My oldest daughter, Goose, is only three-years-old, but I’m already stressing out about whether or not she’ll be ready for kindergarten. We made the choice to keep her home this year so there’s a ton of pressure on me to make sure that she learns all of the preschool skills needed for her eventual school debut.

Fortunately, I was a kindergarten teacher so I have a pretty solid idea of which direction to take her. Although there are standards she will be required to master (thanks Common Core), there are so many other preschool skills that your child needs to be successful in grade school. From my experience as an educator and a mommy, here are the most important preschool skills for your child to learn:

Basic Academic Knowledge

Obviously, you want to prepare your child for school with the most basic academic knowledge, primarily in math and language arts. By the time preschool is over, the very minimum they should be able to do is:

• Recognize and Write Their Name
• Identify Basic Shapes
• Identify Colors of the Rainbow
• Recognize and Count Numbers 1-10
• Identify Letters in the Alphabet
• Know Most Letter Sounds

If they cannot do this by the time kindergarten starts, don’t panic. Just try your best to develop the remaining skills on this list and then the academic learning will come much easier.

Fine Motor Skills

Anything that requires the use of fingers and hands is important for your preschooler to learn. Holding a pencil, coloring with crayons, cutting with scissors, using a paintbrush… So much of the work done in kindergarten will require the ability to perform these tasks independently. You want your child to be able to focus on their handwriting or cutting, not get stuck trying to grip and manipulate classroom tools.

Listening and Following Directions

A lot of parents assume that their child will develop an attention span and listening skills as they get older. That’s partly true, but they also need to practice so they can improve their stamina. You want your child to be able to follow two or three step directions and focus on a task long enough to complete it.

Creativity and Imagination

The ability to think outside of the box is important for self-expression and problem-solving. Give your kiddos plenty of chances to invent new stories and use a variety of materials for art projects.

Social Awareness

Social awareness is not just about learning how to interact with other children and adults. It also includes having a wide range of cultural experiences and community interactions. You want your child to acknowledge and celebrate what makes someone special and always be empathetic to the feelings of others.

Read a wide variety of books. Take them to museums, farms, zoos, and plays. Show them that there is more to the world than what exists in your home.

Learning is Fun

The hope is that you can cultivate a passion for learning when your children are very small. The more fun they have, the more curious and eager they’ll be to continue soaking up new knowledge!

How can I practice these preschool skills?

I found an incredibly useful tool that encompasses all of these important preschool skills: Kid Wonder Box!

Have you heard of them?

I was so excited to receive a complimentary box from Kid Wonder featuring their Pirates and Mermaids theme! I’d seen several pictures on their Instagram, but I assumed they just sent out a few little crafts each month.

Wrong. It’s so much more!

Kid Wonder has created a monthly subscription box that is full of fun themes and engaging, educational activities for your young child. Whether your little one attends preschool or is homeschooled by you, Kid Wonder boxes are a fantastic supplement for the concepts your child should be learning.

I tend to be hypercritical of “educational” toys so believe me when I say that this Kid Wonder box is TRULY incredible! This box transported Goose to the land of Pirates and Mermaids and immersed her in a fun, multi-dimensional learning experience. In just one box, we played new games, went on a treasure hunt, made slime, had a puppet show, created a pirate costume, painted a parrot, designed a pirate ship, and way, way more!

It addressed every preschool skill on my list multiple times. There’s so much to do and one box could easily last you the entire month and beyond. Aside from the enrichment aspect, I love that each pack includes everything you need and has the perfect quantity of each material. You will not have to purchase any additional supplies. With Kid Wonder, there’s an option to choose either the individual box or a double box for siblings and it contains exactly the right amount.

While I noticed Kid Wonder’s attention to detail, Goose just saw opportunities to learn and explore. Every time we opened a new activity, her eyes were wide with excitement! It was so fun watching how proud she felt about everything she was learning.

I love this box so much more than I ever expected and I highly suggest you purchase it for your child or as a gift for someone else. It’s just an incredibly thoughtful, well-made product and I have so much peace of mind knowing that my child is developing preschool skills while having an amazing time! I can’t wait to see what theme they have next!

How do you help grow preschool skills at home? Leave a comment and tell me all about it!

Hear what other real-life teachers say about preparing your child for kindergarten! And see what school supplies are on your teacher’s wish list!

Talk to you soon!