Your 3-year-old
Your child's growing world now includes everything from time in the dentist's chair to playdates with friends — and maybe even preschool. A better grasp of manners comes in handy now, as does a patient parent to teach fun new skills and help with potty-training backslides.

Imaginary friends
Been asked to set an extra place at dinner for an imaginary friend yet? As many as half of preschoolers have a pretend buddy. These phantoms don't mean your child is lonely or maladjusted. In fact, kids with imaginary friends are more likely to grow up to be creative, cooperative, sociable, independent, and happy....read more

Learning colors
Three-year-olds are beginning to learn colors. They can usually point to a color when asked and may be able to name four or more by midyear. Some fun ways to help them nail this skill:....read more

Handling bed-wetting
Even if your child is basically potty trained by now, you can expect accidents, especially at night, for months or even years to come. Staying dry at night is the last step children master, and it tends to be harder for boys than for girls. But rest assured, most kids grow out of bed-wetting naturally. Most physicians don't consider it a problem until age 5 or 6....read more

Your little chatterbox
No more games of charades to decipher what your child wants. Thanks to his improved diction and amazing grasp of grammar, you should be able to understand more than three-fourths of what he's saying now. He uses longer sentences (three or more words) and a growing vocabulary (300 to 1,000 words — too many for you to count) to make himself understood....read more

Figuring out friendship
Your ever-more-independent child is probably starting to develop some friendships. But don't be surprised if, when you ask who her friends are, she recites her entire preschool class list. She doesn't fully understand the meaning of friendship yet. She may have favorites, but to her a "friend" is pretty much anybody she spends time with....read more

Easy as 1-2-3
Ask most 3-year-olds how old they are and they'll proudly raise the correct number of fingers. Your child is starting to realize that those fingers he's holding up correspond to a number that has actual meaning. Don't be surprised if "three" is his favorite number — and the answer to every "How many?" question — for a while!....read more

Catch this, kid!
Some call it the perfect toy. It doesn't require batteries, you can play just about anything with it, and chances are, you already have several at your house. What is it?....read more

Say cheese
Your child probably has a full set of primary teeth. (The last of these, the second molars, usually come in by 24 months.) Though these baby teeth won't begin to fall out until 5 at the earliest (and more typically at age 6 or 7), it's important to keep them clean and cavity-free. Teeth are vital for proper chewing, and baby teeth create spaces for your child's permanent teeth....read more

Take that, teddy!
Preschoolers often work out complicated emotions in their play with animals, dolls, blocks, cars, or other playthings. A traumatic doctor visit, for example, could result in your child lining up all her teddy bears for shots. If she witnesses a car crash in real life or on TV, she may repeatedly smash toy trucks together....read more

Mix up story time
Picture books are still the mainstay of a preschool reading diet, but it's a good idea to mix up your child's library. Some tips:
• Don't overlook nonfiction. There are some great introductory books out there about everything from animals to trucks....read more

And...cut!
Some parents feel skittish about putting a pair of scissors into a 3-year-old's hands, but most threes are ready to try. Learning to cut promotes fine motor development by exercising the muscles in the hands and honing hand-eye coordination....read more

Manners matter
Preschoolers love to party. To help your child stay on the guest list, use these early invitations as an opportunity to teach him party manners that will help him his whole life long....read more

These days, you're probably wondering whether your big little kid is ready to ... wash his own hands? join a soccer team? enjoy seasonal traditions? learn a bit about the birds and the bees? Here are some guidelines to navigating 3-year-old life.

Social commentary
You're cruising down the cereal aisle when your preschooler spots a man in shorts with a prosthetic leg. He stares and asks, in a loud voice, "Daddy, what's wrong with that man's leg?"....read more

Birds and bees
Are you prepared for that eternal question, "Mom, where do babies come from?" A little preparation in advance about what you'll say can reduce the fluster factor:....read more

Hand-washing 101
If you were to stick your child's fingers under a microscope, you'd see a long and potentially scary record of where she's been all day. She may still be putting things indiscriminately into her mouth. If she's in preschool, she's sharing germs with all her classmates. Plus she may be using the bathroom by herself. All good reasons for making hand-washing part of her daily routine....read more

