Berenstain, Stan and Jan     
The Berenstain Bears Go to School
Publisher: Random House
ISBN# 0394837363

Bourgeois, Paulette           
Franklin Goes to School
Publisher: Scholastic Books
ISBN# 0590254677

Carlson, Nancy
Look Out Kindergarten, Here I Come
(available in Spanish and English)
Publisher: Viking Books
ISBN# 0670036730

Henkes, Kevin                 
Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse
Publisher: Greenwillow
ISBN# 0688128971

Henkes, Kevin                 
Wemberly Worried
Publisher: Greenwillow
ISBN# 0688170277

Penn, Audrey                 
The Kissing Hand
Publisher: Child Welfare League of America
ISBN# 0878685855

Sesame Street:                  
Grover Goes to School
Publisher: Random House
ISBN# 0394851765

Slate, Joseph                  
Miss Bindergarten Gets Ready for Kindergarten
Publisher: Puffin
ISBN# 0140562737

Wells, Rosemary                 
Timothy Goes to School
Publisher: Puffin
ISBN# 014567429

Top 10 Signs of a
Good Kindergarten Classroom

1. Children are playing and working with materials or other children. They are not aimlessly wandering or forced to sit quietly for long periods of time.
2. Children have access to various activities throughout the day, such as block building, pretend play, picture books, paint and other art materials, and table toys such as legos, pegboards, and puzzles. Children are not all doing the same things at the same time.
3. Teachers work with individual children, small groups, and the whole group at different times during the day. They do not spend time only with the entire group.
4. The classroom is decorated with children’s original artwork, their own writing with invented spelling and dictated stories.
5. Children learn numbers and the alphabet in the context of their everyday experiences. Exploring the natural world of plants and animals, cooking, taking attendance, and serving snacks are all meaningful activities to children.
6. Children work on projects and have long periods of time (at least one hour) to play and explore. Filling out worksheets should not be their primary activity.
7. Children have an opportunity to play outside every day that weather permits. This play is never sacrificed for more instructional time.
8. Teachers read books to children throughout the day, not just at group story time.
9. Curriculum is adapted for those who are ahead as well as those who need additional help. Because children differ in experiences and background, they do not learn the same things at the same time in the same way.
10. Children and their parents look forward to school. Parents feel safe sending their child to kindergarten. Children are happy; they are not crying or regularly sick.

Individual kindergarten classrooms will vary and curriculum will vary according to the interests and backgrounds of the children. All developmentally appropriate kindergarten classrooms will have one thing in common: the focus will be on the development of the child as a whole.

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