The Frustrating 4s

Characteristics

Inquisitive This stage is the age of many questions. Even when answers are given, the four-year-old continues to ask "Why?"
"yes..yes..yes" day in day out, "why this, why that?" Keatkeat will be 4 on 2nd November, so I think he is starting to show his Age 4 characteristics...
Think of it this way, deep in you, you want your child to be knowledgeable, or even more intelligent than his/her peers...
So other than ABCs and 123, which he learns in school, who else can he learn general knowledge from? YOU! How would you feel, when he say something or do something that create a "Wow! that's a smart boy!" response from a stranger, and your child said:"Mommy taught me that." *wink*
To all great moms of the universe: Take a deep breath and answer the questionssssss...

Talkative Because of their increasing capacity for language, children now tend to talk incessantly. This can often frustrate and wear out the adults!
*Laugh* yes...it can really bring up the blood pressure sometimes...but by just sitting back and looking at his energy, his enthusiasm, his relentless spirit, the intensity in his voice. You really can't help but to be so amazed, "why have I lost that type of energy, 'cos I strongly believe that I once had that when I was 4years old."

Emotionally Unpredictable Children at four can often burst into laughter or tears at the same time! There are also sudden bouts of anger but the squalls are over quickly.
Thank God! The squalls DO GO AWAY QUICKLY...

Lively and Sociable Full of energy and life.
How they enjoy being with other people now!

High Moto Drive The swings, the monkey-bars, the jungle gym, cycling...their need for muscular movement drives the four-year-olds to frequent activities.
Whenever its not raining, after his nap, he would definitely ask: "Playground is not wet already, we can go play now, right?"

Tips for Handling Four-year-olds

• Encourage the child to ask questions. If you don't have an answer, find out the answers together with the child - look up an encyclopedia, visit the local library, etc.

Do that! Its fun learning TOGETHER. You will be surprise at the number of things he noticed and asked you, and Ooops, you don't know the answer! Huh?! Didn't "you eat more salt than he eat rice?" - that's how we say it in Chinese to someone that should be more knowledgeable in comparison.

• Encourage lots of large motor skills activities. Allow them to climb, swing, ride a bicycle, jump, etc. Be sure to take safety precautions so that the child can play heartily.

Safety first, never forget.

• Talk to your child, read to your child. Build on his vocabulary skills. Allow him to participate in your conversion.

Occasionally, when my husband and I are in a not-too-serious kind of conversation, we would ask Keatkeat's view. He loves to give his views, man!

• Provide opportunities for your child to have social activities. let them invite friends home for a party, or have a popcorn night.

My husband has two elder brothers, all married with children. Every Sunday, we would bring the kids to their grandparents' house, everyone will come together. We call it the 'family day'. That's the regular time for the kids to mingle and update each other what new toys or gadget they bought over the week. .....and a time for parents to relax...phew!