Kindergarten Social Studies: how to help at home
What your child learns in Kindergarten social studies in the California Content Standards, and simple things to try at home.
Focus areas this year
- Learning and working now and long ago
- Good citizens, rules and symbols
- Maps of familiar places
Easy ways to practice social studies at home
- Talk about your family, your neighborhood and the people who help in it.
- Make a simple map of your home or street together.
- Share a family tradition or story and ask your child to share one back.
- Practice taking turns and sharing, and talk about why fairness matters.
What each unit covers
Families
Seeing that families come in many shapes and sizes, growing up from baby to grandparent, family stories and traditions, and helping at home.
Fair & Kind
Noticing fair and unfair choices, using kind words, standing up for ourselves and others, and getting a grown-up to help.
Places Near Me
Naming places in the community (library, park, school, hospital), what they are used for, and whether they are natural or built.
My Jobs, Rules & Leaders
Practices responsibilities at home and in school, respecting the rules of the classroom and playground, respecting property, sharing, helping, and who makes decisions that affect our lives.
Money & Work
US coins and what they are worth, why people use money, jobs and volunteers in the community, and the difference between goods and services.
Goods & Services
Telling goods from services, the jobs behind them, and the helpers at school and in the community, with California foods like oranges and almonds.
Weather, Land & Me
Near and far, inside and outside, land and water on maps and globes, and dressing for the weather, with California's beaches, mountains and deserts.
Flags & Symbols
The national and California flags, the bald eagle, the Statue of Liberty, the Liberty Bell, the White House and California symbols such as the grizzly bear, the poppy and the redwood.
Days, Weeks & Months
Days of the week, months of the year, yesterday and tomorrow, and putting events in order on a calendar.
Good Citizens
Honesty, courage, determination and responsibility in daily life and in well-known stories, what happens when rules are broken, and the people honored by holidays such as Independence Day and Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
What the report card levels look like at home
- Beginning
- Just getting started with this idea. Short, regular practice with lots of support helps most.
- Approaching
- Understands parts of it and is building confidence. Keep practicing the tricky parts.
- Meeting
- Has it! Mixed review now and then keeps it strong.
- Exceeding
- Applies it confidently, even in new or harder situations. Try challenge mode and real-life problems.
Your child’s teacher decides the level on the report card. Read the California report card guide.
Common questions
Talk about your family, your neighborhood and the people who help in it. Make a simple map of your home or street together. Keep sessions short, about 10 to 15 minutes, and stop on a success.
The California Content Standards Kindergarten social studies units include Families, Fair & Kind, Places Near Me, My Jobs, Rules & Leaders, Money & Work, Goods & Services.
Free printable Kindergarten social studies practice sheet
Questions from every unit, with an answer key.