ASSESSMENT

Initial Screening

Each incoming kindergarten child will be screened by trained school personnel prior to the beginning of school or within the first two weeks.  This is to give the teacher a good understanding of the knowledge the child brings to school with them so that they might best meet your child's individual needs.

The school will call or write for an appointment if the screening is to be done outside regular school hours. 

Ongoing Assessment

FUSD kindergarten staff have developed a "Kindergarten Development Assessment" tool which is directly linked to the Arizona State Standards.   
Click ADE to learn more about Arizona's Standards on the Department of Education website.

Students are assessed on an ongoing basis with reports provided to parents a minimum of three times per year.  The assessment criteria is appropriate to the developmental level of our five and six-year-olds and is reported to parents in the following format:

     S     Uses Skill Effectively & Consistently
          P     Progressing
                N     Needs More Time and Help

Although the following is not a complete listing of the Kindergarten Development Assessment components, it does give a good overview for parents and other visitors to this site.  Upon completion of their kindergarten year, students are expected to have a good grasp of the following:

Personal Data

   First and Last Name
        Age and Birthday
            Address and Phone Number

Identification of Body Parts

head      arms     legs     feet     
shoulder      wrist    elbow     
ankle     knees     hips
chin     waist

       
Color Recognition

red      blue     yellow     green     orange                            purple     brown     black     pink     white

Math Development

How high can the student count?  (100 is desirable)
Can the student recognize and name numbers in isolation (i.e., out of numeric order)?
Can the student discriminate between, name and create various shapes (including square, rectangle, circle, oval, diamond, triangle)?
Can the student sort objects by size, color and shape?
Can the student graph simple comparisons (more, less, equal)?
Can the student create simple patterns in a variety of ways?
Can the student solve counting problems with games & activities?

Fine Motor Skills

Does the student hold and use scissors and a pencil correctly?
Can the student copy the 26 letters of the alphabet?
Can the student write the numerals 0 to 10?
Can the student write his or her first and last name?
Can the student copy various symbols?

Reading Readiness

Can the student recite the alphabet?
Can the student recognize/name capital letters in isolation (not in sequence)?
Can the student recognize/name lower case letters in isolation (not in sequence)?
Does the student know the sounds of each letter? Does the student understand print concepts (such as reading left to right, one-to-one correspondence of words, identifying words vs. sentences, etc.)?
Can the student retell a story in sequential order?
Can the student explain character and setting in a story?
Can the student predict possible story outcomes?
Can the student identify facts in non-fiction material?

Reading and Writing Development

The student's reading and writing developmental level is assessed.

Social Development

The student's social development is assessed based on the following:
    ~Uses problem-solving strategies.
    ~Interacts positively with peers.
    ~Displays self-control.
    ~Waits turn to talk, play, etc.
    ~Cooperates with teachers/helpers.
    ~Obeys school/classroom rules.
    ~Respects school property.
    ~Follows directions.
    ~Stays on-task.
    ~Does work in reasonable time.
    ~Does his/her best work.
    ~Able to work independently.
    ~Willingly participates in activities.
    ~Participates in group discussions.