Kindergarten Print Concepts Reading Unit | Build Strong Early Reading Foundations

The beginning of kindergarten is full of excitement, curiosity, and a whole lot of learning. Your students arrive with different experiences, different skill levels, and one big goal ahead of them—learning to read. That’s a huge task, and it all starts with the very basics.

Learning to read doesn’t begin with sounding out words. It begins with understanding how books work. Many large curriculums sprinkle these skills throughout the year, which can leave young learners confused or missing key foundations early on. That’s why this Kindergarten Print Concepts Unit was created—to guide students from the very beginning and build confidence right from day one.

By the end of this unit, students will know how to hold a book correctly, understand how print works, track words with their finger as they read, and choose books from the classroom library that match their interests. These simple but powerful skills set students up for reading success all year long.

Inside this unit, students will enjoy 20 engaging, print-and-go lessons that include anchor charts, hands-on practice pages, alphabet and CVC decodables, and interactive, editable slides. Each lesson is designed to be short, developmentally appropriate, and filled with meaningful reading experiences—so students stay focused, confident, and excited about learning.

Every lesson includes a clear teaching point, a quick mini-lesson, a fun student activity, and time to share. Most lessons take about 20 minutes total, making them easy to fit into your day without overwhelming young learners.

To get the most out of the unit, you’ll set up a welcoming classroom library, establish simple routines for independent reading, and display anchor charts or slides so students can easily refer back to what they’ve learned. Once everything is ready, you can jump right in and start building strong reading habits from the very first week.

This unit pairs perfectly with the Labeling Writing Unit, giving students a strong foundation in both reading and writing. As students learn how print works during reading time, they’ll also begin stretching out sounds, writing simple words, and creating short sentences during writing time. By the end of the first month of school, your students will be confidently building both reading and writing skills.

The Print Concepts Unit is available as a stand-alone resource, but it’s also part of the Kindergarten Reading Growing Bundle. When you purchase the bundle, you’ll get new reading units added later at no extra cost—making it an incredible value for the entire school year.