Questions tagged [pre-schooler]
Age specific questions from about 3 years to about 5 years. Younger: toddler. Older: primary-schooler.
759
questions
153
votes
16
answers
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The teacher erased 3 pages of my 5 year old's completed homework
I have a 5-year-old smart child. He does his homework as neat as he can. Yesterday, he stayed up for an hour doing 3 pages of homework as good as he can and today when checking his copy-book, I found ...
108
votes
10
answers
37k
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If my 5yr old is an exceptional liar, should I expect that she will continue lying as she gets older?
I have a gorgeously adorable 5 year old daughter who over the past 6 months or so has developed a bent towards lying. Adorable + lying = bad recipe for a pushover dad (I'm really not, I may be mushy ...
87
votes
13
answers
17k
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How to teach children Santa is not real, while respecting other kids beliefs?
So I personally dislike the idea of Santa. Although the Siberian Santa Claws and Turkish Saint Nicholas origins are very cool, I find then contemporary concept of Santa is the antithesis of 'Christmas ...
83
votes
16
answers
37k
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How to convince a 4-year old child that professional cyclists are not littering during a race?
We were watching a Cycling Tour on TV yesterday and my 4.5-year old son saw that after having drinks or chocolates those cyclists were throwing the empty bottles/wrappers on the roadside.
I ...
71
votes
15
answers
21k
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How to answer my 5 year old why I can tell her what she has to do, and why she can't tell me what to do
In the morning there are lots of things to be done before heading off to preschool. I'm acting like a policeman every morning to get those things done and to push my child to go out. Every day I have ...
58
votes
4
answers
15k
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My 4-year-old refers to himself as me
Literally. Sometimes he will ascribe himself properties I have, and make me the child--he'll say "I'm a grown-up", "You can't sit in the front seat [in our car], it's not safe, I have to sit in the ...
56
votes
11
answers
11k
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How can I make my kids passionate in science while being religious?
Please be considerate in your answers.
We are an observant jewish family, although I was educated in secular institutions. I feel that I have a wealth of knowledge that I want to pass to my kids ...
53
votes
12
answers
12k
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How can I be more sympathetic towards my children when they are injured?
I have a 3-year-old son who throws tantrums a lot. I told him not to stand in front of the door as someone may open from the other side and injure him. Someone really opened the door and the door ...
51
votes
10
answers
15k
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Should I try to long-distance parent or will I do more harm than good?
My long distance ex and I have a 4 year old son and we're trying to figure out what to do post-breakup.
A little backstory, we've always been long distance (different countries) and we've been very ...
49
votes
6
answers
16k
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Should I encourage/persuade my 3 year old to watch kids TV shows that she finds scary or upsetting?
My 3 year old daughter is quite sensitive and empathetic, and subsequently finds some of the kids TV shows aimed at her age group too scary, worrying or upsetting to watch. Even televised productions ...
48
votes
13
answers
6k
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As an atheist, how should I explain theism to my children?
I have two competing interests here and I'm not entirely sure how to handle this. On one hand I feel that the short answer, to questions about gods, of "some people believe that, but it's not true" is ...
47
votes
8
answers
39k
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My 4 year-old says she doesn't love her mom
My 4 year-old daughter keeps saying to her mom that she doesn't like/love her, and refuses to retract the comment or say sorry. Is this "normal"? A "phase"? It's pretty hard for mom to take.
For ...
45
votes
30
answers
15k
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My pre-schooler is out of control, and I feel like my parents are undermining my relationship and authority with her
Alright, I guess a little back story would help. I am a single mother and an only child, I will be 21 in a few months. I've graduated high school with honors and have been raising my daughter on my ...
45
votes
17
answers
19k
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Our 3½ yo girl is frustrated by not being able to colour within the lines
As most kids, my daughter loves to draw and colour pre-printed templates. She started quite early (on her own, improvising with any paper that had outlines on it), then progressed rather quickly from ...
44
votes
10
answers
11k
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Foreign student required to learn and recite the pledge of allegiance in Kindergarten (U.S)
My daughter started attending kindergarten this year, and her teacher is requesting all the students to learn and recite the pledge of allegiance.
I have no problem with the pledge itself, the thing ...
43
votes
5
answers
15k
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How best for a trans/non-binary person to respond to their 6-year-old cousin asking if I'm a girl or a boy?
