Developmental Red Flags 3 to 4 Years
Gross Motor Development
Child is not meeting developmental milestones |
Child walks funny |
Child walks on his/her toes all the time |
Child is excessively clumsy |
Something appears wrong with child’s legs and/or feet |
Child complains of persistent pain or fatigue |
Child’s skills are regressing |
Fine Motor Development
His movements seem shaky or stiff |
Her arms and hands seem very weak |
He is not able to cut along a straight line |
She is not holding her crayons or pencils with her thumb and fingers |
He is not able to draw a circle, square and cross (+) – |
She is not able to put on her own shirts, pants, socks, and shoes (with some help with fasteners) |
He is not able to feed himself well with a spoon and fork |
Eating & Drinking Development
Regular coughing or choking during eating |
Taking a really long time to eat a meal (more than 30-45 minutes) |
Getting sick often with pneumonia or chest infections – |
Gurgly, hoarse, or breathy voice after eating |
Less than normal weight gain or growth |
Lots of leakage of food or liquid from the mouth |
Coughing, gagging, or throwing up during or after meals |
Stuffing mouth with food |
Holding food inside pockets in mouth for long periods |
Difficulty accepting new textures of food |
Avoidance behaviours to specific foods and textures (gagging, vomiting, blocking the spoon with hands or closed lips, crying, pushing food away, etc.) |
Refusing to eat more than a few foods, or refusing to eat anything from one of the food groups |
Being extremely rigid about how food is prepared or how it is served |
Abnormal bowel movements that last longer than a few days (diarrhea, constipation, loose stool) |
Skin reactions to foods (dry patches, hives, rashes) Note: If your child seems to be having a severe allergic reaction to a food (difficulty breathing, turning red, developing hives or rash on the face/chest), you should seek medical help immediately |
Communication Development
Not easily understood by others |
Difficulty putting sentences together |
Lots of grammatical difficulties in their sentences |
Difficulties with concepts such as prepositions (position words such as behind, beside, etc.) colours, size, categories. |
Doesn’t ask questions |
Doesn’t follow verbal directions |
Social & Emotional Development (playing with others, controlling emotions)
He is not interested in playing with other children |
She is not able to share or take turns with other children |
She wants to be dependent on her caregivers for everything |
He is extremely “rigid” about routines, and becomes extremely upset when things are changed |
She has extreme difficulty separating from you |
He is too passive or fearful, and does not want to try things other children his age are doing |
She has extreme fears that interfere with daily activities |
Understanding and Thinking Development
She is not able to name the basic colours and shapes |
He does not understand the concept of past, present, and future |
She is not interested in pretend play |
She constantly moves from one activity to another and is not able to stay with an activity for brief periods |
He is not able to understand the rules of a basic game, such as Memory, Lotto, or other preschool games |
She is not able to tell you basic facts about herself (full name, age, city she lives in, street name, etc.) |
He is not able to count 5 objects |
She does not recognize her name when she sees it printed |