Childcare Milestones: Development of Pre-Schoolers

Dealing with preschoolers is fun! No longer toddlers, they can finally dress themselves (although their selection may be questionable,) they are becoming more independent and they can more easily use words to describe their desires. Their fascination with the world during this time in their lives is infectious! Au pair academy teaches au pairs about the important milestones in child's development!

4 Year Olds

Physically four year olds are on the move! They are running, jumping and climbing in a much more organized way. Mentally they are using their imaginations. You'll be surprised at the elaborate and creative stories they are coming up with. Around this age is when they start to understand differences enough to do things like sort by shapes and colors. Socially they are starting to grasp ideas like mine and his/hers.

5 Year Olds

Energetic is one way to describe five year olds! They have a great ability at this age to balance and coordinate movements and as a result they always seem to be on the go! They are starting to really grasp reading at this age, can remember complex stories and can put things like events in order from beginning to end. Their social development is getting to a level where they can understand the feelings of other people, and imagine what it is like to be the other person in a situation. They may even have a best friend!

6 Year Olds

At six, children are still running and playing as they were before but the concepts of rules and games are getting even more fine-tuned. At this age, children can more easily differentiate between their imaginations and reality, and they could very well be interested in doing kid versions of adult things like cooking or doing "work". In terms of social development don't be surprised if a little bossiness slips through as they move towards middle childhood and are coming into their own.