Guam Early Learning Guidelines for Children 3 to 5 Years Family Guide Book Pages 1-2 Hafa Adai! Thank you for using the Guam Early Learning Guidelines for Children 3 to 5 Years - Family Guide Book. These guidelines describe behaviors and skills that children at these ages may demonstrate and how you as a parent can support their healthy development. This booklet includes information on the domains of development--cognitive, gross motor and fine motor, language and literacy, self-concept and social emotional, and creative development. Each domain includes what a child learns to do, what a child can do to show what they are learning, and what you as a parent can do to help your child learn and grow. How to use this booklet The first column tells you what your child is learning to do. The second column tells you what your child can or may be doing at three, four and five years old. Don’t be alarmed if your child doesn’t do all the things listed at each particular age. The third column gives ideas for activities you can do with your child to help them learn or strengthen the skill. The last column gives you a place to write what you see and hear your child doing. We hope the Guam Early Learning Guidelines for Children 3 to 5 Years - Family Guide Book is a valuable resource for you and your child. Enjoy! Table: 4 columns, 1 row I. Fine Motor Development First Column: Child learns to Look at their environment and practice motions that develop their small muscles. Second Column: What child can do At 3 years old: 1. Builds block towers. 2. Draws shapes like circles, squares, and triangles. 3. Undresses without help, but will need help dressing. At 4 years old: 1. Builds block structures that extend upwards. 2. Draws shapes together to make a picture. 3. Undresses and dresses without help. At 5 years old: 1. Uses a computer keyboard. 2. Builds block structures that resemble buildings. 3. Begins to write first name. Third Column: What you can do Children need encouragement so they can appreciate and learn how to enhance their strength, balance, muscle control, and coordination. Have paper, crayons, paints, and pencils on hand to practice drawing, coloring, and painting. Use empty boxes and containers as blocks to build towers and buildings. Give children the chance to tie, lace, button, and snap their own clothes and shoes. Fourth Column: Notes (blank) Page 3-4 Table: 4 columns, 1 row First column: Child learns to Look at their environment and practice motions that develop their large muscles. What child can do At 3 years old: 1. Walks without looking at feet, walks backwards, and runs at an even pace. 2. Jumps off low steps or objects, climbs stairs, and begins to ride a tricycle. At 4 years old: 1. Walks heel to toe, skips, and runs. 2. Stands on one foot and balances for 5 seconds or more. 3. Begins to climb jungle gyms or jump on trampolines. At 5 years old: 1. Walks backwards quickly, skips, and runs very easily. 2. Walks on a balance beam, jumps over objects, climbs without help, and jumps rope. Third column: What you can do Use masking tape to make straight and curved lines on the floor to help with balancing skills. Limit television viewing and encourage children to run, jump, and play outside. Have children pretend to walk like different animals—inchworm, crab walk, bear walk, bunny hop, frog leap, and elephant walk. Play games such as kickball, tetherball, balloon volleyball, and basketball. Take children to the park or playground to play on the swings, slides, and monkey bars. Take children to the beach for water play and swimming under close adult supervision. Fourth column: Notes (blank) Pages 5-6 First column: Child learns to Depend upon relationships with peers and adults to build a “sense of self” and to see themselves as learners. Second column: What child can do At 3 years old: 1. Plays along side other children until they get to know them. 2. Needs help understanding how to share, take turns, and switch from one activity to another. At 4 years old: 1. Starts to learn how to play with others. 2. Starts to share and take turns with other children. 3. Begins to notice when others have new clothing or shoes. At 5 years old: 1. Cooperates with others, especially with friends at school. 2. Tells how they feel, using the right words and actions. 3. Begins to show self-control when dealing with frustration and disappointment. 4. Tells you their name, gender, age, hair and eye color, and family roles (mother, father, sister, brother, etc.). 5. Follows schedules and typical classroom routines and transitions. Fourth column: Notes (blank) Pages 7-8 IV. Communication, Language Development, Literacy First column: Child learns to Interact and grow in an environment that is rich in language and that allows them to boost their communication skills. Second column: What child can do At 3 years old: 1. Makes up words to fit their needs. 2. Uses simple sentences with 3-4 words to tell what they need. 3. Likes simple finger plays and rhymes, and learns words to songs that have a lot of repetition. 4. Has 2,000 to 4,000 words in his/her vocabulary. At 4 years old: 1. Speaks in 5-6 word sentences. 2. Begins to show how they feel using facial expressions. 3. Starts to control how loud or soft he/ she speaks. 4. Has 4,000 to 6, 000 words in his/her vocabulary. At 5 years old: 1. Uses more than 6 words in a sentence. 2. Takes turns in a conversation. 3. Tells a story of an experience he/she has had. 4. Likes to act out roles, engage in pretend play. 5. Has 5,000 to 8,000 words in his/her vocabulary. Third column: What you can do It is important for children to learn language and practice communication skills so they can express themselves in different ways in various settings for different purposes. Increase their language and communication skills by engaging in meaningful experiences where they are free to express their ideas, feelings, and thoughts well. Respect and incorporate the rich diversity of children who may come from different cultural backgrounds and who may speak languages other than English. Children should be given a rich foundation in literacy to ensure they are prepared for Kindergarten. Read books, sing songs, and recite poems/rhymes. Fourth column: Notes (blank) Pages 9-10 V. Vocabulary Development First column: Child learns to Process the way he or she views objects or events in the environment; mental activities such as discovering, interpreting, sorting, classifying, and remembering. Second column: What child can do At 3 years old: 1. Makes mechanical toys work. 2. Matches an object to a picture in a book. 3. Plays make-believe with dolls, animals, & people. 4. Sorts objects by shape and color. 5. Completes puzzles with three or four pieces. 6. Understands concept of “two”. At 4 years old: 1. Names some colors correctly. 2. Understands the concept of counting and may know a few numbers. 3. Tries to solve problems from a single point of view. 4. Begins to have a clearer sense of time. 5. Follows three-part commands. 6. Recalls parts of a story. 7. Understands the concepts of “same” and “different”. 8. Engages in fantasy play. At 5 years old: 1. Counts 10 or more objects. 2. Names at least four colors correctly. 3. Understands the concept of time better. 4. Knows about things used every day in the home (money, food, appliances). Third column: What you can do Give your child many opportunities to learn, experience, and grow. Give your child puzzles and blocks to play with and build things. Encourage pretend-play games. Old Halloween costumes make good dramatic play outfits. Set up stuffed animals like a petting zoo. Use play dishes or paper plates and plastic spoons to make a pretend restaurant. Fourth column: Notes (blank) Back cover: Guam Early Learning Guidelines for Children 3 to 5 Years Family Guide Book The Guam Early Learning Guidelines was first developed in 2005 through funding from the Department of Public Health and Social Services Child Care and Development Fund. This book was produced with funds from the Guam State Advisory Council Grant from the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Administration on Children and Families, and the Department of Public Health and Social Services Project Bisita I Familia, and facilitated by the University of Guam Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities Education, Research, and Service (Guam CEDDERS) and the Guam Early Learning Council.