Developmental Milestones
Skills such as taking a first step, smiling for the first time, and waving "bye bye" are called developmental milestones. Children reach milestones in how they play, learn, speak, behave, and move (crawling, walking, etc.). Visit this site to access checklists if you have concerns about your child's development.
Cognitive Development
Cognition refers to how your child thinks, solves problems, and learns new information. It's how they use their brain to gain information, and share the information they know. Between the ages of 3 to 4 a child should be able to:
And while the above skills are important academic tasks, cognition goes beyond memorizing facts. Typical 3-4 year olds are able to show curiosity and initiative in play and learning, show some persistence to tasks, use creativity in their play and work, imitate and remember people and actions, find similarities and difference with help, and show interest in make-believe--an important skill that helps them later with higher mental functions.
- Count to 5
- Understand "more"
- Listen to simple stories
- Match objects with the same shape/color/size
- Draw a simple face from a model
- Name primary colors
- Imitate simple block structures
- Stack rings on a peg in order of size
And while the above skills are important academic tasks, cognition goes beyond memorizing facts. Typical 3-4 year olds are able to show curiosity and initiative in play and learning, show some persistence to tasks, use creativity in their play and work, imitate and remember people and actions, find similarities and difference with help, and show interest in make-believe--an important skill that helps them later with higher mental functions.
Social & Emotional Development
3 and 4 year old children are learning more and more how to make friends, communicate effectively with adults and other children, and manage their own emotions. Young children’s ability to form and sustain social relationships with adults and other children is at the heart of their social development. At this stage they are beginning to take turns, greet familiar people, show empathy for others, play dress-up, play group games with simple rules and play cooperatively with others. 3's and 4's are also beginning to calm themselves when upset, transition through most routines more easily, adapt to changes in their routine, and associate their emotions and those of others with words (i.e. "I'm sad.").
One thing to note about social skills and young children: If your child has a hard time playing with other children, you should first ask yourself: How often does my child get to practice good social skills? Do they have contact with other children in play and non-play activities? Have I taught them what is appropriate behavior vs. what isn't appropriate? Children learn by practicing, so be sure to give your child many regular opportunities to interact with other children so they can master good social skills.
One thing to note about social skills and young children: If your child has a hard time playing with other children, you should first ask yourself: How often does my child get to practice good social skills? Do they have contact with other children in play and non-play activities? Have I taught them what is appropriate behavior vs. what isn't appropriate? Children learn by practicing, so be sure to give your child many regular opportunities to interact with other children so they can master good social skills.
Adaptive Development
Adaptive skills refer to how a child cares for his or her own needs, or gets their needs met using others. Skills like using the toilet, feeding oneself with a fork or spoon, participating in dressing/undressing, participating in bathing and hygiene, and asking for help when appropriate are all skills that most 3-4 year olds can do, and should be encouraged to start doing more independently. Children who are given the opportunity to do these tasks with increasing independence gain confidence in their own abilities and are more likely to continue to want to be independent and responsible children.
Communication Development
Most 3-4 year old children can understand approx. 1,200 words! They are beginning to follow 2-step commands, point to pictures of common objects, say /p/, /b/, /m/, /n/, /w/, and /h/ sounds solidly, and use final consonant sounds in words (i.e. the T in "cat"). They can say about 800 words, use sentences with 4 words and ask the WH questions (what, who, why, how, where). Both family and non-family individuals should be able to understand most of what the child says, and the child should be able to show that they understand what others say.
Be sure to encourage your child to use more words and longer phrases as they enter this age. You can promote quicker language development by insisting that your child use more words/signs as they grow into this age. Many times, parents get so good at knowing what their children need before they ask for it, that they don't give them the opportunity to try and use more sophisticated language to ask for things or express their thoughts.
Be sure to encourage your child to use more words and longer phrases as they enter this age. You can promote quicker language development by insisting that your child use more words/signs as they grow into this age. Many times, parents get so good at knowing what their children need before they ask for it, that they don't give them the opportunity to try and use more sophisticated language to ask for things or express their thoughts.
Physical Development
3 and 4 are exciting times for children. They are beginning to feel more "at home" in their bodies and are able to do more and more all the time. These children are starting to run around obstacles without falling, climb small ladders and playground equipment, balance on one foot for 5-10 seconds, hop on one foot, walk down steps with alternating feet, and walk on tiptoes for 3 seconds. Typical 3-4 yrs olds are also able to copy a drawing of a cross, hold a crayon with a 3-finger grip instead of the "fist grip" and cut a line on paper with scissors.
Be sure to provide your child with lots of opportunities to engage in physical play. Make art, visit parks, pools, take lots of family walks, play ball, and teach them to be active! Children learn from you. If you model an active and healthy lifestyle, they'll want to be like you.
Be sure to provide your child with lots of opportunities to engage in physical play. Make art, visit parks, pools, take lots of family walks, play ball, and teach them to be active! Children learn from you. If you model an active and healthy lifestyle, they'll want to be like you.