OOliteracy Milestones Series: Kindergarteners 5-6 Years Old

As children step into kindergarten at ages 5-6, they embark on an exhilarating journey filled with new discoveries and triumphs. This magical and momentous year is packed with milestones that cultivate a deep and lasting love for reading and learning.

Kindergarteners begin to read simple texts, write their first sentences, and explore basic math concepts with growing enthusiasm. Their vocabulary blooms, and their storytelling skills take flight.

Come along as we explore the captivating literacy world of children 5 to 6 years of age and the various activities to support these milestone developments.

Kindergartener Literacy Milestones: Ages 5-6 Years Old

As your child progresses through kindergarten, you’ll witness remarkable strides in their literacy and learning abilities. Take a look at our table below to gain insights into the specific achievements your child may reach during this transformative stage.

Literacy Milestones	5-5.5 Years	5.5-6 Years
Can identify and use a few synonyms (similar-meaning words) and antonyms (opposite-meaning words)	✔
Demonstrates phonological awareness skills involving dividing words into syllables and segmenting and blending onset and rimes.	✔
Demonstrates phonological awareness skills involving isolating (identifying) phonemes.	✔
Demonstrates phonological awareness skills involving identifying, matching, and producing rhyming words and being able to identify non-rhyming words.	✔
Sits uninterrupted for longer picture books and stories.	✔
Can track print with their finger while reading.	✔
Begins to sound out simple words, typically CVC words, and recognizes some sight words.	✔
Asks and answers who, what, where, when, and how questions about a story. May provide rudimentary answers to why questions.	✔
Makes predictions about what will happen next in stories, retells stories with a logical sequence, and includes key details in story summaries.	✔
Makes connections between the story and their own experiences.	✔
Can trace and copy simple shapes and uppercase letters (capitals). Able to write their own name using all uppercase letters.	✔
Can match most uppercase letters with their corresponding lowercase letters.	✔
Able to draw pictures and label them with a few words by copying and begins to independently use initial sounds of words when writing.	✔
Correctly counts objects up to 20 or beyond and recognizes written numbers.		✔
Uses a more extensive vocabulary to express ideas and feelings. Typically has a 2500–5000 word vocabulary and puts 6-8 words together to make sentences.		✔
Knows the days of the week and the seasons. Knows many of the months in a year.		✔
Understands the terms and can identify the title of a book, author, and illustrator.		✔
Shows ability to hold a pencil or crayon correctly.		✔
Recognises creates, and describes simple patterns.		✔
Demonstrates an understanding of math concepts such as first, second, and third, big vs small; long vs short; fast vs slow; heavy vs light; cold vs hot, few vs many, etc.		✔
Participates in group storytelling activities and incorporates storytelling and narrative elements into dramatic play.		✔
Recognizes high-frequency sight words and simple phrases.		✔
Can write their name using both uppercase and lowercase letters.		✔
Understands the concept of a sentence and a paragraph.		✔
Creates simple 4-6 word sentences, using spaces between words, and begins to use capitals, periods, and question marks.		✔

Summary of key literacy milestones for kindergarteners aged 5-6 years old. Contains graphics of a couple of kindergarteners with a parent or teacher, a racoon with tracible uppercase and lowercase letter R, and other letter-sound correspondence activities.

Activities To Build Kindergartener’s Literacy Skills – Ages 5-6

Understanding your child’s kindergarten literacy milestones opens up tremendous opportunities to support their growth in joyful and meaningful ways. By recognizing these developmental stages, you can create engaging activities that spark their curiosity and build their confidence.

Creating a cozy reading nook at home to make reading a special time.

Setting aside time each day to read books together, encouraging your child to ask questions about the story and retell events.

Regularly visiting the library to explore new books and topics your kindergartener is interested in.

Providing opportunities for your child to write their name and write out labels, using paper and pencils. This might include writing letters or cards to family members or creating a picture book together of family events or a topic of interest.

Spelling out words on the refrigerator or a magnetic board to practice letter recognition and spelling.

Having meaningful conversations with your child, asking open-ended questions and encouraging them to express their thoughts.

Taking turns telling stories or making up new endings to familiar stories, encouraging creativity and imagination.

Using everyday language to talk about size, speed, weight, capacity, position, distance, temperature, quantities, time, and money to compare and to solve simple daily problems.

Using fun activities like writing in sand or with finger paints to make writing enjoyable.

Pay attention to your child’s interests and strengths, incorporating them into learning activities to keep them engaged.