Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

The Kindergarten Child: What Teachers and Administrators Need to Know to Promote Academic Success in all Children

  • Published:
Early Childhood Education Journal Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

This article describes kindergarten from the perspective of the whole child. Specifically, it reviews current research on best practices to improve children’s math and language arts competencies, memory skills, and the role of kindergarten in beginning science. It also describes the social experiences children have in kindergarten with respect to their academic success. Similarly, it reviews the impact of emotional competence on school success. This article then reviews research describing three major influences on children’s kindergarten adaptation and success (i.e., transition, parental involvement, retention). The article concludes with a discussion of full-day kindergarten programs and their potential for improving the chances of all kindergarten children, especially low-income and ethnic minority children, for success in school.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Albertini, V. (2004). Racial mistrust among immigrant minority students. Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal, 21(4), 311–331.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Arbeau, K., & Coplan, R. (2007). Kindergarten teachers’ beliefs and responses to hypothetical prosocial, asocial, and antisocial children. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 53(2), 291–318.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Atwill, K., Blanchard, J., & Gorin, J. (2007). Receptive vocabulary and cross-language transfer of phonemic awareness in kindergarten children. Reading Teacher, 7(2), 336–357.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bagdi, A., & Vacca, J. (2005). Supporting early childhood social-emotional well being: The building blocks for early learning and school success. Early Childhood Education Journal, 33(3), 145–150.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Baskett, R., Bryant, K., White, W., & Rhoads, K. (2005). Half-day to full-day kindergarten: An analysis of educational change scores and demonstration of an educational research collaboration. Early Child Development and Care, 175(5), 419–430.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Blair, C., & Razza, R. (2007). Relating effortful control, executive function, and false belief understanding to emerging math and literacy ability in kindergarten. Child Development, 78(2), 647–663.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bogard, K., & Takanishi, R. (2005). PK-3: An aligned and coordinated approach to education for children 3–8 years old. Social Policy Report: Society for Research in Child Development, 19(3), 1–24.

    Google Scholar 

  • Buhs, E., Ladd, G., & Herald, S. (2006). Peer exclusion and victimization: Processes that mediate the relationship between peer group rejection and children’s classroom engagement and achievement. Journal of Educational Psychology, 98(1), 1–13.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Burkam, D., LoGerfo, L., Reqady, D., & Lee, V. (2007). The differential effects of repeating kindergarten. Journal of Education for Students Placed at Risk, 12(2), 103–136.

