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Four-Year-Olds

Cognitive Development

 

Intellectual Skills

  • recognizes upper and lower case letters

  • begins to recognize the sounds that letters represent

  • understands and recognizes legal first and last name

  • understands comparatives

  • understands more abstract words

  • incorporates verbal directions into activities

  • follows 3 unrelated commands in sequence

  • locates numbers on a sequential number line

  • comprehends questions

  • comprehends prepositions

  • sorts and classifies by color, size, category

  • matches letter,shape,number cards

  • comprehends 1-1 correspondence

  • adds and subtracts numbers of objects

  • makes simple estimations and predictions

  • understands time relationships (yesterday,today,tomorrow)

  • recognizes the characteristics of seasonal changes

  • perceives God as a loving presence

 

Language Skills (oral,aural,written,)

  • engages in wordplay, silly songs

  • listens to longer and repeated stories

  • understands the sequencing of a story (beginning, end)

  • tells and retells a story

  • describes artwork

  • adds details to story

  • draws pictures to illustrate a story or event

  • draws stick figures with more details

  • makes up own stories and verses

  • describes familiar people/objects in pictures

  • names body parts in picture or on self

  • prints most upper and lower case letters

  • prints own first or whole name using upper and lower case letters (D’nealian style)

  • counts 1-50

  • asks “when” “how” “why” questions

  • repeats directions

  • states his own address and phone number

  • participates in group sharing

 

Social-Emotional Development

 

Independence

  • expresses likes and dislikes

  • manages feelings, needs, and impulses

  • follows routines independently

  • accepts responsibility and consequences for behavior

  • attends to activities for longer periods

  • makes appropriate choices

  • pursues individual goals

  • understands consequences

 

Interrelationships

  • collaborates, cooperates, and shares willingly

  • shows empathy and remorse, helps others

  • accepts responsibility and consequences as a group member

  • forms friendships

  • engages in interactive play

 

Physical Development

 

Large Motor Skills

  • slides, hops, rolls

  • catches a ball

  • pumps a swing

  • climbs

  • begins to clap rhythmically

 

Small Motor Skills

  • uses smaller brushes, crayons, markers

  • manipulates smaller objects with purpose (e.g. puzzles,play-doh, beads, Legos)

  • draws simple shapes (e.g. square, circle, triangle)

  • uses scissors to cut simple shapes

  • opens containers and packages

  • zips and snaps

  • snaps fingers

Our curriculum  is based upon the philosophy of learning through play. It is organized around three major goals: Cognitive Development, Social-Emotional Development and Physical Development. Under each goal are developmental skills which the teachers use as objectives in planning thematic learning units and daily routines. All children will not master these skills at the same time. The teachers encourage them to progress through the curriculum and to achieve their maximum potential in preparation for kindergarten.

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