We’re just wrapping up the first semester, in the Edmonds School District.  Report cards will be going home at the end of the week and parents are anxious to see if their kids are meeting grade level expectations.  What are kids expected to do by this time of the year?

Here is a writing sample that shows what most kindergartners are able to do right now. 

This student identified a topic she wanted to write about.  She drew a picture and was able to write a sentence to match.  Her words contained the beginning sounds.  She is starting to be able to spell some of our sight words.  I notice that she’s beginning to use lowercase letters in her writing and she’s even using spaces in between her words. 

Just so you know, we don’t use writing prompts very often on kindergarten.  We structure our writing time in a Writer’s Workshop model.  About once a month I ask kids to write from a prompt.  It’s a great tool to see their growth and share with other teachers at our grade level.  

By the end of the year a kindergartner should be able to:

*write multiple sentences on a single topic

*work on piece of writing over multiple days

*use beginning, middle, and ending sounds in words

*use many sight words in writing

*use consistent spaces between words

*use mostly lowercase letters

Teaching young kids to write is my absolute favorite part of day.  It amazes me to see just how much they grow in a school year!

Happy writing!