KidUniversity › Standards › Kindergarten
Kindergarten reading and writing skills
The reading, writing and language skills in our kindergarten courses (Reading and Writing), listed against the Common Core ELA standards. This is a comparison, not a claim of alignment: 20 of 41 standards are covered, 12 partly and 9 not covered.
- 20covered
- 12partly covered
- 9not covered
Why some skills are only partly covered: lessons teach the parts of an essay or a story and check them with questions and short typed answers, but children don't write and hand in whole pieces in the app, and speaking and listening with others happens away from the screen.
- Reading: Literature
- Reading: Informational Text
- Reading: Foundational Skills
- Writing
- Speaking and Listening
- Language
Reading: Literature RL · 9 standards · 7 covered, 1 partly covered
- RL.K.1
CoveredWith help, ask and answer questions about key details in a story
- Reading · Unit 2 · Story Time: Asking and Answering Questions
- Reading · Unit 21 · Story Detectives: Why Did It Happen?
- RL.K.2
CoveredWith help, retell familiar stories with key details
- Reading · Unit 2 · Story Time: Beginning, Middle and End, Retelling a Story
- RL.K.3
CoveredWith help, name the characters, setting and major events in a story
- Reading · Unit 2 · Story Time: Who Is in the Story?, Where Does the Story Happen?, What Happens in the Story?
- RL.K.4
CoveredAsk and answer questions about unknown words in a story
- Reading · Unit 21 · Story Detectives: New Words in Stories
- RL.K.5
CoveredRecognize common kinds of texts, such as storybooks and poems
- Reading · Unit 23 · Poems, Stories and Books: Is It a Poem?, Is It a Storybook?, Fact Book or Storybook?
- RL.K.6
CoveredName the author and illustrator and say what each one does
- Reading · Unit 1 · Concepts of Print: Title, Author and Illustrator
- RL.K.7
Not coveredDescribe how the pictures relate to the story
No lesson focuses on how illustrations connect to the story.
- RL.K.9
CoveredCompare the adventures and experiences of characters in familiar stories
- Reading · Unit 21 · Story Detectives: Same and Different Characters
- Reading · Unit 23 · Poems, Stories and Books: Two Stories, Same Idea
- RL.K.10
Partly coveredTake part in group reading of stories with purpose and understanding
Short stories with questions in every lesson ("Read it to me" reads them aloud); there is no group reading.
- Reading · Unit 2 · Story Time (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 21 · Story Detectives (whole unit, 7 lessons)
Reading: Informational Text RI · 10 standards · 6 covered, 2 partly covered
- RI.K.1
CoveredWith help, ask and answer questions about key details in a fact text
- Reading · Unit 20 · Learning From Facts: Key Details, Asking Questions About Facts
- RI.K.2
CoveredWith help, name the main topic and retell key details
- Reading · Unit 20 · Learning From Facts: What Is It About?, Key Details
- RI.K.3
Partly coveredWith help, describe the connection between two people, events or ideas
Touched on in "Making Connections"; not a focus.
- Reading · Unit 23 · Poems, Stories and Books: Making Connections
- RI.K.4
CoveredAsk and answer questions about unknown words in a fact text
- Reading · Unit 20 · Learning From Facts: Words That Name Things
- RI.K.5
CoveredIdentify the front cover, back cover and title page of a book
- Reading · Unit 1 · Concepts of Print: Parts of a Book
- RI.K.6
CoveredName the author and illustrator and say what each one does
- Reading · Unit 1 · Concepts of Print: Title, Author and Illustrator
- RI.K.7
Not coveredDescribe how pictures and text relate in a fact text
Not taught as its own skill.
- RI.K.8
Not coveredWith help, identify the reasons an author gives to support a point
Starts in grade 1 in KidUniversity ("Reasons in a Text").
- RI.K.9
CoveredFind what is the same and different in two texts on the same topic
- Reading · Unit 20 · Learning From Facts: Two Facts About One Topic
- Reading · Unit 23 · Poems, Stories and Books: Two Fact Books, Same Topic
- RI.K.10
Partly coveredTake part in group reading of fact texts with purpose and understanding
Short fact passages in lessons; there is no group reading.
