Students entering kindergarten should be able to follow one to two simple directions sequentially. A student at this age should be able to listen to and comprehend an age-appropriate story when read aloud. Finally, children entering kindergarten should have the ability to follow a simple conversation without straying too far off topic.
According to ASHA, speaking skills essential for kindergarten include the ability of the child to be understood by most people, answer simple yes and no questions as well as open-ended questions like, "What game did you play at recess?" Children who are ready for kindergarten should be able to retell a story or communicate information about an event. They can both initiate and participate in conversations, imperative skills for vocabulary development as your child grows.
It is helpful if a child can print his first and last name upon entering kindergarten. Other writing skills that are important include the ability to draw a picture that represents a story and write upper and lower case letters to the best of their ability, although some letters may not yet be legible. Of course, these skills are developed in the kindergarten classroom as well, so don't worry if your child is not quite there yet.
Kindergarten students should begin to be able to identify simple rhyming words and identify letters. It is important for them to begin to understand that letters represent sounds. The ability to recognize some words by sight is helpful at this stage as well. Although it is generally not considered a communication skill, ASHA considers concepts of print important for kindergarten enrollees. This means that they understand how a book works, knowing how to hold a book and understanding that the flow of the words moves from left to right, down to the next line and turning the pages.