Kids: 3 - 6 years
 

Every child is different and will, therefore, develop at his or her own pace. However, according to experts, there are specific milestones that should be achieved by certain ages and stages in life in order to properly grow and develop.

4 YEARS

  • Enjoys doing new things
  • Is more and more creative with make-believe play
  • Cooperates with other children and prefers to play with them over playing alone
  • Knows some basic rules of grammar, such as correctly using “he” and “she”
  • Tells stories
  • Names some colors and numbers and understands the idea of counting
  • Starts to understand time
  • Remembers parts of a story
  • Draws a person with 2 to 4 body parts
  • Uses scissors
  • Starts to copy some capital letters
  • Plays board or card games
  • Hops and stands on one foot up to 2 seconds
  • Catches a bounced ball most of the time
  • Pours, cuts with supervision, and mashes own food

5 YEARS

  • Wants to please and be like friends
  • Likes to sing, dance, and act
  • Can tell what’s real and what’s make-believe
  • Is sometimes demanding and sometimes very cooperative
  • Speaks very clearly
  • Tells a simple story using full sentences
  • Says name and address
  • Counts 10 or more things
  • Can draw a person with at least 6 body parts
  • Can print some letters or numbers
  • Copies a triangle and other geometric shapes
  • Hops; may be able to skip
  • Can do a somersault
  • Uses a fork and spoon and sometimes a table knife
  • Swings and climbs
 

6 YEARS

  • Confident and delighted to show off talents
  • Starts to display an increasing awareness of emotions and develops techniques for self-control
  • Writes name
  • Has longer attention span and continues to prefer structured activities
  • Vocabulary rapidly increases and develops independent reading skills
  • Can typically count up to 200 and count backwards from 20
  • Can give and follow directions for moving around a room or on a map
  • Uses a wider variety of materials to create visual images that combine colors, forms, and lines
  • Understands the concept of odd and even numbers and can represent numbers on a number line or with written words
  • Able to run in various pathways and directions and can manipulate body by jumping and landing, rolling, and transferring weight from feet to hands to feet
  • Can throw, kick, and catch
  • Walks along a straight line from heel to toe

7 YEARS

  • Enjoys having and making friends and takes pleasure in imitating their actions
  • While typically prefers structure and routines, may also choose to work or play independently when frustrated
  • Creates art that depicts objects more realistically and that reflects personal culture and experiences
  • Displays a longer attention span and the ability to tolerate lessdetailed directions and last-minute changes
  • Recognizes more words by sight and can apply reading comprehension strategies in flexible ways to read with greater fluency (speed, accuracy, and expression) and independence
  • Has strong number sense and estimation skills
  • Can effectively work in many ways with 3-digit numbers and has improved abilities for solving arithmetic problems mentally
  • Understands how to measure angles and can apply knowledge of shapes to 3-dimensional objects and structures in the environment
  • Begins to effectively combine motor skills, such as running to kick a ball, rolling after landing from a jump, or traveling in rhythm to music