4 year old milestone list

The local kindergarten has a list of things kids age 4 should be doing or be able to do by the time they enter kindergarten.

INTELLECTUAL DEVELOPMENT

* can place objects in a line from largest to smallest
* can recognize some letters if taught, and may be able to print own name
* recognizes familiar words in simple books or signs (STOP sign)
* understands the concepts of "tallest, biggest, same, more, on, in, under, and above"
* counts 1-7 objects out loud - but not always in the right order
* understands the order of daily routines (breakfast before lunch, lunch before dinner, dinner before bed time)
* speaks in fairly complex sentences. "The baby ate the cookie before I could put it on the table."
* asks a lot of questions, including ones on birth and death
* enjoys singing simple songs, rhymes, and nonsense words
* adapts language to listener's level of understanding. To baby sister: "Daddy go bye-bye." To Mother: "Daddy went to the store to buy food."
* learns name, address, and phone number, if taught
* asks and answers who, what, when, why, and where questions
* continues one activity for 10-15 minutes
* names 6-8 colors and 3 shapes
* follows 2 unrelated directions (put your milk on the table and get your coat on)
* has basic understanding of concepts related to number, size, weight, colors, textures, distance, position, and time
* understands immediate passage of time as in what happened yesterday, but does not understand calendar time
* has long attention span and finishes activities
* understands and remembers own accomplishments
* may ad "ed" to words. "I goed to the door and put-ed the cat outdoors. He hurt-ed me."

Long like Rapunzel's & Tea time

Some time around Leah's 3rd birthday she informed me that she wanted "hair as long as Rapunzel's". I explained to her that hair like her's, similar in texture and curl to my own, has to be taken care of, especially when it is kept long. She agreed to deal with the upkeep and ever since then it has been growing long. Hard to tell when it is dry and curly, as it curls up right to her shoulders. The actual length is about mid back.

Our hair routine may be different from other people. She does not wash her hair every day. That is terrible for coarser hair and especially bad for curly hair. It is conditioned with leave in conditioner on a regular basis. Washed about twice a week. For people who wash their hair every day that may seem kind of gross but it isn't. Try washing curly hair everyday and you get a big frizzy knotty mess on your hands. Her hair is deep conditioned at least once a week. It is never brushed. Always combed with a wide tooth detangling comb. It is important not to brush curly hair. Sometimes I let it air dry but on a day like today Leah asked that I braid it for her.



For dessert tonight Leah wanted tea and biscuits.

We made two small servings in my tea pot (present from Ruth).



Leah loves having tea.

Salute!

Since being told the oldest of my brothers Ernie has joined the Armed Forces Leah has been working on perfecting her salute.



Took some pictures of her running around out front.

Leah's angry/pouting face:

Sanrio <3

When I was a child through my teens (and even now) I absolutely loved Sanrio's characters. Before the company's items became popular in the US and easily accessible the only places to purchase their toys were FAO Schwartz, local Japanese toy store in our neighborhood in the Bronx and Chinatown. My favorite character was Keroppi. Leah's favorite Sanrio character is Hello Kitty but she has a fondness for Keroppi and Pochacco. She just had to get this shirt when she saw it the other day. She paired it up with the skirt and tights. She has a good fashion sense.

Leah's Choice

Leah picks out her clothes for schools most days. This was today's outfit.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

My Leprechaun

Night out

We went out to eat tonight. We went to Shiro of Japan. Good food. It is a Japanese hibachi steak house. We had about a 30 minute wait. Leah entertained us with her dance routines while we waited.

Purplicious

Leah's consistently favorite color is purple. She revels in the opportunity to wear it head to toe.

The color of royalty back in the day. Purplicious Princess Leah?

Snow Day

From Princess Leah

Ready...Set...Go!

From Princess Leah

From Princess Leah

From Princess Leah

From Princess Leah

From Princess Leah

After the cold, rosy cheeks, runny nose.

The Whistler

On February 2nd Leah was heard screeching and jumping up and down. When asked what all the excitement was about she said "I JUST WHISTLED!!!" Then she proceeded to try to recreate the moment but couldn't and was quite frustrated at being unable to show us her newly discovered ability. We told her to be patient and continue to practice and she would get it.

Two days later she did and kept going at it and now nearly a month later she can whistle and be heard doing so. She is quite proud of her new ability.

Next on her list:
snapping her fingers.