Preschoolers (age 3-5)

The child’s developmental milestones:

❖ During this stage, children should be able to ride a tricycle, use safety scissors, notice a
difference between girls and boys, help to dress and undress themselves, play with other
children, recall part of a story, and sing a song. They are very literal and concrete so
watch what you say, for example dye used for scans they may take as they will die.

Play preferences:
❖ Associative play: begin to interact and play with other children
➢ Enjoy sorting games, puzzles, drawing, books, dolls, crayons, playdough

Safety concerns:
❖ Children who weigh 40 lbs or 4 years old should sit in Booster seat until they reach 4 feet
9 inches
❖ Tell your child why it is important to stay out of traffic. Tell him not to play in the street
or run after stray balls.
❖ Be cautious when letting your child ride her tricycle. Keep them on the sidewalk and
away from the street and always have her wear a helmet.
❖ Watch your child at all times, especially when they are playing outside.
❖ Be safe in the water. Teach your child to swim, but watch them at all times when they are
in or around any body of water (this includes kiddie pools).
❖ Teach your child how to be safe around strangers.
❖ Poison and chemical safety

Health promotion strategies:

❖ Reinforce good dental hygiene
❖ Teach healthy eating habits should eat 90 calories per kg per day

Parenting issues:
❖ Teaching:
➢ Manners
➢ How to share
➢ How to socialize with others
➢ Family rules and traditions
➢ Be role model for child

Growth and development highlights (what the child in that age should be able to do):
❖ Weight: growth is slow & steady; 4-5 lbs/yr.
❖ Height: increases 2-3 inches/yr
❖ Motor development
➢ Dresses and undresses self by 3 yrs
➢ Skips and hops on one foot by 4 yrs
➢ Drawing by 4 yrs
➢ Ride bikes by 4 yrs
➢ Playing games with people by 4 yrs
 ➢ Ties shoelaces by 5 yrs
➢ Throws and catches ball well by 5 yrs
➢ Balances on alternate feet by 5 yrs
➢ Knows 2,100 words by 5 yrs
➢ Increased strength & refinement of fine/gross motor abilities
➢ Vision 20/20
■ Tests for color blindness (more common in boys)

What stage (s) the age group should be in:

❖ Piaget: Preoperational (2-7 y.o.)
➢ All about me (egocentric)
➢ Magical thinking
➢ Develop vocabulary
❖ Erikson: Initiative vs. Guilt (3-6 y.o.)
➢ Trying to do new things
➢ More positive reinforcement the more the kids will do and grow
➢ No reinforcement they will not try new things
➢ Need to teach them they wont be good at everything
❖ Freud: Phallic Stage (3 to 6 yrs)
➢ Learning through exploration
➢ Touching body parts

Rationale for selection of the particular toy or item:

Puzzle: Playing with different puzzles and building block toys will improve children’s problem
solving skills. It will help improve hand-eye coordination. Helps build spatial awareness because
they have to twist and turn the pieces to get them to fit. Ours also has numbers and is colorful so
it can introduce them to counting and identifying colors.
Book: Helps expand vocabulary, improve communication, concentration stimulates curiosity
Play Doh- Lets children use their imagination and strengthen the small muscles in their fingers.
If using with a friend helps build social skills and sharing.
Coloring Book- Coloring books help improve fine motor skills and also train their brains to
focus. It gives practice for pencil grip. It also encourages self-expression.
Chalk- Also improves fine motor skills. Chalk can be used to develop color recognition, sorting
and matching skills. It can get them moving if they create hop-scotch or other games.