- Reading · Unit 20 · Learning From Facts (whole unit, 6 lessons)
Reading: Foundational Skills RF · 4 standards · 4 covered
- RF.K.1
CoveredKnow how print works: left to right, spaces between words, all upper- and lowercase letters
- Reading · Unit 1 · Concepts of Print (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 4 · Letters A to E (whole unit, 5 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 5 · Letters F to J (whole unit, 5 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 6 · Letters K to O (whole unit, 5 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 7 · Letters P to T (whole unit, 5 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 8 · Letters U to Z (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 2 · Spaces Between Words (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 3 · Big and Small Letters (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- RF.K.2
CoveredHear and play with the sounds in words: rhymes, syllables, first, middle and last sounds
- Reading · Unit 3 · Rhymes and Syllables (whole unit, 9 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 9 · Beginning Sounds (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 11 · Ending Sounds (whole unit, 5 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 12 · Middle Sounds (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 13 · Blend It (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 14 · Break It Apart (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- RF.K.3
CoveredUse phonics: letter sounds, short and long vowels, simple words and common sight words
- Reading · Unit 10 · First Sight Words (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 15 · More Sight Words (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 16 · CVC Words With Short a and i (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 17 · CVC Words With Short o, u and e (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 18 · Word Families and Simple Sentences (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 19 · Even More Sight Words (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 22 · Long and Short Vowels (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- RF.K.4
CoveredRead beginning-reader texts with purpose and understanding
- Reading · Unit 16 · CVC Words With Short a and i: Reading a and i Sentences
- Reading · Unit 18 · Word Families and Simple Sentences: Reading Little Sentences
Writing W · 7 standards · 0 covered, 6 partly covered
- W.K.1
Partly coveredDraw, dictate or write an opinion with a reason
Each step is taught (an opinion, a reason) and practiced with short answers; children don't write and hand in whole pieces in the app.
- Writing · Unit 20 · I Like It Because (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- W.K.2
Partly coveredDraw, dictate or write to tell facts about a topic
Taught step by step and practiced with short answers; no full pieces are written in the app.
- Writing · Unit 21 · Telling Facts (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- W.K.3
Partly coveredDraw, dictate or write to tell about events in order
Taught step by step and practiced with short answers; no full pieces are written in the app.
- Writing · Unit 18 · First, Next, Last (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 19 · Telling About Me (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- W.K.5
Partly coveredWith help, add details to strengthen writing
Practiced by fixing sample sentences, not the child's own writing.
- Writing · Unit 19 · Telling About Me: Making My Story Better
- Writing · Unit 23 · Fixing My Writing (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- W.K.6
Not coveredWith help, use digital tools to produce and publish writing
- W.K.7
Partly coveredTake part in shared research and writing projects
Lessons explain how; no shared projects happen in the app.
- Writing · Unit 22 · Finding Out and Sharing (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- W.K.8
Partly coveredRecall information or gather it from sources to answer a question
- Writing · Unit 22 · Finding Out and Sharing: Asking Questions to Learn, Where to Find Answers, Looking Closely
Speaking and Listening SL · 6 standards · 0 covered, 1 partly covered
- SL.K.1
Not coveredTake part in conversations with classmates and adults, following agreed rules
Speaking and listening with others happen away from the app.
- SL.K.2
Partly coveredShow understanding of a text read aloud by asking and answering questions
"Read it to me" reads lessons aloud and children answer questions; they don't ask their own.
- Reading · Unit 2 · Story Time: Asking and Answering Questions
- SL.K.3
Not coveredAsk and answer questions to get help or understand
- SL.K.4
Not coveredDescribe familiar people, places, things and events
- SL.K.5
Not coveredAdd drawings or other visuals to descriptions
- SL.K.6
Not coveredSpeak audibly and express ideas clearly
Language L · 5 standards · 3 covered, 2 partly covered
- L.K.1
CoveredUse basic grammar: nouns, verbs, plurals, question words, position words, complete sentences
Printing letters by hand is not practiced in the app.
- Writing · Unit 1 · What Is a Sentence? (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 12 · Naming Words (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 13 · Action Words (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 14 · One and More Than One (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 15 · Question Words (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 17 · Where Is It? (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- L.K.2
CoveredCapitalize the first word and "I", use end marks and spell simple words by their sounds
- Writing · Unit 5 · Capital Letters Start Sentences (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 6 · The Word I and Names (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 7 · Periods (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 8 · Question Marks (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 9 · Spelling Short a and i Words (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 10 · Spelling Short o, u and e Words (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- L.K.4
Partly coveredFigure out new meanings of familiar words and use simple word endings as clues
- Reading · Unit 21 · Story Detectives: New Words in Stories
- Writing · Unit 14 · One and More Than One: Add -s for More
- L.K.5
CoveredSort words into categories, know opposites and connect words to real life
- Writing · Unit 12 · Naming Words: Sorting Naming Words
- Writing · Unit 13 · Action Words: The Best Action Word
- Writing · Unit 16 · Describing Words: Opposites
- L.K.6
Partly coveredUse words learned through conversations, reading and being read to
New words are taught; using them in speech isn't something the app can check.
- Writing · Unit 11 · Sight Words in Sentences (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 16 · Describing Words (whole unit, 7 lessons)
See the lessons for yourself
Unit 1 of every course is free, with no credit card. The free check-up shows what your child already knows.
Common Core State Standards © Copyright 2010 National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and Council of Chief State School Officers. All rights reserved. The standard descriptions on these pages are KidUniversity's own short summaries, not the official text; read the full standards at thecorestandards.org. KidUniversity is not affiliated with or endorsed by the NGA Center or CCSSO.