Milestone Moments: 3 Years Old
Your little child has finally reached the 3 year mark. You will notice a lot of fine motor and speech milestones at this age, and not as many physical milestones. If your young one is 3 years old, here are some developmental milestones to look for during this year!
- Uses alternating gait when going up stairs and possibly when going down
- Rides a tricycle
- Runs easily
- Hopping may emerge
- Turns paper book pages one at a time
- Copies a circle and simple shapes with a pencil or crayon
- Turns doorknobs or door handles
- Puts on socks, shoes and/or pants without buttons
- Cuts on a line
- Washes hands independently
- Carries on conversations using 2-3 sentences
- Talks well enough for strangers to understand
- Knows and says name/age/sex
- Names a friend
- Plays make-believe with dolls/animals/people
- Follows instructions with 2 or 3 steps
For more details about milestones, below are some specific tips from some of our therapists.
Tips from a Physical Therapist
Below are some tips from a physical therapist on ways you can help your child achieve these milestones.
- Alternating gait upstairs – To strengthen the legs and encourage a more mature gait pattern, consider the following activities:
- Practice stepping up and down a single step. Start with a small step (4 inches) and work up to a standard step height (6-8 inches). Multiple repetitions will strengthen muscles, improve balance, and prepare for the next step. Place stickers on the stairs in an alternating pattern to show your child where to place his/her foot on each step (only one sticker per step, means only one foot per step).
- Fun idea: place a puzzle board at the top of the steps. Your child takes one or two pieces up the stairs at a time until the puzzle is complete. This idea can be adapted to just about any multi-piece toy.
- Rides a tricycle
- Look for a tricycle that has a push handle. The push handle can be used a little or a lot, depending on how much help the child needs. As they improve, assistance can be decreased and before you know it, your child will be pedaling all on their own!
- When shopping for a tricycle, I recommend trying it out. Look for one that the pedals move when the trike is pushed forward with the handle. This type of trike allows you to push your child forward and they get the feel of pedaling.
- Many times, it is necessary to start trike training by just having the child keep his/her feet on the pedals while you push them forward. Once they are able to keep their feet on the pedals when you are pushing, they are ready to start trying to push themselves.
- You can also try sitting in front of your child while they are seated on the trike and with your hands over their feet, help them pedal forward one rotation and then backward one rotation, assisting them through this forward and backward motion will help them initiate movement on the trike.
- Runs easily
- Using small orange cones (from a dollar store), set up shuttle runs. Practice taking objects from one cone to the next, turning, and running back to get another. For example, run blocks to the other end, stacking them one at a time with each trip.
- Practice a zig zag pattern weaving around multiple cones (may need to play “follow the leader” to help your child understand going in and out of the cones).
- Hopping may emerge
- Play imitation games (similar to Simon Says or imitate animals). This will help with body awareness and balance. Incorporate standing on one leg (“stand like a flamingo”), jumping on both legs (“hop like a frog”), and attempting to hop on one foot (“hop like a silly monkey”).
- Using sidewalk chalk, draw hopscotch patterns on the driveway. Instead of the standard hopscotch, you could also start with an easier activity such as an apart-together-apart-together pattern before trying a two feet-one foot-two feet-one foot pattern. Also, change up the pattern and let your child help draw the pattern.
- Working on hopping on one-foot multiple times in a row is also beneficial.
Tips from a Speech Therapist
Here are some tips from a Speech Language Pathologist on what you can do to help encourage speech development in your 3-year-old!
- Carries on a conversation using 2-3 sentences
- During play with their favorite objects or during their favorite activities, prompt them with open ended questions to respond.
- If unable to respond in 2-3 sentences, provide models in simple phrases for the child to imitate. For example, “My baby is sleeping. We must be quiet.”
- Talks well enough for strangers to understand
- If others are saying they cannot understand your child, have your child slow down their rate of speech and break it down into single words or shorter phrases to increase their ability to be understood by others.
- If they still are unable to be understood, refer to a speech language pathologist to assess their sound errors in words and determine if they are age appropriate or if direct intervention is necessary.
- Knows and says name/age/sex
- When talking about family members or friends they have, provide models of their names, ages, and gender.
- Example: Your sister’s name is Amelia. She is 1 year old and is a girl. YOU are a girl. YOUR name is Molly Kate, and YOU are 3 years old.
- It’s best to target each one of these one at a time unless they are catching on quickly, because it is difficult for them to remember more than 1-2 new concepts at a time when just learning.
- When talking about family members or friends they have, provide models of their names, ages, and gender.
- Names a friend
- Same as above. At dinner or in the car on the way home from school, talk about what the child did at school that day. Ask who they played with in centers, sat by at the table, played with at recess, etc. Become familiar with children that they are around and provide examples such as, “Did you play with Christian, Abby, or Will?” until they are able to spontaneously name a friend.
- When you arrive to the child’s class, ask them to name who is sitting around them at their table or in their center.
- Example: Your name is Molly Kate. What is her name? Her name is …
- Uses some pronouns and plurals
- Pronouns: When talking about family members or friends in different situations, emphasize the pronoun (he/she/they, you/me, etc.) to model it for your child. When they use them incorrectly, provide the model of the correct pronoun and have the child imitate you.
