At the age of 3, your bundle of joy is growing up fast and can barely sit still for even a minute! Every day is a chance for a new adventure, and he/she never runs out of energy. As proud parents do not miss out on these precious milestones and involve yourself in your child’s growth as much as possible.
Movement and balance are important skills that your child needs to develop as they grow. By 3 years of age, toddlers usually do not stop running until they go to sleep you will run out of steam, so be prepared to dash behind them all day long. During 36 – 42 months your child can hop on one foot without any support and ride a tricycle using pedals.

Cutting with a pair of scissors requires your little one to master a good grip and to be able to separate their fingers when they are cutting something. However, you should ensure that your child is always under supervision and is only cutting paper, instead of cutting everything in their vicinity. During 36 – 42 months of age, your child can cut paper using a pair of small, safe scissors.
Whilst they seem to be playing all the time, your toddler is constantly learning new things. Each adventure heralds a new experience for them. By the time your child is 36 – 42 months old, he/she can understand concepts like size, shape, colour, and numbers. In fact, learning shapes is an important concept for your little one to develop during this age, a skill that progresses to drawing complex shapes with time. During the age of 36 - 42 months, your child can draw or copy a basic shape such as crosses and squares. At the same time, your child starts identifying colours. With the wide spectrum of colours that exist, your little one is sure to find this a fascinating learning experience. He/she will initially find it easiest to identify the most common colours.
During 36 – 42 months your budding artist can identify at least 4 to 6 colours correctly. Three-year-olds learn brand new things while they play, talk to you, or engage in conversation with others. Numbers are an important concept that your little one starts to learn during this age. By the time your child is 42 – 48 months old, they can count up to 5, and answer correctly if asked ‘how many fingers am I holding up?’

 
Your child learns to speak by listening, hearing others speaking to them and mainly speaking on their own. As a toddler gets closer to 4 years of age, they are able to have interesting conversations with you, expressing their own point of view on things. During 42 – 48 months of age, your child has the ability to combine sentences with conjunctions like ‘and’, ‘or’, ‘but’.
By the time your child reaches the tender 4 years of age, they should be able to use the potty on their own, reassuring you that your little one will not need the constant change of clothes. By 42 – 48 months your child should be toilet-trained.
As your child develops and enhances his/her knowledge, watching you or the older siblings get dressed, toddlers begin to develop their own personality and their own sense of likes and dislikes. They will share and discuss their own choices of outfits for the day. By the age of 42 – 48 months, your child can dress and undress themselves without help, except is certain activities such as tying shoelaces.

Now that your child is already attending a Preschool or Montessori, it is time to form other special bonds. They play and interact with other children of their own age, and this is the perfect time for them to do so, as starting “big-school” is just a few years away. By 42 – 48 months your child will play well with other children and there will be little conflict and minimum supervision will be needed.
Expression of emotion is huge millstone toddlers of this age are able to achieve. From the days of crying jags to convey their hunger or smiles to express contentment, your toddler has developed into an observant little adventurer, mirroring your emotions and affections while understanding the meaning of being happy, angry, or sad. By the time your child is 42 – 48 months he/she can express a wide range of emotions and openly express affection.
Since your child is now more aware of the world he or she lives in, help them be ready for new places and meet new people. To give them prior experience, read stories and role play such situations. Co-reading with your child is so valuable. Also help them learn colours, shapes, and concepts such as size, weight or time using day to day experiences as it helps their later learning.
 

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