Development milestones: Your 4-year-old
BELOW is a guide for what you should be expecting from your four-year-old, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in their Milestone Moments guide.
What children do at this age
Social/emotional
– Enjoys doing new things
– Is more and more creative with make-believe play
– Would rather play with other children than by him/herself
– Cooperates with other children
– Plays “Mom” or “Dad”
– Often can’t tell what’s real and what’s make-believe
– Talks about what he/she likes and what he/she is interested in.
Language/communication
– Tells stories
– Sings a song or says a poem from memory such as the Itsy Bitsy Spider or the Wheels on the Bus
– Knows some basic rules of grammar, such as correctly using “he” and “she”
– Can say first and last name
Cognitive (learning, thinking, problem-solving)
– Names some colours and some numbers
– Draws a person with two to four body parts
– Understands the idea of counting
– Uses scissors
– Starts to understand time
– Starts to copy some capital letters
– Remembers parts of a story
– Plays board or card games
– Understands the idea of “same” and “different”
– Tells you what he/she thinks is going to happen next in a book.
Movement/Physical development
– Hops and stands on one foot up to two seconds
-Pours, cuts with supervision, and mashes own food
– Catches a bounced ball most of the time
Act early by talking to your child’s doctor if your child:
– Can’t jump in place
– Loses skills he/she once had
– Has trouble scribbling
– Shows no interest in interactive games or make-believe
– Ignores other children or doesn’t respond to people outside the family
– Resists dressing, sleeping, and using the toilet
– Doesn’t understand “same” and “different”
– Doesn’t use “me” and “you” correctly
– Doesn’t follow three-part commands
– Can’t retell a favourite story
– Speaks unclearly.