    Google Scholar 

  • Burke, M., Hagan-Burke, S., Kwok, O., & Parker, R. (2009). Predictive validity of early literacy indicators from the middle of kindergarten to second grade. The Journal of Special Education, 42(4), 209–226.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Buyse, E., Verschueren, K., Doumen, S., Van Damme, J., & Maes, F. (2008). Classroom problem behavior and teacher–child relationships in kindergarten: The moderating role of classroom climate. Journal of School Psychology, 46, 367–391.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cannon, J., Jacknowitz, A., & Painter, G. (2006). Is full better than half? Examining the longitudinal effects of full-day kindergarten attendance. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 25(2), 299–321.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carnes, G., & Albrecht, N. (2007). Academic and social-emotional effects of full-day kindergarten: The benefits of time. Emporia State Research Studies, 43(2), 64–72.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cassady, J., Smith, L., & Putnam, S. M. (2008). Phonological awareness development as a discreet process: Evidence for an integrative model. Reading Psychology, 29, 508–533.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cole, P. M., Martin, S. E., & Dennis, T. A. (2004). Emotion regulation a scientific construct: Methodological challenges and directions for child development research. Child Development, 75, 317–333.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Craig, S. (2006). The effects of adapted interactive writing intervention on kindergarten children’s phonological awareness, spelling, and early reading development: A contextualized approach to instruction. Educational Psychology, 98(4), 714–731.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cullingford, C. (2007). Creativity and pupils’ experience of school. Education 3-13, 35(3), 133–142.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • DeMarie, D., Miller, P., Ferron, J., & Cunningham, W. (2004). Path analysis of theoretical models of children’s memory performance. Journal of Cognition and Development, 5(4), 461–492.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • DiPerna, J., Pui-Wa, L., & Reid, E. (2007). Kindergarten predictors of mathematical growth in the primary grades: An investigation using the early childhood longitudinal study—Kindergarten cohort. Journal of Educational Psychology, 99(2), 369–379.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Doumen, S., Verschueren, K., Buyse, E., Germejis, V., Luyckx, K., & Soenens, B. (2008). Reciprocal relations between teacher–child conflict and aggressive behavior in kindergarten: A three-wave longitudinal study. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 37(3), 588–599.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Entwisle, D., & Alexander, K. (1998). Facilitating the transition to first grade: The nature of transition and research on factors affecting it. The Elementary School Journal, 98(4), 351–365.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ewers, C., & Brownson, S. (1999). Kindergartners’ vocabulary acquisition as a function of active vs. passive storybook reading, prior vocabulary, and working memory. Journal of Reading Psychology, 20, 11–20.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fantuzzo, J., Tighe, E., & Childs, S. (2000). Family involvement questionnaire: A multivariate assessment of family participation in early childhood education. Journal of Educational Psychology, 92, 367–376.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ferguson, P., Jimerson, S., & Dalton, M. (2001). Sorting out successful failures: Exploratory analyses of factors associated with academic and behavioral outcomes of retained students. Psychology in the School, 38(4), 327–341.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gmitrova, V., & Gmitrova, J. (2004). The primacy of child-directed pretend play on cognitive competence in a mixed-age environment: Possible interpretations. Early Child Development and Care, 174(3), 267–279.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Graziano, P., Reavis, R., Keane, S., & Calkins, S. (2007). The role of emotion regulation in children’s early academic success. Journal of School Psychology, 45, 3–19.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gullo, D. (2000). The long term educational effects of half-day vs. full-day kindergarten. Early Child Development and Care, 160, 17–24.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hamre, B., & Pianta, R. (2001). Early teacher–child relationships and the trajectory of children’s school outcomes through eighth grade. Child Development, 72(2), 625–638.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hong, G., & Yu, B. (2008). Effects of kindergarten retention on children’s social-emotional development: An application of propensity score method to multivariate, multilevel data. Developmental Psychology, 44(2), 407–421.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Howse, R. B., Calkins, S. D., Anastopoulos, A. D., Keane, S. P., & Shelton, T. L. (2003). Regulatory contributors to children’s kindergarten achievement. Early Education and Development, 14, 101–119.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Johnson, C., Ironsmith, M., Snow, C., & Poteat, G. M. (2000). Peer acceptance and social adjustment in preschool and kindergarten. Early Childhood Education Journal, 27, 207–212.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jordan, N., Kaplan, D., Ramineni, C., & Locuniak, M. (2008). Development of number combination skill in the early school years: When do fingers help? Developmental Science, 11(5), 662–668.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jordan, N., Kaplan, D., Ramineni, C., & Locuniak, M. (2009). Early math matters: Kindergarten number competence and later mathematics outcomes. Developmental Psychology, 45(3), 850–867.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Koechenderfer-Ladd, B., & Wardrop, J. (2001). Chronicity and instability of children’s peer victimization experiences as predictors of loneliness and social satisfaction trajectories. Child Development, 72(1), 134–151.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Koomen, H., & Hoeksma, J. (2003). Regulation of emotional security after entry to kindergarten by children with and without special education needs. Psychological Reports, 84, 767–772.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Koomen, H., van Leeuwen, M., & van der Leij, A. (2004). Does well-being contribute to performance? Emotional security, teacher support, and learning behavior in kindergarten. Infant and Child Development, 13, 253–275.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kron-Sperl, V., Schneider, W., & Hasselhorn, M. (2008). The development and effectiveness of memory strategies in kindergarten and elementary school: Findings from the Wurzburg and Gottingen longitudinal memory studies. Cognitive Development, 23, 79–104.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lash, M. (2008). Classroom community and peer culture in kindergarten. Early Childhood Education, 36, 33–38.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lee, V., Burkam, D., Ready, D., Honigman, J., & Meisels, S. (2006). Full-day versus half-day kindergarten: In which program do children learn more? American Journal of Education, 112(2), 168–208.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Leseman, P., Rollenberg, L., & Rispens, J. (2001). Playing and working in kindergarten: Cognitive co-construction in two educational situations. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 16, 363–384.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Locuniak, M., & Jordan, N. (2008). Using kindergarten number sense to predict calculation fluency in second grade. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 41(5), 451–459.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Love, J., Chazan-Cohen, R., & Raikes, H. (2006). Forty years of research knowledge and use: From Head Start to Early Head Start and beyond. In J. L. Aber, S. Bishop-Josef, S. Jones, S. K. Taafe McLearn, & D. Philips (Eds.), Child development and social policy: Knowledge for action. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

