“What Did You Do In School Today?”

“What did you do in school today?”  Your child will look right at you and say “nothing!” This familiar question is asked by most parents when their children walk through the door at the end of the day, however, nothing, is not the answer parents are looking for.  It takes a great deal of thought for a 4,5 or even 6 year old to remember events that took place hours ago at school.  As a parent you would elicit the type of response that you are looking for if you ask pointed questions:

1. What book did the teacher read today?
2. What was it about, what was the best part of the story?
3. What song did you sing at school today?
4. What games did you play?
5. What centers did you go to today?
6. Which one was your favorite?
7. Did you go to Art, Music, PE or the Library?
8. What friend did you play with today?  (Keep in mind at the start of Kindergarten your child will not be able to name any names but he/she can describe this new friend to you)
9. Did you go out to play on the playground?

Your child will hear your question and then remember something that he/she did at school today and you will be able to begin a conversation about it.  Please be sure to share your experiences with your child about your day as well.  Today I ______ and I had to ___________.  If your child comes home with a story that seems mighty imaginative, be sure to check with your child’s teacher to see if that event really did happen or was just a form of a tall tale.