’ challenge to keep the Blue Wall strong Steve Inskeep Are Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Michigan now the weak link in the Blue Wall? Is the "Blue Wall" of states that usually vote Democratic still strong? NPR's Steve Inskeep asks senior editor at The Atlantic , Ron Brownstein, who coined the term. Copyright © 2024 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record. 287 IMAGES EDITABLE Monthly Homework Challenges for Kindergarten by Creative Editable monthly homework challenges calendar for kindergarten EDITABLE Monthly Homework Challenges for Kindergarten EDITABLE Monthly Homework Challenges for Kindergarten EDITABLE Monthly Homework Challenges for Kindergarten Easy Prep Homework For Kindergarten COMMENTS Easy Prep Homework For Kindergarten Homework for Kindergarten Printable Calendars. There are 16 challenges to complete every month. Some of them involve writing, some of the activities are hands-on. There is a mix of literacy, math and science challenges. You only print and send home 1 page per month, no more worrying about photocopying a whole packet for each student. Planning a Full Year of Homework Activities for Kindergarten It's also helpful for parents to know why you're choosing to use homework throughout the school year. Take some time at the beginning of the year to communicate the benefits of completing homework in kindergarten. You can also give them tips for helping their students review these important skills at home. 5. Encourage Follow-Through. Tips for Using Homework In Kindergarten Build Routines. Homework can provide a foundation for structure and routine as they progress through school. By starting homework early on in their school years, you are helping to set up your students for success in the future. Having homework in kindergarten allows them to start learning and using those problem-solving strategies right away. Kindergarten Homework for August One of the biggest challenges for kindergarten homework is to send home developmentally appropriate tasks. The activities should be something that students can complete without frustration, and the amount of time spent on homework should be appropriate for their age. Here are some examples of the types of skills you can practice with ... Kindergarten Homework: Is It Appropriate? In spite of these challenges, I still believe that a small amount of homework or time spent reading with parents can be very valuable for Kindergarteners. Because I know firsthand how time-consuming it can be to find the right homework for students, I've created a Leveled Literacy Homework series that you can use with your Kindergarten (or ... Kindergarten Worksheets and Games From math worksheets to reading games, science experiments to seasonal crafts - we have something for everyone. Plus our resources are 100% FREE! Our resources come from our founder Beth Gorden who has almost 20 years of experience teaching along with other contributors who work in early education and as kindergarten teachers with expertise ... Teacher Tips for Common Kindergarten Reading Challenges Challenge 1: Understanding some letters may have two sounds. Though your child may know every letter of the alphabet and its corresponding sound, some letters like "c" and "g" have two sounds — one hard, one soft — which may confuse them during reading. Johnson, a kindergarten teacher in Florida, recommends pairing visuals that ... EDITABLE Monthly Homework Challenges for Kindergarten This editable monthly homework pack is perfect for challenging students and building your home-school connection.There are 10 monthly activity pages that can be sent home to reinforce concepts taught in school. There is a mix of math and literacy ideas, as well as written and hands-on activities.. A bonus Summer Challenges page has been added! Keep students practicing key concepts over the ... Challenging Homework For Kindergarten Teaching Resources Creative Kindergarten. This editable monthly homework pack is perfect for challenging students at home. There are 10 monthly activity pages that can be sent home to reinforce concepts that are being taught in school. There is a mix of math and literacy ideas, as well as written and hands-on activities.A bonus Summer Challenges page has been ... FREE Kindergarten Reading Log Homework Challenges Kindergarten reading log challenges! Perfect for kindergarten homework! Each month includes 20 reading challenges to foster fun and creative ways to read at home. Each challenge asks families to read TOGETHER in fun ways! I have included a parent letter for easy set-up!⭐Save $$ and buy the BUNDLE!• ... 25 Kindergarten STEM Challenges That Little Ones Will Love 100 Day Challenge! Use 100 of something (blocks, LEGO bricks, pipe cleaners, etc.) to make a creation that celebrates your 100th day of school. Loved these kindergarten grade STEM challenges? Check out the 23 Best Kindergarten Science Projects and Activities. Plus, 50 Easy Science Experiments Kids Can Do With Stuff You Already Have. 10 Tips to Improve Kindergarten Reading Comprehension Build a foundation for comprehension by providing explicit phonics instruction and reinforcing new knowledge through interactive games. Select books with repetitive text that focus on topics your child enjoys, and read each one multiple times. Repetition encourages comprehension. While you read, help your child make connections by asking ... How To Create Kindergarten Homework That Parents And Kids Will Love Give Families Homework Options! Think about your academic goals for the week or the month. Then create a list of 15 - 20 choices full of skills you want your students to practice. This can be a list, a chart, or even a calendar! You can send this list home