Kindergarten students learn how to recognize and name all upper and lowercase letters of the alphabet. Once they begin to identify letters in sentences, teachers explain the appropriate use of these letters. For example, children learn that sentences begin with an uppercase letter as do people's first and last names.
Kindergarten teachers do not expect their students to diagram a sentence. However, they do teach sentence structure. For example, teachers write sentences on chart paper every day like "Today is Monday" and "We will make friends in kindergarten." The purpose is to expose children to the alphabet in print and help them understand the process of reading in left to right progression. Teachers also emphasize word order. For example, "Monday is today" is an awkward use of language. Students then apply this knowledge when they begin to read books and write their own sentences.
Kindergarten students will learn to recognize and use correct end punctuation for the four types of sentences. Teachers do not expect their class to master the terminology. For example, interrogative sentences are usually referred to as "asking sentences," and declaratives are called "telling sentences." Exclamatory and imperative sentences are called "exciting" and "ordering" sentences. They will be able to identify these sentences and use periods, question marks and exclamation points appropriately.
There are eight parts of speech in the English language. Students will learn most of them by name beginning in first grade. During the kindergarten year, teachers usually focus on nouns and verbs. Some language arts programs suggest that students learn the names of the parts of speech as well as their purpose. Others emphasize their use. Most teachers spend time instructing students in the general definition of a noun and verb. These two parts of speech are the easiest to demonstrate and explain.