Support for Kindergarten Families

If your child is using Bridges Grade K, you may find the resources below helpful.

What Your Kindergartner Will Learn  (PDF)

Your child’s teacher may use the Math Skills & Concepts Student Report to communicate with you about how your child is doing in math class. This report is meant to provide an overall picture of your child’s progress at a given point in the year. It does not include every skill or idea your child will study in math class. To get a more complete picture of how your child is doing, you can also read your school’s report card, talk to your child’s teacher, and ask to see examples of your child’s work including class work and tests.

Math with Your Kindergartner (PDF)

This handout offers advice on how to make math a fun and useful part of family life with your kindergartner. English  Spanish

Parents as Partners

The Oregon Council for Teachers of Mathematics (OCTM) offers a pamphlet to assist parents in their efforts to support and encourage their children in mathematics. Download the pamphlet. English  Spanish

Math Vocabulary for Grade K   (PDF)

Use these pages to refresh your memory of key terms you may need to help with your kindergartner’s homework. Definitions include examples and pictures. English  Spanish

If you want to look up other words, we recommend using A Maths Dictionary for Kids, which includes definitions, examples, animations, and even practice games.

Home Connections for Grade K

Pages and assignments from Home Connections book.

Online Skills Practice for Grade K

Free, age-appropriate computer games can help your child practice basic skills at home. Play with your child the first time to make sure the game matches your child's interests and abilities. If your child has trouble focusing, the graphics may be too distracting. Young children benefit from hands-on experiences and interaction with other people, so when you have time, play board games and talk to your child about the math he or she is doing. There is no substitute for your interest and involvement!

Counting
Speedy Pictures 1   A small quantity of dots, beads, eggs, or fingers is displayed for a few seconds, and the player clicks on the matching number. The quantities are displayed in groupings that lead children away from counting one by one, toward recognizing small groups, counting on, and adding to find the total.

Counting Fish   The player counts small numbers of animated fish. Talk to your child about different ways to count the fish, perhaps by finding groups of 2 or 3 fish. Players scoring 70% or better will move to the next level. Audio directions.

How Many Ants Do You See?  The player counts the ants and clicks on the corresponding number. Ants are grouped and color-coded in ways that help children practice counting strategies. Audio directions.

Ten Frame  Select from several games that challenge students to count objects, build numbers, or answer basic addition problems using a ten frame. A Five Frame is also available.

Number Order & Recognition
Connect the Dots with Artt Games  Connect dots by clicking on numbers in order to make a picture.

Sesame Street Name That Number  Locate this game by selecting "Name That Number" from the picture menu below the viewing screen. In this game, Big Bird asks viewers to click on a number (1-10) and then counts with objects. Audio directions. Site contains ads.

Basic Addition with Pictures
Speedy Pictures 2  Similar to Speedy Pictures 1, players race to beat a timer as they add the number of dots shown on 2 dice, the number of fingers shown on two hands, or the number of beads shown in two rows.

MathTappers: Find Sums  An iApp compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad, this simple, free game uses ten frames and is designed to help learners make sense of addition. It's an excellent game to explore with your child while you're on the go.

Geometry
Shapes/Geometry  Complete puzzles by recognizing similarities and differences in shapes. As children master levels, the content gets progressively more difficult. The last stage includes an introduction to symmetry. Audio directions.

Dance Moves  Players explore positions (left, right, up, down) as they follow text & audio directions that tell where to move a dancing bear. This activity records how many dance moves the player can complete in a minute.

Repeating Patterns
Moon Rock Patterns  The player looks at a repeating pattern of colored dots and then chooses the dot that comes next. Ask your child to explain how he or she can tell what comes next and to show you where the pattern starts and where it ends. Levels become increasingly difficult.

More Games
The sites below contain some of the best games for elementary math students to play at home. Look through the sites to find other games for your child.

ABCya!
Johnnie's Math Page
National Library of Virtual Manipulatives

Read Math Books Together

Children of all ages enjoy sharing books with a caring adult. Visit our Virtual Bookshelf for suggested titles that will help improve skills, foster positive attitudes toward math, and create opportunities for family togetherness.