    Google Scholar 

  • Macaruso, P., & Walker, A. (2008). The efficacy of computer-assisted instruction for advancing literacy skills in kindergarten children. Reading Psychology, 29, 266–287.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McIntyre, L. L., Eckert, T. L., Fiese, B. H., DiGennaro, F. D., & Wildenger, L. K. (2007). The transition to kindergarten: Family experiences and involvement. Early Childhood Education Journal, 35, 83–88.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McWayne, T., Hampton, S., Fantuzzo, G., Cohen, C., & Sekino, R. (2004). Parental involvement and children’s competencies in kindergarten. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 14, 243–269.

    Google Scholar 

  • Murray, C., Murray, K., & Waas, G. (2008). Child and teacher reports of teacher–student relationships: Concordance of perspectives and associations with school adjustment in urban kindergarten classrooms. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 29, 49–61.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Office of the Press Secretary. (November 23, 2009). President Obama launches “educate to innovate” campaign for excellence in science, technology, engineering & math (stem) education. Retrieved November 29, 2009, from www.thewhitehouse.gov.

  • Otaiba, S., Connor, C., Lane, H., Kosanovich, M., Schatschneider, C., Dyrlund, A., et al. (2008). Reading first kindergarten classroom instruction and students’ growth in phonological awareness and letter naming-decoding fluency. Journal of School Psychology, 46, 281–314.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ouellette, G., & Senechal, M. (2008). Pathways to literacy: A study of invented spelling and its role in learning to read. Child Development, 79(4), 899–913.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Perren, S., & Alsaker, F. (2006). Social behavior and peer relationships of victims, bully-victims, and bullies in kindergarten. Journal of Child Psychiatry, 47(1), 45–57.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pianta, R., & Kraft-Sayre, M. (2003). Successful kindergarten transition. Baltimore, MD: Paul H. Brookes.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pianta, R., & Stuhlman, M. (2004). Teacher–child relationships and children’s success in the first years of school. School Psychology Review, 33(3), 444–458.

    Google Scholar 

  • Quas, J., Murowchick, E., Bensadoun, J., & Boyce, W. (2002). Predictors of children’s cortisol activation during the transition to kindergarten. Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, 23, 304–313.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ranz-Smith, D. (2007). Teacher perception of play: In leaving no child behind, are teachers leaving childhood behind? Early Education and Development, 18(2), 271–303.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rimm-Kaufman, S., Pianta, R., & Cox, M. (2000). Teacher judgments of problems in the transition to kindergarten. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 15, 147–166.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rimm-Kaufman, S., & Zhang, Y. (2005). Father–school communication in preschool and kindergarten. School Psychology Review, 34(3), 287–308.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rudasil, K., & Konold, T. (2008). Contributions of children’s temperament to teachers’ judgments of social competence from kindergarten through second grade. Early Education and Development, 19(4), 643–666.

    Google Scholar 

  • Runge, T., & Watkins, M. (2006). The structure of phonological awareness among kindergarten students. School Psychological Review, 35(3), 370–386.

    Google Scholar 

  • Saft, E., & Pianta, R. (2001). Teachers’ perceptions of their relationships with students: Effects of child age, gender, and ethnicity of teachers and children. School Psychology Quarterly, 16(2), 125–141.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Samarapungavan, A., Mantzicopoulos, P., & Patrick, H. (2008). Learning science through inquiry in kindergarten. Science Education, 92(5), 868–908.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schuele, C. M., Justice, L., Cabell, S., Knighton, K., Kingery, B., & Lee, M. (2008). Field-based evaluation of two-tiered instruction for enhancing kindergarten phonological awareness. Early Education and Development, 19(5), 726–752.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schwartz, E. (2008). From playing to thinking: How the kindergarten provides a foundation for scientific understanding. European Journal of Psychotherapy and Counseling, 10(2), 137–145.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shuling, A., Malone, P., & Dodge, K. (2005). The effect of school-based kindergarten transition policies and practices on child academic outcomes. Developmental Psychology, 41(6), 860–871.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Silberglitt, B., Jimerson, S., Burns, M., & Appleton, J. (2006). Does the timing of grade retention make a difference? Examining the effects of early versus later retention. School Psychology Review, 35(1), 134–141.

