A typical four year old preschool child usually
- Goes “out of bounds” easily in almost every direction – both with mind and muscles
- Has high Motor drive; likes rough and tumble play
- Is a great talker, exaggerates, boasts and is bossy
- Likes old, new and different words, silly language, including profanity
- Calls other children names
- Asks many questions. Wants to know why and how.
- Talks about becoming five years old
- Likes to play cooperatively with 3 and 4 children.
- Will exclude a third child sometimes
- Has difficulty distinguishing between truth and fiction
- Loves to defy mommy and daddy
- Routines go more smoothly and independently
- Has a strong sense of family and home
- Can combine talking and activity at the same time like dressing, eating, etc.
- Social; wants a playmate all the time
- Can be cooperative, calm, imaginative, quiet but also bossy, assertive, noisy, silly, dogmatic.
Four year old preschool children like
nonsense rhymes, nursery rhymes, tall stories, words and numbers- listening to familiar stories over and over again
- dress up and true dramatic play
- planning and carrying out excursion, trips and picnics
- building things to can get into, like box houses, forts, and tents
- manipulating large hunks of clay
- carpentry
- playing in mud and water
- playing in groups
Four year old pre-kindergarten children need
- to be allowed to test themselves
- limits set and authority of adults
- supervision even though he seems self-reliant
- to interact with children at the same age and maturity level
- variety but still love repetition
- group play
- supervision when using the bathroom because of curiosity
- active play involving large muscle groups
You can help your four year old and yourself by
- Being patient
- Being in control
- Always following through on what you say
- Following through on consequences and enforcement
I hope you like this post. I love helping parents, teachers and children learn, grow and become better people! Everyday I'm delighted to spend my day in the place I love with the people I love. If you don't know me already, please read my Teacher Feature.
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