A Children develop the fastest from birth to 5 years old. These changes take place across various domains of development i.e.
- Cognitive
- Physical (Fine and Gross Motor)
- Socio-emotional and
- Language.
Most children follow a certain pattern of growth and development or achieve certain skills/abilities at a particular stage in development. These are called developmental milestones. However, it is important to note that every child grows and develops at their own pace, and might achieve a few milestones faster or slower than usual. If you feel concerned about your child not achieving a milestone, contact your pediatrician or speak to our expert.
“Did you know?: 90% of a child’s brain development happens by the age of 6?
Cognitive Development:
- Becomes more curious to gather information about real facts of the world.
- Counts up to 20. Might even count up to 50 or more, later on.
- Reads and recognizes the numbers 0-9 and go up to reading ‘20’ as the year progresses.
- Begins to recognize letters.
- Recognizes shapes and, maybe, some of their variations (e.g. an isosceles vs an equilateral triangle)
- Begins to understand concepts like more and less, greater than/lesser than/equal to, etc.
- Might solve puzzles with pieces that are smaller and more in number.
- Develops a better understanding of time (e.g. might begin to name a few days of the week). They are still learning about months and seasons.
- Knows some of the things that are used on a daily basis (e.g. clothes, money and food)
- Knows or remembers their own address and phone number (if taught to them)
- Copies a few shapes, letters and numbers (might not be accurate)
- Engages in simple scientific investigations i.e. begins to observe, compare, identify patterns, etc.
- Begins to understand that there is a difference between real and imaginary (fantasy and reality)
- Ability to sustain attention improves. Can sit for 10-15 minutes or even more depending on the activity.
Physical Development
- Walks backward easily.
- Might begin to bounce or catch a ball with one hand (when at a small distance).
- Begins to learn to jump rope (skip with a skipping rope).
- Picks up speed while walking, running, jumping, etc.
- Balances on one foot for 8-10 seconds or more.
- Develops improved fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination (e.g. Uses child-friendly scissors well, buttons and unbuttons, clothes, etc.)
- Learns to tie shoelaces (might be able to do this by the end of the year).
- Develops better tripod grip; begins to hold pencils/crayons as adults do.
- Might begin to develop permanent teeth.
Socio-emotional Development:
- Understands that people react differently to the same situation.
- Becomes more aware of self, especially their own skills and abilities.
- Likes to show others what they can do, especially new skills they have mastered (self-esteem rises as they pick up new skills)
- Can tell what’s real and what’s imaginary.
- Begins to learn to manage negative emotions by themself (e.g. drawing, playing, talking, etc.) (might still need a little bit of assistance).
- Shows sympathetic or empathetic behaviour when they see others in distress.
- Shows more responsible behaviour as compared to 4-year-olds.
- Becomes more cooperative and enjoys playing with others in a group.
- Continues to form more friendships.
- Tries to please friends and may want to be like them.
- Understands and displays good manners.
- As they enter school, they might show an increased attachment to their parents.
Feeding and Sleeping Information:
- As they get ready to begin school (by 6 years), they usually sleep for about 10-11 hours in the night. Once they begin school, they may not take afternoon naps but may want to go to sleep earlier.
- Has a vast vocabulary that keeps expanding with exposure to newer words.
- Has a better understanding of language and begins to follow multiple commands given together.
- Begins communicating in complex and compound sentences and talks frequently.
- Has very few pronunciation errors.
- Names various colours, shapes, days of the week, months, clothes, food, etc.
- Begins to initiate conversations and maintain the subject of conversation.
- Shares personal experiences (without adult prompting)
- Recognizes and identifies almost all letters.
- Has a better developed phonetic awareness. (e.g. Letter ‘A’ can sound ‘a’ for apple as well as ‘ah’ for ‘arm’).
- Might show more of an interest in reading due to improved text comprehension skills.
- Might identify or read two-three letter words that they have been exposed to frequently (e.g. mom/dad).
- Knows that writing follows left-to-right and top to bottom orientation.
- Begins to write words based on the sounds of the letters (might not always be accurate).
“Did you know?: Research reveals that – every $1 invested in an early childhood program can yield $4-$16 in returns.”
Helps your child achieve the above milestones through simple at home activities for 5 years old. Subscribe to Jyppzer Kids Plan Today!