I have twin 6-year-old cousins (a boy and a girl) who I usually see about once a week or so, when the locally-resident segment of my family get together for dinner on Friday evenings. Yesterday, when ...
42
votes
4
answers
5k
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How to prepare children for impending death of a parent?
My wife has been told that she has a limited amount of time left due to an illness, the average life expectancy is 7-8 years after onset, of which we have used up 7. With excellent management, and ...
41
votes
9
answers
13k
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If my 4-year-old asks me "why", what kind of "why" does he mean?
My 4-year-old asks me questions like "Why is water transparent?" What kind of "why" does he mean?:
What sense does it make for water to be transparent?
How is it achieved that water is transparent?
...
40
votes
12
answers
12k
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How to answer my 4-year-old asking where she was when I was small and how she got in my tummy?
My 4-year-old daughter knows that she was in my tummy and then the doctor took her out. She saw my childhood photos and asked me where she was at that time.
She has also asked me how she got in my ...
40
votes
9
answers
12k
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How would you explain COVID-19 lockdown to a 4 year old?
How would you explain COVID-19 lockdown to a 4 year old given that the lockdown might be in place for months in London?
39
votes
5
answers
28k
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Does scaring children really traumatize them?
I'm not talking about scaring as a way of enforcing desirable behaviour, like "eat your veggies or the bogeyman will get you". I'm not even talking about serious scares like faking somebody's death. ...
37
votes
10
answers
6k
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What are the objective arguments against immunizations for infants and children?
There has been a lot of talk lately about the alleged harmful (potential?) side effects of vaccinations/immunizations for infants and children. What are the objective arguments against immunizing?
36
votes
11
answers
14k
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Raising a bilingual kid. When should we introduce the majority language?
We are a family living in an English speaking country with a 3-year-old. My wife and I speak both French and English and we are committed to raise our kid bilingual in both languages. So far our ...
32
votes
3
answers
12k
views
Is it ok for parents to kiss and romance with each other while their 2- to 8-year-old child watches?
I'm not a parent yet and still in my 20s. I was wondering if it's ok for a kid (between the age of 2-8 years) to watch his parents kiss and romance with each other. By romance I mean holding your ...
32
votes
10
answers
8k
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I want to teach my children the power of compound growth, what are some demonstrations that they can be a part of?
Like all parents, we want our children to lead happy lives. One of the critical components to that is giving them the mental tools and experiences so that they can make good economic decisions in ...
32
votes
10
answers
26k
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Is 5 years old too old for a stroller?
One of my daughters is still begging for her stroller despite me attempting to wean her off of it. I occasionally allow it for long outings that could be a little tiring for her little feet, but on ...
31
votes
11
answers
17k
views
My son started kindergarten and doesn't like writing his name. How should I think about this?
My son did his first day of kindergarten last Friday.
On his first day of school he came home and said, "I had to write my name lots of times on sheets of paper. I didn't like that."
My son ...
31
votes
7
answers
10k
views
My husband (her father) jokes/plays in ways my daughter doesn't always find funny, he says he should be able to do it if he wants
My daughter is 5. Sometimes my husband (her father) will try to 'play' with her by pretending to be a lion, going roar and pawing at her in a playful manner. Sometimes she's okay with this and has fun,...
30
votes
9
answers
86k
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How and when should I tell my son that his amazing father isn't his biological father?
My son is going on 5 and starting to learn a lot about how we're created. I've been with my husband for 10 years, but nearly 6 years ago I had no other choice but to move 1000 miles away and after ...
30
votes
8
answers
37k
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What are some ways to teach a child how to spit (after brushing their teeth)?
Typically, this is something you don't want out of a child. My 4.5-year-old has been brushing his own teeth for about a year. The problem is that I can't convey to him to spit out the toothpaste. I ...
28
votes
10
answers
17k
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5yrs old being bossy... Is this too much or tolerable at this age?
My daughter is nearly 5yrs old and goes to kindergarten. Recently her classmate's (call her A) parent reports to the class teacher that my daughter bosses A verbally to the point that A refuses to go ...
28
votes
8
answers
102k
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At what age should opposite-sex siblings stop bathing together?
When should I stop bathing my son and daughter together? What signs can I watch for that would indicate that they should be separate? Also, what are the average ages in the US and other countries and ...
28
votes
10
answers
204k
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My 5 year- old daughter is constantly defiant!
