Physical and motor:

• First permanent teeth may begin to erupt although the majority of children do not get their first permanent teeth until age 6
• Increased coordination
• Skip, jump, and skate with good balance
• Able to maintain balance while standing on one foot with eyes closed
• Able to tie own shoelaces
• Increased skill with simple tools and writing utensils

Sensory and cognitive:

• Vocabulary has increased to over 2100 words
• Readily composes sentences of 6 to 8 words
• Can compose sentences with all parts of speech
• Able to identify the names of coins
• Knows the names of the primary colors and may know the names of many more
• Questions are less superficial, addressing meaning and purpose
• Increasingly responsible
• Decreased aggressiveness
• Some fears from earlier childhood are disappearing
• Able to accept the validity of others view and perspective, but may not understand it
• Increased mathematical skill
• Does not hesitate to question others, including parents
• There is a strong identification with the parent of the same sex

Play:

• Encourage and provide the necessary space for physical activity
• Instruct the child how to participate in and learn the rules of sporting activities
• The child should be encouraged to play with other children in the area to help develop their socialization skills
• Encourage creative play
• READ TOGETHER
• monitor both the time and content of television viewing
• Expose the child to different stimuli by visiting to local areas of interest