- Example: Amelia is playing in the tunnel. SHE loves to crawl. Where is SHE going? Do YOU want to crawl in there with HER?
- Example: If you child says, “Amelia is in the tunnel. I want to play with SHE,” then you model the appropriate pronoun, “You want to play with HER?”
- Plurals: While reading books, watching TV, playing outside, etc. model plurals while explaining to your child that there is more than one.
- Example: Do you see the horses? Look, there are three of them, three horses. Fisher has two dogs, Daisy and Archie. Can you count them? 1….2! 2 Dogs!
- Providing multiple models in conversation in natural environments is the best way for children to learn and absorb information.
- Pronouns: When talking about family members or friends in different situations, emphasize the pronoun (he/she/they, you/me, etc.) to model it for your child. When they use them incorrectly, provide the model of the correct pronoun and have the child imitate you.
- Understands some prepositions (in/out; on/off; under/over)
- There are lots of ways to determine if your child understands these concepts
- At home: Put the cup in the cabinet; take a fork out of the drawer; put it on the table; take it off the table
- Playtime: During play with a toy barn/animals, practice having the animals go in/out of the barn while saying where they are; put the chicken on the roof, etc.
- At school: Have your child help the teacher, or when cleaning up toys, practice putting things in/out of the toy boxes, on/off the shelves, reach under the table to pick something up, etc.
- There are lots of ways to determine if your child understands these concepts
- Plays "make-believe" with dolls, animals, and/or people
- The best way to do this is to provide models when you are playing with your child.
- Model pretend play with the child so they can imitate and participate with you.
- It’s okay to be silly!
- Follows instructions with 2 or 3 steps
- You can work on this during functional routines with your child
- Cleaning up: Pick up the blocks, put them in the bucket, and put the lid on the bucket.
- Preparing for meals: Get a napkin, put it on the table, and go get a fork.
- Getting ready for bath: Take off your clothes, start the water, and go potty.
- Hand washing: Turn the water on, get some soap, and rub your hands together.
- You can work on this during functional routines with your child
Tips from an Occupational Therapist
Your child is learning to be more independent, dressing and feeding themself. Your 3-year-old has a longer attention span which is critical for working on fine motor tasks. To maximize your child’s focus while learning fine motor skills, allow some time for movement such as jumping on a trampoline or playing at the park first. Learn more about your child’s fine motor development at 3 years with these tips from an Occupational Therapist.
- Folds paper in half
- Before working with paper, introduce your child to the concept of folding using something soft and easily foldable like a hand towel or tissue.
- Imitates you drawing a cross
- Your child can replicate vertical and horizontal lines after watching you model the action first.
- Try providing auditory cues to help your child understand the motion. For example, pretend your writing utensil is a train moving across the paper. Start vertical: “Chugga, chugga, chugga. Stop!” Then switch to horizontal: “Chugga, chugga, chugga. Stop!”
- Turns one page at a time in a book
- During your normal reading time, ask your child to turn the pages of the book as you read.
- Holds crayon using thumb and finger
- To teach a mature grasp, have your child grasp a broken crayon. With a smaller piece of crayon, your child is unable to use a “gross grasp.” Instead of holding the crayon with a fist, your child can use their thumb and finger to hold the crayon piece.
- Uses one hand more often than the other for most activities
- Hand dominance may appear between the ages of 2 to 4 years. If your child does not show a hand preference by age 5, consult your child’s primary care provider.
- The development of hand dominance indicates the hemispheres of your child’s brain are becoming specialized, or lateralized. If no dominant hand is emerging, this can create difficulty for the child when carrying out fine motor tasks.
- Builds a tower of up to nine blocks
- Your child should be able to vertically stack at least nine blocks independently. You can provide a model first by building your own tower and knocking it down. At 3 years, most children love watching the tower tumble, and they are more willing to repeat the activity.
- Puts together large linking blocks
- Your child uses more creativity when building with blocks. Take what your child is interested in building and expand on that to provide more of a challenge. This is called scaffolding. For example, if your child is building a tower, help them add a tunnel for a car to drive through.
- Try age-appropriate blocks such as Mega Bloks or snap blocks. Mega Bloks connect easily for small builds. Snap blocks can help strengthen your child’s hands and prepare them for self-care and fine motor activities such as snaps, buttons, and opening containers.
- Strings half-inch sized beads
- Start by having your child string beads onto pipe cleaners. These are more rigid and provide stability so your child can focus on lining up and orienting the beads. Once your child is comfortable, try stringing beads onto yarn or string.
- Cuts across a piece of paper
- Your child learns to open and close scissors to cut paper. Loop scissors are a great tool for teaching your child to close scissors. They are activated by a spring, so your child only has to focus on squeezing the scissors closed, and the loop scissors will open on their own. Then, practice the motion of opening scissors using a pair of safety scissors.
- Uses a fork to eat
- Your child should use standard adult utensils to feed themself. Some spillage during self-feeding is still normal at 3 years.
When should you seek help?
- Your child’s movements seem shaky or stiff.
- Your child’s arms or hands seem weak.
- Your child still holds a crayon with a full fist.
- Your child is unable to hold scissors and snip paper.
- Your child is unable to draw circles or straight lines.
- Your child cannot stack several blocks into a tower.
If you feel your child could benefit from any of our services, please Contact Us today to get started.