My 5-year old daughter is very defiant.
It started getting bad about 6 months ago. She doesn't do what she is told, and any time she hears the word "no" she throws terrible, dramatic fits, screaming ...
28
votes
9
answers
7k
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Can a punishment be devoid of any "violence"?
If parents give a spank to their child, this is considered violence and as such frowned upon - and in some countries simply a crime under the law.
In my observation, parents who don't want to spank ...
28
votes
7
answers
7k
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How can I deal with stealing at school (by other kids)?
My 5-year-old has just started kindergarten (Australia). Today he came back home and said another bigger child stole a toy he was playing with (a beyblade).
"He is such a bully, dad - he just ...
28
votes
5
answers
1k
views
What to do with many painted pictures/ handicraft work
Our son produces tons of painted pictures and handicrafted things.
We like them very much, but we are not sure what to do with them, as they need a lot of space, storage and time.
It is not easy for ...
28
votes
4
answers
13k
views
How can we potty-train our pre-schooler outside the home?
We're having problems with our 3.5 year-old boy concerning potty training:
Since his birth it seems, that being cleaned is much more unpleasing to him than running around with brimful diapers for ...
27
votes
8
answers
14k
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Why my kids don't get excited to see me
We have been living with my wife brother for 3 years now, My kids are very excited whenever their uncle comes from door and not me. This sort of hurt, not sure why but what my kids (almost 7 and 2) ...
26
votes
4
answers
14k
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5 year old is completely uncurious
My 5 year old daughter is completely uncurious and this is rather surprising to me. I have grown up around many children in India and observed many kids in the UK too. With that as the vantage point, ...
26
votes
13
answers
39k
views
How can I get my 4 year old to clean up toys without a battle?
Multiple times during the day, we have our 4 year old take a break from playing to clean up her toys. It's a huge battle every time. Usually, she ends up on the ground saying that there are too many ...
26
votes
7
answers
3k
views
How do you stop a child from talking back without discouraging them from asserting themselves?
Our 3.5 yo is starting to talk back to us in the typical futile yes/no/yes/no pattern of opposites. The other day it was hooking his straps on his car seat; I asked him to put his arms in (like we ...
25
votes
12
answers
9k
views
How can I convince my child to write?
Recently my child(3.5 Years old) has joined a pre-school class. A couple of months passed and he participated in all types of activities and events. He has also learned oral words. Sometimes feel he ...
25
votes
10
answers
9k
views
How early should you teach children how to code?
At what age should I expose my child to coding in order to see if they like it?
Some argue that 5-6 years old is a good age to start coding (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6). I am looking for answers based on ...
25
votes
9
answers
8k
views
How to help a child accept when an activity is over
My five-year-old really struggles with moving from one activity task to another.
For example, we tell him we will only do a certain activity for x amount of time and then be done. It doesn't matter ...
24
votes
9
answers
7k
views
Should children be encouraged to get themselves or their clothes dirty?
I'm not a parent myself, but I frequently look after two siblings of close relatives. While the girl (3 years) does not have a problem with wiping hands in pants or getting in any other way ...
24
votes
5
answers
39k
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At what age can/should a child be able to clean themselves after bowel movements?
How can parents find the right time to encourage a child to clean itself after bowel movements?
Our son is nearly 4 years old and it is still difficult for him to get to the toilet early enough (see ...
23
votes
4
answers
2k
views
How to deal with others' children who do not respect my authority?
What are some good strategies for dealing with misbehaving children who are not my own?
The children in my son's kindergarten class
do things to me or to my son which they should not do like ...
23
votes
9
answers
26k
views
How can I get my 4.5-year-old to stay in bed at bedtime?
Lately my 4.5-year-old son has started getting back up after bed time.
Frequently we will go through the entire bedtime ritual, including a bath, pajamas, brushing teeth, books, and then being tucked ...
23
votes
2
answers
2k
views
5yr old Addicted to Mobile Devices - Need Advice!
So it started when he was 2yrs old, we gave him his first bad habit.. eating while watching youtube videos. It worked, he ate well..like a zombie. (Parent Fail #1).
Now at 5, he LOVES playing a ...
22
votes
9
answers
151k
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At what age does a toddler stop being a toddler?
I just told someone on parenting that a baby becomes a toddler when it starts moving around. The question which came back was "what age does a toddler stop being a toddler?".
That got me searching, ...