What does a student learn in StateWest Virginia,GradeKindergarten,SubjectEnglish Language Arts?

Students read simple beginner books out loud with meaning, not just word by word. The goal is to understand what the story or page is actually saying.

Students learn the sounds letters make and use that knowledge to read unfamiliar words. This is the foundation of sounding out words on a page.

Students match each consonant letter to the sound it makes, like knowing that "b" makes the /b/ sound in "ball." This is the foundation for sounding out words.

Students learn that the letter "a" says /a/ in "cat," "e" says /e/ in "bed," and so on for all five vowels. Short vowel sounds are the building blocks of sounding out simple words.

Students recognize common short words like "the," "is," and "you" on sight, without sounding them out. These words show up so often in books that reading gets much easier once students know them by heart.

Students look at two words that are almost identical, like "cat" and "cut," and figure out which letter sounds are different. This builds the habit of reading each letter carefully instead of guessing from the shape of the word.

Students practice writing every letter of the alphabet, both capital and lowercase, by hand.

Students learn to hear and work with the sounds inside spoken words. They clap syllables, blend sounds together, and swap or remove a sound to make a new word.

Students listen to pairs of words and decide if they rhyme, then come up with their own rhyming words. It is an early step toward reading, helping students hear how the ends of words sound alike.

Students clap or tap to break spoken words into syllables, then blend those parts back into the full word. This is early practice hearing how words are built from sound.

Students pull apart a short spoken word into its opening sound and ending chunk, then push them back together. For example, they hear /c/ and /at/, say "cat," or hear "cat" and split it into /c/ and /at/.

Students break apart a short word like "cat" into its three separate sounds: the starting sound, the middle vowel, and the ending sound.

Students swap or add a single sound in a short word to build a new one. Change the "c" in "cat" to "b" and get "bat."

Reading runs left to right, top to bottom, and each clump of letters is a separate word. Students learn how a page of writing is organized before they start reading on their own.

Reading moves in a direction. Students learn that words on a page go left to right, line by line, starting at the top and moving down as you read.

Reading a written word means matching the letters on the page to the sounds in the spoken word. Students learn that every word is spelled with a specific set of letters, in a specific order.

Reading a page means noticing the white gaps between words. Students learn that each cluster of letters sitting between two spaces is its own word.

Students name each letter of the alphabet in both its capital and small forms. This is one of the first steps toward reading and writing words.

With a teacher's help, students ask and answer simple questions about stories they hear or read. They point to details in the text that back up what they say.

With a little help from a teacher, students retell a story they know, covering who was in it, what happened, and how it ended.

Students name who is in a story, where it takes place, and what happens. A teacher or parent helps by asking guiding questions.

Reading a nonfiction book out loud, students answer questions about what they just heard and ask their own questions about details that caught their attention.

A teacher reads a nonfiction book aloud and asks questions to help students figure out what the book is mostly about. Students then retell the important details they heard.

Reading a nonfiction book, students explain how two things in it are connected. A teacher or adult helps them find the link, like how rain leads to puddles or why a person became famous.

Students hear a story read aloud and stop to ask what an unfamiliar word means. With a teacher's help, they talk through what the word might mean based on what's happening in the story.

Students learn to tell the difference between a storybook and a how-to book, a poem and a sign. Teachers help them notice what kind of writing they're looking at before they read.

Students learn who wrote a book and who drew the pictures, and what each person's job was in making the story.

Students ask about words they don't know in a nonfiction book or passage. A teacher helps them find the answer by looking at the words and pictures nearby.

Students learn which part of a book is the front, which is the back, and where to find the title page. A teacher or adult helps them look.

Students learn who wrote a book and who drew the pictures, then explain what each person's job was in making that book.

Students look at the pictures in a story and explain how they connect to what is happening in the words. A teacher or adult helps them make that connection.

Students look at two characters from stories they know and talk about what is alike and different in what happens to them.

