In a kindergarten classroom, reading almost always takes place in a group as the teacher reads out loud to students. To teach your kindergartners to make text-to-world connections, pause intermittently while reading a story and ask them what lessons about the world or life in general they think the story holds. After you have finished a story, ask them to think about what message the story contains, and what details in the story contribute to that message. Give them prompts to get the discussion started by mentioning significant points in the plot and hinting at how they relate to the world.
Prompt connections between text and world by bringing in news stories that relate to material you have read in class. If, for instance, you have read a story such as "Where the Wild Things Are," bring in a news story about the destruction of rainforest. Ask students to make connections between the material. Prompt them to think about how the message in "Where the Wild Things Are" might be an environmental one.
Many students in kindergarten are too young to write lengthy pieces on their own. Instead of having them write personal responses that make text-to-world connections, allow them to draw their responses. After you have finished reading a story, ask students to think of one thing it reminds them of. It does not have to be a current event, but it could be something students heard their parents talking about, something they saw on TV or read in another book, or something that happened to someone they know.
Much like a drawing response, show and tell allows students to represent a text-to-world connection visually. If you have a particularly interesting story, ask students to bring in an object from home that somehow relates to the story and its message. This could be anything from a stuffed animal reminiscent of a character in the book to a photograph, a coin collection or anything else.