Very Early Foundational Skills – Kindergarten and 1st Grade

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2. Letter Names, Letter Sounds, and Letter Formation

Master letter names and sounds. A simple set of flashcards works well (see image above). The uppercase and lowercase letters are featured on separate cards, so you can have your child match upper to lower and lower to upper.  These cards are large and sturdy, and the “a” is designed in the style children learn to write it.

Correct letter formation is essential. The workbook above is helpful. All letters should be formed from top to bottom. Incorrect formation not only looks untidy—it slows writing speed, affecting performance on tests, note-taking, and creative writing. It also impacts the ease of learning cursive.

3. Phonics

Please read my Wilson Fundations page to learn about the phonics expectations for kindergarten and first-grade students. Your child’s school may use a different curriculum, but most cover the same content. The above workbook is available to purchase. It teaches parents, step by step, how to guide their child through short, daily lessons. It is colorful, easy to use, and based on the science of reading.

Phonics instruction must be systematic and explicit.

4. Orthographic Mapping

Orthographic mapping is the mental process by which the brain stores words in long-term memory so they can be read and spelled automatically. Here I will talk about word chains and heart words.

• CVC Words 1
• CVC Words 2
• Consonant digraphs, which consist of two to three letters such as th, wh, sh, ch, tch, dge, ph, and ck, produce only one sound; therefore, the letters should be placed in a single box. w/i/sh)

Blends may be challenging for kindergartners, but give them a try!

• Initial Blends
• Final Blends

In addition to the above, first graders should also do the following:

• Initial and Final Blends 1
• Initial and Final Blends 2
• Magic e  When working on silent e, use the 3-box template. The silent e should go outside of the Elkonin boxes, as it does not make a sound.

Heart Words and Orthographic Mapping

You can use Elkonin boxes to map any word. Not all words can be fully sounded out—such as “the”—but most words contain at least some decodable parts. We use orthographic mapping to help students remember how to spell these words. For the part that cannot be sounded out, we place a heart to show the portion that must be learned “by heart.”

Regularly review previously mapped words.

5. Read Decodable Texts—Tap and Blend to Figure Out Unknown Words!

Why Decodables Outperform Leveled Readers
Decodable texts are specifically designed to align with the phonics patterns a child has already learned, allowing them to practice accurate decoding instead of guessing based on pictures or context. Research shows that this targeted practice builds accurate, automatic reading far more effectively than leveled readers, which often encourage children to rely on memorization or prediction rather than sounding words out.

Matching Texts to Taught Skills
Decodable passages should always match the phonics skills your child has already been taught—this ensures they can apply their decoding knowledge successfully and build confidence, accuracy, and fluency.

Read, reread, reread, and reread decodable passages. Talk about the stories as a quick comprehension check.

How to Read a New Passage:

• Teach/discuss the new phonics concept introduced in the passage.

• Read the passage aloud while your child follows along, and model by pointing to each word.

• Echo read the passage, sentence by sentence, continuing to point to the words. Your child must point, too.

• Read together chorally (reading at the same time), still pointing as you go.

• Please have your child read the passage independently, repeating it until it becomes fluent. Ensure your child continues pointing so you can confirm they are reading, not reciting from memory.

• OPTIONAL:  Ask your child to highlight words that contain the new phonics pattern, and assess spelling on the pattern.

When your child encounters an unfamiliar word, always prompt:
“Sound it out.”

Most words contain at least some decodable elements, even if not entirely phonetic.

The Orton-Gillingham 13-book decodable series is helpful. You can purchase the books one at a time as you need them. They progress systematically from CVC short-vowel stories to compounds and multisyllabic words.

I also found that Houghton Mifflin Harcourt provides decodable grade-level resources online through the Sweet Home School District’s website.  It looks like the kindergarten eBooks are decodable.  There are also first-grade decodable readers. 

My favorite free passages, however, are from UFLI.  UFLI decodables align with systematic phonics instruction. Every word can be decoded and encoded, reinforcing sound–spelling patterns through reading and writing. As skills grow, students develop accuracy, fluency, and confidence with connected text.

