In the first five years of life children grow from infants to very active and explorative preschoolers. Young children progress from babbling and saying words to participating in conversations with others. They also build their skills for reading and writing.

Below are typical milestones for development in children from three to five years of age:

• Hops, jumps, skips, climbs, swings, and does somersaults
• Rides a tricycle and progresses to riding a two wheeled bike
• Throws overhand with greater accuracy
• Balances on one foot for many seconds without support
• Catches a ball consistently

• Copies shapes such as squares and triangles
• Uses scissors to cut out pictures
• Improves with writing and may copy block letters
• Is able to connect the dots
• Begins to color between the lines
• Vision improves to nearly 20/20
• Develops nearly mature depth perception
• Recognizes and recites the alphabet
• Copies geometric shapes

• Sorts items into categories
• Completes simple interlocking puzzles
• Begins to understand the concept of time
• Questions parents
• Becomes more elaborate with imaginary play
• Increases aggressive behavior

• Understands more complex concepts, such as front/back, hard/soft, heavy/light, below/above
• Knows the primary colors
• Uses the question words who, what, and where
• Asks many questions
• Uses four- to eight-word sentences
• Uses verbs such as is, am, and are
• Uses plural forms
• Uses possessive forms, such as “daddy’s car”
• Describes objects by size, shape, and color
• Engages in conversation and begins to tell stories
• Counts from zero to ten
• Sings simple songs
• Uses the past tense
• Is understood by strangers
• Develops of vocabulary of 2,100 words or more

• Demonstrates some increasingly aggressive behavior, which may decrease by age five
• Begins to have a group of friends
• Begins to cooperate with others
• Shares more often
• Is interested in new experiences
• Demonstrates greater ability to agree with rules
• May see unfamiliar objects as “monsters”
• Integrates increased detail into imaginary play
• May play “mom” or “dad” in imaginary play
• Enjoys singing, dancing, and acting
• Wants to please others

• May get in first permanent teeth (typically between five and six years old)
• Uses utensils and is able to spread with a knife
• Holds a handle on a cup
• Requests favorite foods
• By age five: may no longer require a nap during the day, but sleeps about eleven hours at night
• Dresses and undresses self
• May be able to tie shoelaces
• Unbuttons three buttons
• May still wet the bed at night
• Cares for own toileting needs

Signs of Possible Developmental Delays: Three to Five Years
Helpful article if you suspect your child may have developmental delays.

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