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Preschool Development
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Three Years
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| At this age your child is becoming more independent and you can expect him to dress himself and button clothes, brush his teeth with help, stack 9-10 blocks, draw circles and squares, use scissors, walk up steps by alternating his feet, jump from a step, hop, walk on his toes, pedal a tricycle, play with imaginary friends, have a very large vocabulary and use 3-4 word sentences and his speech should be 3/4 understandable. Over the next year his speech will become fully understandable.
Other developmental milestones include beginning to ask ‘why' questions, telling stories, remembering nursery rhymes, appreciating special events, and understanding daily routines.
Your three year old will now begin to play cooperatively with other children in small groups, share his toys and develop friendships. Playtime will include structured games and fantasy activities.
Most children take one nap during the afternoon of about 1 hour in length (he will give up taking naps between 3-6 years of age) at this age and are able to sleep all night for at least eleven and a half hours. If not, check to make sure that your baby has a good bedtime routine and has developed the proper sleep associations. See the Sleep Problem Guide for more information on preventing and fixing sleep problems.
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Four Years
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| At this age you can expect your child to dress himself, brush his teeth without help, play board and card games and follow simple rules, name 4 colors, hop, walk down stairs alternating feet, talk in 4-5 word sentences, sing songs, listen to stories, shares things spontaneously, count to 4, and his speech should be fully understandable. Over the next few years he will be able to count to ten, recognize letters of the alphabet, and be able to learn his phone number and address.
Most children take one nap during the afternoon of about 1 hour in length (he will give up this nap between 3-6 years of age) at this age and are able to sleep all night for at least eleven and a half hours. If not, check to make sure that your baby has a good bedtime routine and has developed the proper sleep associations. See the Sleep Problem Guide for more information on preventing and fixing sleep problems.
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Five Years
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| At this age you can expect your child to dress himself, brush his teeth without help, play cooperatively with other children, play board and card games and follow the rules, name colors, hop, walk down stairs alternating feet, skip, talk in 4-5 word sentences, sing songs, listen to stories, shares things spontaneously, recognize letters of the alphabet, print letters, know his phone number and address and his speech should be fully understandable.
This is a time of growing independence and children at this age want to be considered more responsible. To help foster this sense of responsibility, now is a good time to begin giving your child an allowance. The amount is not very important, but is usually 50¢ to $1.00 per year in age and should be used for special things that your child wants. Managing an allowance will help to teach your child about the value of money and the importance of saving. While it is also important that your child begin to have regular age appropriate chores (setting or clearing the table, taking out the garbage, cleaning their room, etc.) around the house, these should probably not be tied to their allowance. Positive reinforcement is important for completed chores, and failure to complete chores can be punished by loss of a privilege (TV, videogames, etc.). Allowing your child to have a choice of which chore to do sometimes helps with compliance.
Encourage self esteem and a positive self image in your child by using positive reinforcement and frequent praise for things that he has accomplished. Encourage your child to be curious, explore and take on new challenges.
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