    Google Scholar 

  • Simmons, D., Kame’enui, E., Harn, B., Coyne, M., Stoolmiller, M., Santoro, L., et al. (2007). An examination of instructional time and design specificity. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 40(4), 331–347.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sy, S., & Schulenberg, J. (2005). Parent beliefs and children’s achievement trajectories during the transition to school in Asian American and European American families. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 29(6), 505–515.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sytsma, S., Kelley, M., & Wymer, J. (2001). Development and initial validation of the Child Routines Inventory. Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment, 23, 241–251.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thijs, J., & Koomen, H. (2008). Task-related interactions between kindergarten children and their teachers: The role of emotional security. Infant and Child Development, 17, 181–197.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Trentacosta, C., & Izard, C. (2007). Kindergarten children’s emotion competence as a predictor of academic competence in first grade. Emotion, 7(1), 77–88.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ukrainetz, T., Ross, C., & Harm, H. (2009). An investigation of treatment scheduling for phonemic awareness of kindergartners who are at risk for reading difficulties. Language, Speech, & Hearing Services in Schools, 40, 86–100.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • US Census Bureau (2002). Table 4. Preprimary school enrollment of people 3–6 years old, by control of school, mother’s labor force status and education, family income, race, and Hispanic origin. In School enrollment. Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office.

  • US Department of Education. (n.d.). Reading first. Retrieved March 5, 2010, from http://www2.ed.gov/programs/readingfirst.

  • Van den Heuvel-Panhuizen, M., & van den Boogard, S. (2008). Picture books as an impetus for kindergartners’ mathematical thinking. Mathematical Thinking and Learning, 10, 341–373.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Van Lier, P., Boivin, M., Dionne, G., Vitaro, F., Brendgen, M., Koot, H., et al. (2007). Kindergarten children’s genetic vulnerabilities interact with friends’ aggression to promote children’s own aggression. Journal of American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 46(8), 1080–1096.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vecchiotti, J. (2003). Best practices for beginners: Developmental appropriateness in kindergarten. American Educational Research Journal, 28(4), 783–803.

    Google Scholar 

  • Votruba-Drzal, E., Li-Grining, C., & Maldonado-Carreno, C. (2008). A developmental perspective on full- versus part-day kindergarten and children’s academic trajectories through fifth grade. Child Development, 79(4), 957–978.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Walston, J., West, J., & Rathbun, A. (2005). Do the greater academic gains made by full-day kindergarten children persist through third grade? Education Today, 5(1), 22–28.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wildenger, L., McIntyre, L., Fiese, B., & Eckert, T. (2008). Children’s daily routines during kindergarten transition. Early Childhood Education Journal, 36, 69–74.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wolgemuth, J., Cobb, B., Winokur, M., Leech, N., & Ellerby, D. (2006). Comparing longitudinal academic achievement of full-day and half-day kindergarten students. Journal of Education Research, 99(5), 260–269.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zvoch, K., Reynolds, R., & Parker, R. (2008). Full-day kindergarten and student literacy growth: Does a lengthened school day make a difference? Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 23, 94–107.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Loma Prieta Elementary School, Los Gatos, CA, USA

    Katherine Ray

  2. Department of Child and Adolescent Development, Connie L. Lurie College of Education, San José State University, One Washington Square, San Jose, CA, 95192-0075, USA

    Maureen C. Smith

Authors
  1. Katherine Ray
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Maureen C. Smith
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Maureen C. Smith.

Additional information

This paper was completed in partial fulfillment of the first author’s MA. A special thank you to Gary Cava for his feedback on the manuscript.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Ray, K., Smith, M.C. The Kindergarten Child: What Teachers and Administrators Need to Know to Promote Academic Success in all Children. Early Childhood Educ J 38, 5–18 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-010-0383-3

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-010-0383-3

Keywords

Search

Navigation