• ALL UFLI Decodables on One PDF 8-128 (There are no decodables for lessons before 8.) Kindergarten includes Lessons 1-68. Kindergartners are not expected to do the stories with blends, however.  Grade 1 goes up to Lesson 110, including vowel teams, but programs such as Wilson Fundations do not teach vowel teams in grade 1.
• Supplemental Decodable Texts—these are more challenging and don’t include every lesson. I use these with my older readers.

Research strongly supports the use of decodable texts as the most effective method for teaching early reading.

Fluency Guidelines

Fluency is accuracy + rate + expression.

Aim for no more than 10 errors per 100 words.

Words Correct Per Minute (1st Grade)

Formula:
Words read correctly ÷ seconds × 60 = WCPM

Example:
207 correct words ÷ 205 seconds ≈ 1 word per second × 60 = 60 WCPM.

Count as Errors:

• Mispronunciations

• Skipped words

• Words out of order

• Substitutions

• Words not self-corrected within 3 seconds

Do NOT count:

• Repetitions

• Self-corrections (within a few seconds)

• If your child skips a line, redirect them.

This chart shows that the average first grader should be reading 60 correct words per minute by June. Kindergarteners are not assessed on passage reading fluency.

6. Master Sight Words

Here are flashcards by grade level! Master a few sight words each day. Kindergarteners should be familiar with the pre-primer (pre-kindergarten) and primer (kindergarten) sight words in isolation. In addition to these, 1st graders should know the grade 1 sight words in isolation.  These are best learned in context and through orthographic mapping (see #4), not pure memorization.

Children should read, reread, and reread the preprimer, primer, and 1st grade stories found here:

7. Vocabulary for Kindergartners and 1st Graders

Why Early Vocabulary Matters
A strong vocabulary helps young children understand what they read and hear. The more words they know, the easier it is to make sense of stories, follow directions, and build background knowledge. This early understanding serves as the foundation for later reading comprehension—children can’t understand a text if they don’t understand its words.

Kindergartners should learn the words from the Marzano list (below) and the vocabulary listed under Words to Know by Grade Level (Kindergarten, p. 2).

1st graders should know the words in the Marzano List (below) and the Words to Know by Grade Level (1st grade, p. 3).

8. Spelling

Spelling should follow phonics patterns taught so far. In addition, grade 1 students should be able to spell Dolch sight words from the pre-primer, primer, and grade 1 lists.

10. Dyslexia Screener—Kindergarten and Grade 1 Assessments

DIBELS 8 (Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills) measures the foundational reading skills that predict whether a child is on track to become a proficient reader. Each subtest is brief and targeted, and together they provide a clear picture of how well a child is developing early literacy skills.

We administer DIBELS 8 to all students three times a year. These are FREE, and by following the link, you can print progress monitoring tests and assess your child yourself! These are various 1-minute subtests. Kindergarten and grade 1 subtests include:

• Letter Naming—Naming mixed uppercase and lowercase letters

• Segmenting individual sounds—e.g., apple = /a/ /p/ /l/ (3 points); holes = /h/ /o/ /l/ /z/ (4 points)

• Nonsense Word Reading—The students are required to read 3-letter short-vowel nonsense words such as sil, tog, paj, zev, and nud. This tells us they can apply phonics to read unknown words.

• Real Word Reading—reading real sight words

Grade 1 students are also assessed in oral reading fluency. They get a score for the correct number of words read.

Minimum passing scores for kindergarten and grade 1 are listed below.

Kindergarten:

1st Grade:
Here are other free literacy assessments.

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12. Kindergarten and Grade 1 Common Core State Standards

The Common Core standards require students to read stories, literature, and more complex texts that provide facts and background knowledge in areas such as science and social studies. Students will be challenged and asked questions that push them to refer back to what they’ve read. This emphasizes the critical thinking, problem-solving, and analytical skills required for success in college, in a career, and in life.

ELA Common Core State Standards

• Kindergarten is on pages 3-6.
• First grade is on pages 13-16.

These resources from the Trumbull County Educational Service Center in Ohio provide a convenient and efficient way to be sure you are directly teaching and reinforcing each reading and foundational standard in the ELA Common Core.

“I Can” statements:

• Kindergarten
• Grade 1

Parents and Teachers! Refer to the skills children need at their grade level!

 

How to Teach Decoding

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Strengthening Foundational Skills – Grades 2 and 3