All children have their own timetable, but you can watch for certain developments in your 4-year-old. Celebrate with your child as he reaches or nears these milestones.
Cognitive
- Counts 10 or more objects
- May be able to name basic shapes
- Pays attention to a short story and answers questions about it afterward
- Has an evolving sense of time; understands periods of the day and seasons and may know some days of the week and have a concept of hours and minutes
- Begins to have a concept of money
- Understands how some household objects function (appliances, tools)
- May show interest in particular topics (art, animals)
- Begins to learn alphabet; may recognize some letters
- Repeats his name and address
- Better understands the difference between fantasy and reality
- Follows unrelated commands (“Bring me the book and wash your hands”)
Motor
- Able to stand on one foot for 10 seconds or longer
- Hops; tumbles; does somersaults
- Swings
- Climbs well
- May be able to skip
- Copies triangles, squares, circles
- Draws people with bodies
- Prints some letters (possibly his name) but probably not perfectly
- Dresses and undresses himself
- Correctly uses child-safe utensils but still needs help with cutting food
- Can manage toileting
Communication
- Remembers large parts of stories
- Tells stories rich with details
- Speaks in full sentences (more than five words)
- Uses future tense
- Uses the same grammar as family
- Recites his name and address
- Rhymes words
- Says most sounds clearly except, often, l, s, r, v, z, ch, sh, and th
Social
- Has favorite friends; may have a “best friend”
- Wants to please friends
- Wants to be like friends
- May become more agreeable to rules
- Learns that different people have different rules
- May develop fears
- Aware of genitalia; learning about privacy
- Curious about birth and death
- Shows pride in accomplishments
- Can be both demanding and cooperative
- Shows increasing independence
References:
“What's Going on in There? How the Brain and Mind Develop in the First Five Years of Life?” by Lise Elliot.
“Caring for Your Baby and Young Child, Birth to Age 5 (5th Ed)” by the American Academy of Pediatrics.
"The Wonder Years: Helping Your Baby and Young Child Successfully Negotiate the Major Developmental Milestones" by the American Academy of Pediatrics.
