The world of a child at 3-6 years old
At this age, children develop an increased awareness of themselves and their world. They eagerly attempt new tasks and play activities. When they are successful, children gain self-confidence and learn to steer their own lives. When attempts fail or the child is criticized, he or she may feel guilty, incompetent, and helpless.
At this age children see the world from their own point of view. They are also curious and ask many questions, for example, “Why is the sky blue?” As they experience success and pleasure exploring the world and finding out new things, their self-esteem begins to develop and grow.
This is a time of enormous social, emotional, and intellectual development and children begin to enjoy playing with other children. It is important to support their curiosity and their joy in learning.
Did you notice?
The environment is:
- Noisy
- Busy
- Varied activities at the same time
Socially, children need to:
- Work cooperatively
- Participate in small groups
- Converse in pairs, small groups, and in the larger group
- Choose between activities
- Manage changing from one activity to the next
- Understand and comply with the rules of the classroom
- Learn directly from another and also incidentally
Children need to be able to:
- Indicate if their technology is not working
- Inform if they cannot hear
- Focus in noise
- Be able to choose and make decisions
- Navigate a socially complex situation