Early Child Development - Development varies. Your child's development may differ from these estimates and still be within normal ranges.
Your child's large muscle movement is becoming more coordinated. She may begin to use pedal toys and can play simple jumping games. She will develop the ability to hop with both feet and then on one foot while keeping her balance. She can toss a bean bag toward a target and play catch at short distances. She may also enjoy bouncing a large, soft playground ball back and forth with you.
Early Child Development - Your preschooler's fine motor skills are beginning to develop the coordination she will need for later writing. She will begin copying shapes from models. Her coloring skills are developing, and scribbling is a part of that development. Over time, this will improve. She will begin to perform many of her own self-care tasks such as dressing, brushing her teeth, and washing her hands, though she will need help. Encourage activities such as coloring, stacking blocks, and picking up objects.
Your child's thinking skills are becoming more complex. She is beginning to develop the ability to match shapes, object types, and colors. Her nonverbal reasoning skills are developing further. She is learning to recognize visual similarities and differences between objects, which is an important language and early math concept. She is learning more new words and building simple sentences. Continue introducing new words and reading to her. You may begin introducing sight words to your child. Simply seeing words in her natural environment can help with early language and later reading development.
Early Child Development - Your child is beginning to be more comfortable separating from her parents, but routines are still important to her. You can reduce any anxiety she may feel by keeping her daily routine as consistent as possible. Consider making a picture schedule to let her know what her day will be like. She is developing ability to interact with her peers, to play games, to take turns, and participate in imaginative play.