Students look at the pictures in a nonfiction book and explain how those pictures connect to what the words say. A teacher or adult helps them make that connection.

Students learn to notice why an author said something, not just what they said. With a teacher's help, students point to the sentences that give reasons behind the author's main idea.

Two books can cover the same topic but tell it differently. Students look at both and spot what matches and what doesn't, with help from a teacher.

Students listen to stories read aloud and join in as a group, talking about what happened and why. The books are chosen to stretch what kindergartners can understand.

Students listen to and talk about nonfiction books read aloud in class. The goal is understanding what the book is about, not just sitting quietly while it's read.

Students pick a favorite book or topic and share why they like it, using pictures, spoken words, or written letters. The opinion and the topic both appear in the piece.

Students pick a topic and explain it using pictures, spoken words, or written letters and words. The goal is to share a few real facts, not tell a story.

Students draw pictures and write or dictate words to tell a short story about something that happened, keeping events in order and sharing how they felt about it.

This standard starts in third grade. There is nothing for kindergarteners to practice here yet.

With a teacher's help, students look back at what they wrote and add words or pictures that make the meaning clearer or the story more complete.

With a teacher's help, students try out tools like a keyboard or tablet to write and share their work with others.

Students work with a teacher or small group to look something up and write about what they find together.

Students answer a simple question by drawing on something they remember or by looking through a book or other source a teacher provides. The thinking is their own; the adult just helps them get started.

This standard doesn't start until grade 4. Kindergarten writing focuses on drawing, dictating, and writing to share opinions, information, and stories.

This standard doesn't apply in Kindergarten. Writing range expectations start in third grade.

Students take turns talking and listening in group conversations about books and classroom topics, with both classmates and adults.

Students take turns talking, listen while others speak, and stick to the topic the class is discussing.

Students keep a back-and-forth conversation going by listening to what someone says and responding with something new, not just repeating themselves.

After listening to a story or lesson, students ask questions about what happened and answer questions from others. If something is confusing, they speak up and ask for it to be explained again.

Students practice asking questions when they need help or don't understand something, and answering questions when someone asks them. It's the back-and-forth of a real conversation.

Students talk about people, places, or things they know, like a family member or a favorite spot. With a little help from a teacher, they add more details to make their description clearer.

Students draw a picture to go along with what they say or write, giving listeners or readers a clearer idea of what they mean.

Students practice saying their thoughts out loud in a voice loud enough for the class to hear. The goal is a clear, complete sentence, not just a word or two.

Students practice using everyday naming words and action words, making plurals by adding "s" or "es," and asking questions. They build complete sentences out loud and in writing during class activities.

Students learn to start sentences with a capital letter, use periods and question marks, and spell simple words by matching letters to the sounds they hear.

This standard doesn't apply to kindergarten. Students start this language work in second grade.

Students figure out what an unfamiliar word means by using the words and sentences around it. This skill covers words that show up in stories, books, and classroom topics.

A word can mean more than one thing. Students learn that "bark" can be a tree's skin or a dog's sound, then use each meaning correctly in a sentence or conversation.

Students learn that small word parts like "-ed," "-ing," or "un-" change what a word means. Spotting those additions helps students figure out unfamiliar words on their own.

Students learn that words can be related or slightly different in meaning. For example, "happy" and "excited" both describe good feelings, but not quite the same one.

Students sort everyday objects, like foods, animals, or clothing, into groups and start to understand what those groups mean.

Students learn words by pairing them with their opposites: fast and slow, hot and cold, happy and sad. This builds the habit of thinking about what a word means by comparing it to what it isn't.

Students connect a word they've just learned to something they've seen or touched in real life. A teacher might teach "cold," and students think of ice cream or a winter morning.

Students learn that words like "walk," "stomp," and "tiptoe" all describe moving but mean something different. They act out each word to feel the difference.

Students use new words they picked up from books, conversations, and class discussions when they talk and write. The focus is on putting those words to work, not just recognizing them.