Preschoolers How is a preschooler different from a

Preschoolers How is a preschooler different from a toddler? 9/29/11

Objectives • Explain the physical, social, emotional, and intellectual development of preschoolers.

What’s a Preschooler? • 3 -5 year olds • Curious George • Little Charmers • Unique development, but common patterns

Body Changes • Drop the baby fat • Leaner, taller more adult shaped • Legs are longer

Large Motor Skills • Practice skipping, hopping, climbing, riding tricycles/bicycles • Caregivers should provide for active play – Plenty of running room – Praise – Challenging their new skills – Ball playing – awkwardly

4 Year Olds • Improving skills include whirling, somersaults, hanging upside down • Combine running & jumping • Hair-raising stunts

5 Year Olds • More coordinated, more graceful • Less wasted motion • Enjoy competitive games • Play catch • Hop on alternate feet

Small Motor Skills • Pincer grasp refined but hands still clumsy • Tower building with blocks • Recognize shapes, trouble fitting into position, may try to force rather than turn

3 Year Olds • Holds pencil drawing circles, crosses, rectangles, triangles, crude resemblances of people

4 Year Olds • Much more precise • Figures improve – large heads, small lines to represent arms and legs • Love scissors

5 Year Olds • Improved eye-hand coordination • Building includes use of bridges, houses, churches with steeples • Like tools

Right/Left Handed • Preference begins in the womb • Determined by 3 • Allow child to use hand most comfortable • Encourage child that may be left handed

Body Changes • • • • Brain – grows slower Truck – grows Heart – rate slows Fat – less than ½ of 1 -year-old Legs – grow rapidly (1/2 of body by 5) Head – lower face grows Bones – stronger, more likely to break Teeth – begin falling out 4 -5 Breathing – slows & deepens Abdomen – protrudes less as truck grows Digestive – grows slower, tummy upset easily Height – 43”, 43 ¼” Weight – 41 pounds, 41 ½ pound CWH – waist becomes smaller at 5

Bellwork 9/30/11 • What are life skills? How are yours?

Life Skills of Preschoolers • Eating – Table manners – Regular mealtimes – Nutritious snacks – No special food is necessary – learn to eat what is on the table – New foods introduced – Allow child to help prepare and pick out foods

Life Skills • Dressing – Unique dressers – Like to dress themselves • First attempts are slow and clumsy • Teachable moments!!! – Patience and Encouragement – Simple steps help kids learn how – By 5 should be able to button, zip, tie

Life Skills • Grooming – Brushing teeth – need help – Washing up – can do alone – Toileting – easy to remove clothes help – By 5, should use the toilet and dress themselves again

Life Skills • Enuresis (bed-wetting) – Reassure not punish – Pediatrician may help if problem persists – May be caused by psychological or physical factors

Your Turn • In groups read your case study. • Decide if the behavior is desirable or not. • Explain your answers.

Bellwork 10/3/11 • Who is Jean Piaget? • Which stage of his theory will you find preschool children?

Synergize 1. Read pp. 360, 362, 368, 370 – Prepare to summarize for your team to help them see how preschooler’s are developing intellectually 2. Read pp. 380 -381 – Define the stage of emotional development & explain why they must accomplish this stage 3. Read pp. 403, 408, 413 -414 – Prepare to summarize for your team what you read about how children develop social skills & play 4. Read Kohlberg’s Pre-conventional p. 463, & values p. 466 -467 – Use this information to help you understand moral development and teach it to your team

Intellectual Development • Piaget’s preoperational stage – Ages 2 -7 – Thinking via mental images & use of language • Begin to construct their own concepts – Why? • Interested in surroundings using all senses • Vivid imagination and can not separate fact from fiction

Mental Abilities • Time is difficult to comprehend • 5 -year-olds are ready to learn about right and wrong • They understand rules, but not principle behind them • Development of symbolic thinking allows for creative play

Preschool • 3 -4 year old programs and kindergarten at 5 years boost intellectual development • Exposure to peers aids in development of social skills

Language Development • Time of great advances • Past tense • Vocabularies grow from 900 to 2200 • Understand more words than they use • Children learn the literal meaning – don’t understand expressions or slang – “I could have died…”

Language problems • Stuttering – Thoughts are ahead of speaking skills – Usually temporary • Lisping • Toilet Talk • Baby Talk • Bilingual

Enhancing Reading & Math Skills • Read to them!!! • “How old are you? ” – First lesson in math • Most 5 -year-olds understand quantitative thinking – 6 is more than 4

Emotional Development • • Erikson’s Initiative v. Guilt Maturity leads to handling emotions better. 3 year olds happy, cooperative 4 year olds, – learning to express emotions often make them seem less controlled – Seem moody or feel upset longer, frustrated • 5 year olds – peaceful & cooperative

Importance of Play • Doesn’t have to be structured to be valuable • Learn to think, reason, expand curiosity • Cooperative play • Imaginative play

Fears • Nightmares – Often related to fears aroused by some creature or crisis – Any threat a child feels may be revealed dramatically at night • Cuddles & compassion • As children mature, fears subside

Social Development • Makes friends easily • Seeks status among peers • Uses language to include/alienate • Prefers cooperative play to parallel • Shares • Prefers same gender friends

Bellwork 10/4/11 • Why should you not allow preschoolers to watch violent TV shows or horror movies?

Moral Development • Pre-Conventional Stage – Punishment – Rewards