Letter identification is a skill that involves being able to say the names of both upper and lower case letters of the alphabet quickly, without having to think very long about each letter.

In an ideal world, kindergartners would come to school having this skill.

Is it necessary? No. They’ll absolutely learn this skill in kindergarten.

One caveat: kindergartners who already know their letters and sounds, start reading faster than kids who don’t. This has been my experience as a kindergarten teacher for many years.