I want to preface this post by saying that I am not a big advocate of heavy academics during the early years. I believe that our children learn best from doing and growing in a natural, loving environment, without a lot of academic pressure. That being said, there are some milestones that your preschooler should reach during this time in their lives.
- Colors: red, blue, yellow, green, purple, orange, brown, white, black
- Shapes: circle, square, rectangle, triangle, diamond, oval, semi-circle, star, crescent
- Alphabet Letters: lower case letter identification
- Beginning Calendar Work: days of the week, months of the year, today, tomorrow, yesterday (this can be a very difficult concept for kids, you should not expect mastery, just familiarity)
- Math: numbers 1-10, counting items
- Holidays: Birthdays, Christmas, Thanksgiving, Fourth of July
Physical Development
- Run on tip toes
- Hop on one foot
- Gallop
- Begin to skip
- Throw a ball overhand
- Pump themselves on a swing
- Unzipping, unsnapping, unbuttoning
- Dress themselves
- Cut a line with scissors
- Lace their own shoes
- Write crude letters
During the month of August I hope to provide some more tips on how to help your child reach these milestones.
More Preschooler Posts
Great Preschool Books and Toys
Make it Yourself Preschool Activities
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Hi! I really am excited to see preschool info becoming more available. There are many parents that would love to begin teaching their young ones ‘academics’, but aren’t sure what or how much is right.
Based on my past experience as a preschool teacher, and now homeschooling my preschoolers, I’ve started a blog that will feature tips to teaching preschoolers.
Check it out the website at http://www.sonbeams.com. From there you will find a link to the blog!
Candace
http://www.heaveninourhomes.com
http://www.sonbeams.com
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OK – so what age should they be able to do these thingd. My daughter will be three in October and does not know a lot of the top list!!
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Breanne-
Thanks for your comment. I think your daughter is still too young to be considered a preschooler. I wouldn’t worry about working on many of these things for another year. Right now the best thing you can do is to read her great books, and play with her. The learning part will come soon enough.
Toni
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Free online learning games have made teaching my preschooler a lot easier. We sit and play the games online for free at Fisher-Price.com. The games are easy and fun, plus they really help!! I highly recommend that you check them out.
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