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TK

Welcome to our Transitional Kindergarten (TK) program at Mangini Ranch Elementary School! We look forward to providing an environment in which your child can learn and grow. We invite you to support and participate in your child’s education. 

Mangini Ranch TK program seeks to balance child-initiated learning with teacher directed activities. This is a place to develop inclinations to read, write, and solve problems and to enhance creativity and imaginative play. 

The Transitional Kindergarten (TK) curriculum is designed to provide a developmentally appropriate, play-based learning environment for children who are at the cusp of kindergarten. Our focus is on fostering early academic, social, emotional, and physical development in a safe and nurturing environment.

Some specific areas of learning include:

Language and Literacy Development:

  • Foundational Literacy Skills: Develop phonemic awareness, letter recognition, and letter-sound correspondence to build early reading skills.

  • Vocabulary Expansion: Introduce age-appropriate vocabulary through storytelling, songs, and daily conversation to enhance language comprehension and expression.

  • Emergent Writing: Encourage children to experiment with writing by forming letters, drawing pictures, and creating simple words or labels.

  • Reading Comprehension: Use interactive read-alouds and guided discussions to foster comprehension skills, such as recalling details, making predictions, and identifying main ideas.

Mathematics and Number Sense:

  • Number Recognition: Introduce numbers 1-20, focusing on counting, recognition, and understanding the concept of quantity.

  • Patterns and Shapes: Identify and create patterns, and introduce basic shapes and their attributes.

  • Basic Operations: Begin exploration of simple addition and subtraction concepts through hands-on activities and manipulatives.

  • Measurement and Comparison: Introduce concepts of size, weight, length, and volume, encouraging children to compare and describe objects in their environment.

Social-Emotional Development:

  • Emotional Expression and Regulation: Help students recognize and express their emotions appropriately, while learning strategies for self-regulation and problem-solving.

  • Building Relationships: Foster positive peer interactions by teaching sharing, cooperation, and empathy.

  • Self-Identity and Independence: Encourage self-help skills such as dressing, toileting, and following routines, while promoting a sense of responsibility and independence.

Science and Exploration:

  • Nature and the Environment: Introduce children to the natural world through hands-on experiences, such as exploring plants, animals, weather, and seasons.

  • Scientific Inquiry: Encourage curiosity and inquiry by engaging students in simple experiments, observations, and investigations.

  • Five Senses: Use activities to help children explore the world around them through their senses of sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell.

Creative Arts:

  • Art and Expression: Provide opportunities for children to explore various mediums (e.g., paint, clay, markers) to express their creativity and develop fine motor skills.

  • Music and Movement: Engage children in songs, dance, and rhythmic activities to enhance their understanding of music and movement.

  • Dramatic Play: Foster imagination through role-playing activities, building social skills, and encouraging narrative storytelling.

Physical Development:

  • Gross Motor Skills: Develop large muscle coordination through activities such as running, jumping, climbing, and ball games.

  • Fine Motor Skills: Enhance small muscle control through activities like drawing, cutting, and manipulating objects (e.g., building with blocks or threading beads).

  • Health and Wellness: Teach the importance of personal hygiene, nutrition, and physical activity to promote a healthy lifestyle.

Cognitive Development:

  • Critical Thinking and Problem Solving: Encourage inquiry and decision-making by providing opportunities for children to solve simple puzzles, follow directions, and work through challenges independently.

  • Memory and Attention: Enhance memory and focus through games and activities that involve recalling information, following multi-step directions, and completing tasks.

 

We can’t wait to get started!