The beginning of the school year is upon us. For kindergarten teachers, that means back to basics. We all know that many kinders come in knowing zero letters, while others come in reading up a storm. Did you know that according to Richard Allington, students who enter kindergarten knowing fewer than 40 letters (upper and lower combined) are already a year below grade level? Crazy isn’t it? Below grade level before even starting school! Not only that–Allington also asserts that ALL kindergarten students, regardless of socioeconomic status or literacy in