Say what?
It takes time for your child to learn how to describe what he wants to do or have someone else do. He's depending on you to model social s for him. For example, every time you say, "Excuse me," before you have to interrupt a conversation, your child picks up on the idea that this is a way to gently break in without barging in....read more

Creating family traditions
Traditions that revolve around birthdays, holidays, and seasons help to create strong families. Think back to your own childhood. Can you remember the smell or taste of a special birthday cake your mom used to bake? Or the excitement of going to the pumpkin patch year after year?....read more

How much TV?
No one can deny the power of television. The question is how much power you want it to have in your child's life....read more

Team player?
Your little one dazzles you with her strong kick and confident run. Should you sign her up for an organized team?....read more

Road to reading
Pass by those golden arches and your child blurts out, "Look! McDonald's." Recognizing symbols is one of the first steps in learning to read. While most children won't be ready to read on their own for another couple of years, many kids this age are what's called "pre-emergent readers."....read more

Two steps back
It's hard work being a kid, and when there's a big change in the familiar world your child has come to count on — the start of preschool, a divorce — she may regress. Regression is taking a few steps backward from a skill previously mastered. She may start wetting her pants again, insist that you spoon-feed her, or lapse into baby talk....read more

Getting handy
Before your child masters writing and brain surgery, he needs to build the muscles in his hands and wrists and learn to use them precisely. Ten great ways to help him develop dexterity:....read more

Tracking growth
Time to get out some pictures or videos of your child at 1 or 2 and compare how much bigger and stronger she is, how much more confidently she moves. You'll notice other physical differences, too. She's taller now and her limbs are leaner — she's taken on the proportions of a "big kid." Most 3-year-olds have lost most of their toddler belly by now....read more

Your little storyteller
As your child's language skills evolve, he'll start to tell you more elaborate stories. Hooray! Storytelling is a great step in a preschooler's development....read more

You have good reason to be impressed with your 3-year-old. She's a master at her puzzles, she can help with simple chores, her imagination knows no bounds, and she may even be attempting to write her own name.

Facing fears
Bedtime fears are common for preschoolers. But children can be frightened of anything from loud noises to the idea of being abandoned by Mom and Dad. This makes sense: Now that they're more independent and can leave you, they also begin to realize that you can leave them....read more

Magical thinking
Learning to distinguish between fantasy and reality is a gradual process. During this year, your child is at an interesting juncture. He still practices what developmental psychologists refer to as "magical thinking," assigning traits to objects or people that are impossible but seem logical to your child's early reasoning abilities....read more

Can-do kid
"Look at me! Mom, look at me!" your preschooler calls as she zooms down the slide — headfirst. Her growing bravery on the playground may make you wince sometimes, not that she notices. She loves showing off new skills. As well she should — she's enormously proud of them....read more

Name writing
It's exciting when your child's scribbles begin to look more like real letters. Some threes even start writing their name, or a few letters of it. But writing is one of those developmental milestones that varies greatly from child to child. Don't stress out if your child isn't even interested in writing....read more

Tantrum tamers
She's 3, but still having tantrums. Although she's older, when she's upset she's every bit as emotionally primitive as she was as a toddler. (And, brace yourself — it's not unusual for occasional tantrums to pop up through the fours and beyond.) When your child is in full-meltdown mode, don't try to reason with her, no matter how advanced her language skills are....read more

Pitch perfect
You might wonder if your child is headed for a future in the theater if you watch her play sometimes. Three-year-olds spend a great deal of time supplying dialogue to their dolls, imitating adults' conversations, and using different kinds of voices for different characters — high little voices for babies and deep and powerful ones for superheroes, for example....read more

Preschooler proof
As your child becomes more physically capable, this is a good time to insist on some basic safety goals....read more

Grammar quirks
You thought your child had the language thing down. Now you hear him making grammatical mistakes he never seemed to make before.

