Pea Ridge School District

Kindergarten: A Parent's Guide

Kindergarten Learning Targets

Teachers in Pea Ridge follow the Science of Reading and strategies promoted by Arkansas R.I.S.E. (Reading Initiative for Student Excellence). Many family resources are available from the Arkansas Department of Elementary and Secondary Education on their R.I.S.E site, including milestones in learning to read by age and tips for what families can do at home to help growing readers.

Parents will receive updates about student progress in reading three times each school year (fall, winter, and spring) using NWEA MAP Growth reports and classroom assessments. We encourage parents to reach out to your child's teacher if you have questions about your child's reading skills and progress.

We use an additional resource: Lexia Core5. This tool helps us target student's individual learning needs so that each student grows as a reader every day!

Learn More: Lexia Core5 (Grades K-5)

Our students in grades Kindergarten through 5th grade use Lexia® Core5® Reading—a fun, computer-based program that helps students improve their literacy skills. The activities in Core5 support and build on your child’s classroom curriculum and focus on developing reading skills in six areas: phonological awareness, phonics, structural analysis, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension.

Here’s how Lexia Core5 Reading works:

Your child begins Core5 at a starting point that fits his or her needs and then engages in online activities throughout the week.
Online activities include direct instruction and immediate feedback as your child learns new skills.
Progress and performance in the program are reported directly to teachers so that they can provide assistance when needed.
Paper-and-pencil activities are also used for practice and may be completed in school or brought home.
Achievement certificates may be sent home to celebrate success and to show progress in the program.

Here’s how you can set your reader up for success:

Students should complete the tasks on their own. That means no hints or tips from grown-ups, friends, or siblings! This is important because Lexia provides extra support and instruction if students struggle with a task, and alerts teachers when further help is required.
Try to provide a quiet space for learning if students are working in Lexia from home. Headphones can be helpful but aren’t required.

We invite your to contact your child's teacher with any questions you may have.

Students receive instruction in reading, writing, speaking, and listening in Literacy at Pea Ridge. Each year students experience this instruction through the context of building background knowledge in social science and science. The more students know about more topics, the better they comprehend what they read and the more likely they are able to make connections beyond the text they are reading.

In Kindergarten, we learn about the topics below:

The Five Senses

We will study the five senses. Studying the five senses lays a foundation for knowledge of human biology. We will learn how we see, hear, taste, touch, and smell as we ask the question: How do our senses help us to learn?

Some of the books we are reading include:

My Five Senses, Aliki
Rap a Tap Tap, Leo and Diane Dillon
“Smelly” Kelly and His Super Senses: How James
Kelly’s Nose Saved the New York City Subway, Beth Anderson and Jenn Harney
Last Stop on Market Street, Matt de la Pena; illustrations, Christian Robinson
Fry Bread: A Native American Family Story, Kevin Noble Maillard and Juana Martinez-Neal

Our class will ask these questions as we read to learn more!

Once Upon a Farm

We will study life on the farm. As we explore the familiar and vibrant farm, we ask the question: What makes a great story?

Some of the books we are reading include:

No Small Potatoes: Junius G. Groves and His
Kingdom in Kansas, Tonya Bolden and Don Tate
Hey, Hey, Hay! A Tale of Bales and the Machines
That Make Them, Christy Mihaly and Joe Cepeda
The Little Red Hen, Jerry Pinkney
Three Little Pigs, Raina Moore; illustrations, Thea Kliros

Our class will ask these questions as we read to learn more!

What is true about real farm animals?
How do authors create settings?
How do authors create characters?
How do authors create problems and resolutions?
How do authors sequence events?
What makes a good story?

America, Then and Now

We will study how certain aspects of American life have changed over time. As we explore the past and the present, we ask the question: How has life in America changed over time?

Some of the books we are reading include:

Transportation Then and Now, Robin Nelson
Communication Then and Now, Robin Nelson
Now & Ben: The Modern Inventions of Benjamin Franklin, Gene Baretta
The Little House, Virginia Lee Burton

Our class will ask these questions as we read to learn more!

What changes does the Little House see in her neighborhood?
How have communication and transportation changed in America?
How did Benjamin Franklin’s inventions make life in America easier?

The Continents

We will study characteristics of the seven continents to learn more about the world and understand the similarities and differences among the continents. As we explore each continent, we ask the question: What makes the world fascinating?

We read books about the seven continents and:

My First Day, Phùng Nguyên Quang and Huỳnh Kim Liên
Sing to the Moon, Nansubuga Nagadya Isdahl and Sandra van Doorn
Titanosaur: Discovering the World’s Largest Dinosaur, José Luis Carballido, Diego Pol, and Florencia Gigena
Winged Wonders: Solving the Monarch
Migration Mystery, Meeg Pincus and Yas Imamura Carta Marina, Olaus Magnus

Our class will ask these questions as we read to learn more!

What interesting things can people do in Europe and Asia?
What interesting natural features can people see in Africa and Antarctica?
How can a story transport you to a different place?
What amazing animals can people see in South America and Australia?
Why might people want to visit North America?