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44 to 50 Months:

Write out made-up stories, then act them out with mom and dad as audience.

Cooperative play is great fun for your child, so provide times to spend with other children the same age. Develop a baby care co-op. Find a mother or two with children your child's age and set up a play schedule. Your child will have a chance for fun and learning with others, and you will get some time for yourself to talk to the other mothers

Write out made-up stories, then act them out with mom and dad as audience.

Cooperative play is great fun for your child, so provide times to spend with other children the same age. Develop a baby care co-op. Find a mother or two with children your child's age and set up a play schedule. Your child will have a chance for fun and learning with others, and you will get some time for yourself to talk to the other mothers.

Explore all the playgrounds in local parks and schools. Your child will love the variety of places for physical activities.

Play with elaborate puzzles with 18 to 25 pieces.

Legos are good additions to your basic wood blocks. Encourage your child to name and make up a story about everything that is built.

Make a list and then take a trip to the grocery store. Talk about the groups of foods, and let your preschooler hold the coupons. Show your child which items to cross off the shopping list.

Sort through clothes. Talk about how small your child was when wearing the things that are too small, and how much bigger your child will be next year.

Talk about yesterday and try to remember as many things as possible.

See who can remember the most.

Make a pretend house under the table. Invite each other for a picnic.

Make a number book: Cut out magazine pictures and glue one on the page with a 1, two on the page with a 2, etc.

Go on an outside scavenger hunt. Find a small leaf, a big leaf, a round rock.

Use markers and glue to make animals, people, and bugs from your rocks.

Cut strips of colored comics and glue loops together for a chain to celebrate a birthday or spring or just for fun.

Use a deck of cards to match the numbers.

Have your child help plan the weekend. Having pancakes for breakfast and a walk to the playground are reasonable requests you might not know about unless you include your child in the planning.

48 to 62 Months

Cut out paper snowflakes or paper dolls.

Decorate a small box with paint and macaroni for tiny treasures.

Decorate a large box with paint or magazine pictures as a treasure box to store toys.

Cut out paper snowflakes or paper dolls.

Decorate a small box with paint and macaroni for tiny treasures.

Decorate a large box with paint or magazine pictures as a treasure box to store toys.

Shop at a different grocery store and talk about how things are the same and different.

Cut out coupons from the paper together and then sort them by groups.

Talk about your feelings and the feelings of playmates and of people in stories and on TV.

Watch TV with your child and talk about real and fantasy during commercials.

Fly paper airplanes.

Plan and pack a bag lunch to eat outside or during a walk.

Help your child joyfully anticipate kindergarten.

Become part of pre-school library hour.

Attend school concerts and plays. Your child will be fascinated watching "big kids."

Walk by the kindergarten rooms, the bathroom, and the library each time you visit school with your child. Encourage the "my school" feeling of ownership with your child.

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