AGES & STAGES - FOUR-YEAR-OLDS

Lesia Oesterreich, M.S.
Family Life Extension Specialist
Human Development and Family Studies
Iowa State University

"Energetic" and "imaginative" best describe the 4-year-old. Often impatient and silly, they discover humor and spend a great deal of time being silly and telling you "jokes." A 4-year-old's language may range from silly words such as "batty-watty" to profanity. Loud, boisterous laughter may accompany such language.

Imagination suddenly becomes greater than life for the 4-year-old, who often confuses reality and "make-believe." Wild stories and exaggerations are common.

Four-year-olds feel good about the things they can do, show self-confidence, and are willing to try new adventures. They race up and down stairs or around corners, dash on tricycles or scooters, and pull wagons at full tilt. You still need to watch them closely as they cannot estimate their own abilities accurately and are capable of trying some outlandish and dangerous tricks.

INTELLECTUAL DEVELOPMENT

can place objects in a line from largest to smallest
can recognize some letters if taught, and may be able to print own name
recognizes familiar words in simple books or signs (STOP sign)
understands the concepts of "tallest, biggest, same, more, on, in, under, and above"
counts 1-7 objects out loud - but not always in the right order
understands the order of daily routines (breakfast before lunch, lunch before dinner, dinner before bed time)
speaks in fairly complex sentences. "The baby ate the cookie before I could put it on the table."
asks a lot of questions, including ones on birth and death
enjoys singing simple songs, rhymes, and nonsense words
adapts language to listener's level of understanding. To baby sister: "Daddy go bye-bye." To Mother: "Daddy went to the store to buy food."
learns name, address, and phone number, if taught
asks and answers who, what, when, why, and where questions
continues one activity for 10-15 minutes
names 6-8 colors and 3 shapes
follows 2 unrelated directions (put your milk on the table and get your coat on)
has basic understanding of concepts related to number, size, weight, colors, textures, distance, position, and time
understands immediate passage of time as in what happened yesterday, but does not understand calendar time
has long attention span and finishes activities
understands and remembers own accomplishments
may ad "ed" to words. "I goed to the door and put-ed the cat outdoors. He hurt-ed me."

PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

weight: 27-50 pounds
height: 37-46 inches
uses a spoon, fork, and dinner knife skillfully
needs 10-12 hours sleep each night
dresses self without much assistance (unzip, unsnap, unbutton clothes;
lace but not tie shoes)
can feed self, brush teeth, comb hair, wash, dress, hang up clothes with little assistance
walks a straight line
hops on one foot
pedals and steers a tricycle skillfully
jumps over objects 5-6 inches high
runs, jumps, hops, and skips around obstacles with ease
stacks 10 or more blocks
forms shapes and objects out of clay or play dough, sometimes human
and animal figures
threads small beads on a string
catches, bounces, and throws a ball easily
likes to gallop, turn somersaults, climb ladders and trees, hop on one
foot

SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

enjoys playing with other children
takes turns and shares (most of the time); may still be rather bossy
seeks out adult approval
understands and obeys simple rules (most of the time)
changes the rules of a games as she goes along
likes to talk and carries on elaborate conversations
capable of feeling jealous
persistently asks why
boastful - enjoys showing off and bragging about possessions
fearful of the dark and monsters
begins to understand danger - at times can become quite fearful
has difficulty separating make-believe from reality
lies sometimes to protect self and friends, but doesn't truly
understand the concept of lying - imagination often gets in the way
may name call, tattle freely
likes to shock others by using "forbidden" words
expresses anger verbally rather than physically (most of the time)
still throws tantrums over minor frustrations
imitates parent of the same sex, particularly in play
enjoys pretending, often with imaginary playmates
pretending goes far beyond "playing house" to more elaborate settings like fire station, school, shoe store, ice cream shop
loves to tell jokes that may not make any sense at all to adults
can feel intense anger and frustration
has vivid imagination and sometimes imaginary playmates
enjoys dramatic play and role playing

IDEAS FOR CAREGIVERS

Read aloud each day and encourage children to look at books on their own. Provide alternative reading material with a collection of outdated coupons, junk mail, newspaper ads, and old cereal boxes.
Say nursery rhymes and fingerplays together. Encourage 4-year-olds to tell stories to younger children.
Encourage interest in writing and words. Provide children with paper and notebooks for writing. Print letters and numerals on art work, and label toy shelves with pictures and words that describe objects.
Provide a variety of art experiences. Make play dough. Create collages from magazine pictures, fabric, wallpaper, and newsprint. Encourage children to experiment with new media like wire and cork, soda straws, string, or yarn. Teach children to mix different colors with paint.
Teach important number and space concepts. Sort and count everything in sight, like silverware, socks, rocks, leaves, etc. Talk about things being in, on, under, behind, beside, before and after, larger than, too far, etc.
Teach children the correct use of the telephone.
Four-year-olds have a strong need to feel important and worthwhile. Praise accomplishments, and provide opportunities to experience freedom and independence.
Teach the use of landmarks to find their way around your neighborhood.
Encourage physical development. Play follow the leader. Pretend to walk like various animals. Set up an obstacle course indoors with challenges such as crawling, climbing, leaping, balancing, and running across stepping stones. Encourage walking with a beanbag on the head.
Promote respect for life and living things by letting them help you build a bird feeder and hang it up. Record the kinds of birds observed, and teach them to identify birds by significant characteristics like the red male and green female cardinals, the black caps and white cheeks of the chickadee.
Encourage 4-year-olds to help you plan and plant a garden. They will love to water plants daily and will enjoy measuring plant growth.
Encourage multicultural awareness through representative dolls, puppets, pictures, and books. Encourage cultural aspects of all the families, and learn recipes, songs, and information about cultural celebrations.
Expand dramatic play by providing a variety of props for themes like grocery store, pizza parlour, birthday party, and firefighter.

DOCUMENT USE/COPYRIGHT
National Network for Child Care - NNCC. Part of CYFERNET, the National Extension Service Children Youth and Family Educational Research Network. Permission is granted to reproduce these materials in whole or in part for educational purposes only(not for profit beyond the cost of reproduction) provided that the author and Network receive acknowledgment and this notice is included:

Reprinted with permission from National Network for Child Care - NNCC.
Oesterreich, L. (1995). Ages & stages - four-year-olds. In L.
Oesterreich, B. Holt, & S. Karas, Iowa family child care handbook
[Pm 1541] (pp. 204-207). Ames, IA: Iowa State University Extension.

Any additions or changes to these materials must be preapproved by the author.

AVAILABLE FROM::
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Iowa State University
Ames, IA 50011
PHONE:: (515) 294-5247
FAX:: (515) 294-2945
E-MAIL:: pubdist@exnet.iastate.edu

COPYRIGHT PERMISSION ACCESS
Lesia Oesterreich
1322 Elm Hall, Suite 1085
Iowa State University
Ames, IA 50011
PHONE:: (515) 294-0363
FAX:: (515) 294-5507
E-MAIL:: x1oester@exnet.iastate.edu

AGES & STAGES - FOUR-YEAR-OLDS

INTELLECTUAL DEVELOPMENT

PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

IDEAS FOR CAREGIVERS

Child Development for 4 year olds