Life Skills For Kindergartners: 6 Important Life Skills To Teach Your Child in Preparation For Kindergartner

Up until the kindergarten age, your child depends on you, their parents for their every need. But sometimes we can get caught up in the habit of doing every single thing for them (I am guilty of doing this). 

If you can begin to teach your child some basic life skills as soon as they begin to show interest in doing things for themselves, you can set the tone and begin to send a message of how independent and self-reliant you expect them to become throughout their life. By the way you can use this morning and bedtime round checklist to encourage your child to be more independent. 

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Equipping your child with the basic life skills they will need from an early age is a sure way to raise independent and self-sufficient children especially as they venture off to kindergarten.

You will also like: 8 Simple Tips for Raising an Independent Child

Life Skills For Kindergartners checklist

Why Basic Life Skills For Kindergartners Are Important

Teaching your child basic life skills is an essential part of their development. Life skills provide your child with practical lessons and tools they need to flourish and thrive on their own. But for many parents, myself included, that concept is a struggle.

When I became a first-time mom letting my child do things for herself was something I often wrestled with, read more about that story. It wasn’t intentional, but that is what I was doing.

I ultimately understood that there are certain basic life skills I should have taught my daughter and that the sooner I start to teach her those primary life skills, the more efficient she will become at applying those skills which will encourage her to further build upon and strengthen those skills, especially in preparation for kindergarten.

Here are 6 important life skills that I believe every parent should teach their children in preparation for kindergarten.

6 Important Life Skills For Kindergartners

1)Teach your child how to dress themselves.

I am embarrassed to say that I am guilty of not doing this but before kindergarten, my daughter did not know how to dress herself. She could not button and unbutton her clothes. This was something that we worked through while she was in kindergarten.

So yes, teach your child how to dress themselves. And just like it is important for your child to learn how to dress themselves, it is equally important to encourage your child to learn how to undress themselves. This is important, particularly during the winter months when they go outside to play in the snow and might need a change of clothes afterward. 

My daughter had a spare outfit in her backpack in case she spilled something on her clothes or have an accident which did happen one time and the teacher had to help her (yikes).

How to encourage your child to dress themselves at home:

  • Start getting ready 10-15 minutes earlier than your usual time so you have time to encourage your child to participate in dressing themselves up for school. 
  • let them put on their pajamas during their bedtime routine.
  • On the weekend let them practice putting on their socks. And have at least one pair of pants and a shirt with buttons so they can practice how to button, and unbutton their clothes. 
  • Teach your child how to zip and unzip their coats and jackets. You don’t want them coming out in the cold winter months with an unzipped jacket and you don’t want to have to wait on the teacher in the morning to help them unzip their jacket.

The more your child practices getting dressed on their own, the better they will get and the more confidence they will have in their abilities.

2) Teach your child how to use the bathroom without help:

Make sure your child is fully potty trained before kindergarten.

They should know how to:

  • unbuttoning or putting down their pants without having to take off all of their clothes comes time to use the potty.

Tip: Since my daughter did not know how to button and unbutton her pants yet, I dressed her in clothes that were convenient and did not need buttoning.

You should also teach them how to:

  • Protect their privacy by teaching them to close and lock the bathroom door every time they use the toilet. Start doing this at home to practice.
  • They should also know how to wipe themselves correctly, flush the toilet and wash and dry their tiny hands.

3) Teach your child how to open everything in their lunchbox.

life skills for kindergartners

As you can imagine, lunchtime is a busy time. The kids only have about thirty minutes to eat and they are not enough hands to help every kid open every single thing in their lunchbox. 

To ensure that your child has time to eat and is not waiting around for someone to help them open the items in their lunchbox, teach them at home how to open everything that is put in their lunchbox.

And if they are eating school lunch, they need to know how to open those items as well. Teach them how to peel a banana without making too much of a mess, and how to open a water bottle and a carton of milk. Practice opening a carton of milk using these orange juice cartons.

Also, teach them how to clean up after themselves after lunch and how to pack up their lunch box after lunch.

4) Teach your child how to tie their shoelaces 

Or how to velcro their shoes.

5) Teach your child how to put things in and take things out of their backpack

6) Teach your child good manners

Good manners are invaluable and will take your child a long way. Teach your child to say please and thank you to display consideration and gratefulness for others. And how to ask for permission before they take something. Also, teach them to say sorry and to respect their elders/teachers.

Last words On Life Skills For Kindergartners 

Teaching our kids basic life skills starting in their early years of development is important because if we as parents can teach our kids to thrive and survive when we are not around to help them, then we are truly on the right path of parenting.

Related articles: 

Preparing For Kindergarten: 12 Non-Academic Skills To Teach Your Child For An Easy Transition To Kindergarten

A Productive Morning Routine Chart For Kids

Using A Toddler Schedule Can Boost Your Child’s Self-Confidence

7 Benefits of Using a Responsibility Chart for Kids (with age-appropriate chores)

 

Life Skills For Kindergartners: 6 Important Life Skills To Teach Your Child in Preparation For Kindergartner