Don't worry. This is normal. As preschoolers pick up grammar rules, they tend to apply them in all cases. This is called over-regularization....read more

Ready for chores?
Three-year-olds are eager helpers. Everything — even household chores — looks like fun, especially if you're doing it. While you may not want your preschooler to help you chop vegetables, she's more than ready to start doing simple tasks around the house. So take advantage of her enthusiasm before she stops offering....read more

It's time
Children vary widely in how well they grasp time. At 3, your child may understand sequence (he did it first or last) and how long something takes (a long or short time). But concepts like the past (yesterday) and the future (tomorrow) can be murkier....read more

Puzzle time
Puzzles can be great teaching tools. Puzzles made up of letters let your child feel their shapes, which helps her learn which letter is which. Puzzles with animals and other objects do the same. Your child also begins to realize that many parts create a whole....read more

Read it again!
If you read that book about a family of dinosaurs one more time your head will explode. What can your preschooler possibly see in it? As exasperating as the repetition is for you, it's exactly what your child needs. That's how he learns....read more

Lots of questions come up as your child approaches his 4th birthday: Is it okay for him to use the computer now? Will he ever eat anything that's not white? How can he tell me blatant lies? Is that drawing supposed to be me?

The sillier the better
Preschoolers love visual humor, and you don't need to be Robin Williams to get them guffawing. Tap into your silly side and become a master of the absurd....read more

Ready for the computer?
Computers can be great learning tools, and software for preschoolers is plentiful — but this kind of play is by no means necessary at 3. If your child seems very interested and you're prepared to keep close tabs on his play, look for games and websites that promote art creativity or math and reading readiness, stressing skills like counting, letter recognition, and patterns....read more

Gift of coordination
If your child can't do some physical things that her peers can, should you worry? Probably not. Coordination not only takes time, it's also very individual. Some kids are more coordinated than others from an early age and remain that way all their life. Others seem destined to earn the nickname Butterfingers, although of course they'll never hear it cross your lips....read more

Your little linguist
What sounds like nonsense coming from your preschooler's lips is actually a sophisticated kind of language experimentation. He might call his little brother a "pootie" or say, "Look at that prettyful flower." He may call a fountain a "crash water," an invented term that's really pretty clear. These creative concoctions crop up more often as he develops better language skills....read more

Why lie?
If you haven't heard your child tell a whopper yet, don't be shocked if the day arrives soon. She may vigorously deny having broken your antique china cup even if you saw her do it. Why? It's not malicious, you'll be glad to hear. If the incident happened more than a few hours ago, she may truly not recall it, for one thing....read more

Your child's imagination
What's one of the all-time best gifts you could give your child? A box. Seriously! A large carton can become a spaceship, a grocery store, a car, a house. It can provide more hours of emotional, intellectual, and social stimulation than any fancy electronic toy....read more

Your budding Picasso
To help your child benefit from making art:
• Don't direct her work or try to teach her how to draw or make a specific thing. Give her the tools and then step out of the way.
• Lay down some newspaper on the work surface or a tarp on the floor and then let your child be messy (within reason, of course)....read more

Yuck it up
Funny-sounding words or names, rhymes, and silly songs amuse young children endlessly — they're fun to pronounce and sound delightfully "wrong." To cultivate your child's sense of humor (which, incidentally, is thought to be learned, not inherited), try these ideas:....read more

Time for class?
Planned lessons, classes, and activities abound for 3-year-olds, but sign up with care. Activities can easily become too much. Preschoolers who have every moment planned for them don't learn how to entertain themselves, stunting their imagination, creativity, and independence. Even if you like to keep your child busy during the day, downtime is as essential as activity time....read more

Using your senses
Ever learn a new scientific principle or rule of grammar by setting it to music, a la "Schoolhouse Rock"? Research has shown that children may learn best when more than one sense is engaged at the same time. So, when your child is learning to write letters, have him trace the letter in a plate of sand or sugar....read more

Yech...peas
Preschoolers are seldom gourmands — they're too busy to be too interested in food, Some kids, though, are more adventuresome eaters than others. If you have one who tilts to the finicky, you need to walk the fine line between haranguing and giving up. If you force foods on your child or try to make her clean her plate, she's apt to dig in her heels....read more

A is for Aaron
Your child may or may not know how to write his name. But you can prime the pump by letting him see his name in lots of places. Often 3-year-olds recognize the letters (or just the first letter) of their name. They can't yet "read," but this kind of symbol recognition is a key pre-reading skill....read more