to give families options and give kids some choice in their assignments. Monthly Homework 2011-2012. Homework Folders: I use the two-pocket folders with the fasteners in the middle. I copy the homework calendar and the accompanying work packet for the month and hole-punch it. I place these in the middle of the folder. The monthly book record and sight word cards go in the pockets of the folders. Parent Letter (explaining the monthly ... Summer Reading Challenge for Kids Depending on the age or ability of your child, you can decide together how many books they will challenge themselves to read this summer. The printable pages have versions for 10, 20, 50, and 100 books. This allows options for kids who are reading picture books or being read to, all the way to kids who are independently reading chapter books. Kindergarten Maths: One More Than Home Learning Challenges These Kindergarten maths homework challenges provide pupils with a range of fun activities they can carry out at home to support their learning in class. Simply print out the sheet of challenges and hand it out at the beginning of your 'One More Than' topic. Parents and carers can then work their way through the different homework challenges with children at home, at their own pace. All ... Winter Break Homework Alex is a former night owl turned early bird and playful learning enthusiast. Alex lives with her husband and their beloved and high-energy cat, Fitz. Help keep important skills sharp over break with this FREE editable winter break homework. It's perfect for Pre-K, Kindergarten, & 1st grade! Kindergarten Worksheets Your students will learn over 30 word families with our free kindergarten reading printables. Kindergarten Alphabet Worksheets. Kindergarten Alphabet Worksheets and printables for kindergarten skills and standards. Your students will work on letter recognition, letter order, ASL, beginning letter sounds, phonics, handwriting, and more. Editable Spring Break Homework Printable This editable printable is super easy to customize. Simply save the file and open in PowerPoint. Type in the activities that you'd like your students to practice inside of the spring flowers. Save and print! Teacher Tip: You can create more than one Spring Break Challenge sheet with different skills to differentiate for all students! 1000 Books Before Kindergarten Children's Picture Book Day: A Celebration of Imagination and Wonder. The 1000 Books Foundation Partners with WAYB to Support Early Literacy Initiatives. Ten (10) Books That I Remember from my 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten Early Literacy Challenge. The 1000 Books Foundation Receives $10,000 Literacy Grant to Promote 1,000 Books Before ... How to Help Kindergarteners Do Homework Without Tears But now there's a new challenge for parents: homework. Some Kindergarteners come home with no homework ever, some start it a month or two into school, and some schools start to send home homework Day 1. There's a huge debate over the purpose and benefits of homework in general and many, many parents are frustrated homework starts in ... Online Reading Challenges Read 1,000 books before your child starts Kindergarten and track your progress using Beanstack. Register by clicking here. Track the amount of books you read. Repeat titles count! Note: in Beanstack, log reading by logging books. For every 100 books you read, earn a sticker and a free book prize. Complete the challenge by reading 1,000 books. Results for editable monthly homework challenges for Kindergarten Not a fan of traditional Kindergarten homework worksheets? Then this is the "Kindergarten homework" for you! This homework in Kindergarten offers monthly challenges and activities for reading, writing, math, science, social studies, creativity, and social emotional development that students and families can choose from. These homework in Kinder East Lansing mom plans to read 1,000 books before daughter starts ... The challenge is a nationwide effort by educators and advocates to encourage early childhood literacy and lifelong reading. The family has read 762 books together so far. Prediction: These 2 Challenges Will Become Full-Blown Problems for Anyone reading this is certainly aware that higher prices are taking a big bite out of your buying power of late. McDonald's restaurants and its customers aren't immune to this challenge. Just a ... Unions push for UK public sector 'pay restoration' in challenge to Labour However, the influence of the union movement has grown following the election of Starmer's government in July and Labour's approach to industrial relations is likely to prove one of its ... Harris' challenge to keep the Blue Wall strong : NPR Harris' challenge to keep the Blue Wall strong Is the "Blue Wall" of states that usually vote Democratic still strong? NPR's Steve Inskeep asks senior editor at The Atlantic, Ron Brownstein, who ... Biden Approved Secret Nuclear Weapons Strategy Focusing on China In a classified document approved in March, the president ordered U.S. forces to prepare for possible coordinated nuclear confrontations with Russia, China and North Korea. Supreme Court Allows Arizona to Enforce, for Now, Law Tightening New The Supreme Court on Thursday allowed Arizona, at least for now, to toughen some voting requirements, saying that people registering to vote before the coming election must show proof of citizenship. Noah Lyles would accept Tyreek Hill's challenge in 'legit' race Then Hill offered the challenge after being asked what would happen if the two squared off in a 50-yard dash. ... Required reading. Noah Lyles wrote the check with his mouth. At the Olympics, his ... essay homework paper phd project resume review speech study thesis