4 Important Things to Teach Your 3-Year-Old
4 IMPORTANT THINGS TO TEACH 3-YEAR-OLD CHILDREN
By: Kak Eka Wardhana, Rumah Pensil Publisher
Moms and dads, 3-year-olds are in the golden age of child development. So, to truly maximize this golden age, what should they be taught? Here's a summary of an article written by Amy Morin:
1. Developing Physical Skills
3-year-olds are developing gross and fine motor skills, as well as toilet training. Gross motor skills include walking straight, walking backward, jumping, practicing balance, pedaling, and catching a large ball.
Fine motor skills include washing and drying hands, dressing themselves with minimal assistance, turning the pages of a book, and holding a writing utensil with their fingers.
To ensure all of this develops properly, parents must be willing to let their children move around and practice their motor skills; they must avoid excessive restrictions or restraints.
2. Introducing Emotional Expressions
3-year-olds are still familiar with expressions of anger. Separation from their mother or caregiver can easily make them cry. They often use simple words to express emotions, such as: "I'm angry!" or "I'm happy!"
To help children recognize emotional expression, parents help them by introducing simple words for their feelings. Introducing these emotional expressions is important so children can express their feelings appropriately, allowing adults to help them accordingly.
3. Supporting Social Development
Three-year-olds begin to learn from parallel play (playing with friends without interaction) to interactive play (playing while interacting with friends). Children also show empathy and concern when a friend is sick or crying.
Parents can support this social development by letting children know which objects belong to them and which belong to others to prevent fighting. If a child becomes aggressive, parents intervene and defuse the situation.
4. Supporting Cognitive Development
Cognitive development (how to think) includes recognizing the alphabet and numbers, speaking and expanding vocabulary, playing, recognizing colors, shapes, and more.
To help 3-year-olds develop their cognitive abilities, parents should engage in frequent conversation, answer all their questions, and occasionally ask them questions. Parents should also read books frequently and engage their children in conversations about the storyline and characters.
Hope this is helpful. Greetings, Smart Parents!
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