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Figuring out the foursWow, four years old already! If three year olds are busy, inquisitive and fun, four year olds are all that, magnified — yet with a budding maturity, self-control and understanding of rules that help make life a bit calmer. Wariness around new people wanes, and your child will probably enjoy making some new friends soon.

The name game You might have spent months picking out just the right name for your child. And now she''s mighty proud of it. Young children come to feel very possessive about their name - and the letters that make it up. One of the first words a child tries to spell, in fact, is her own name. This often happens months before she has much interest in spelling other words.

Ready to read?Comparing your child''s abilities to her peers'' is an irresistible impulse that persists long after those infant developmental milestone charts have been left behind. Among parents of four year olds, reading is a topic that can cause a lot of anxiety, especially when those first few children start reading. Whether you have an early bird or a child who''s more on track with her age-mates, what''s important now is to keep the books coming.

Feeling for othersEvery parent wants their little one to treat others as he would like to be treated himself. It will be easier to teach your child this concept now that his empathy, or sensitivity to other people''s feelings, is advancing. Even though he can''t quite think through other people''s reactions all the time, he''s capable of naming many feelings and reaching out with a hug when someone''s sad. And that''s huge!

Learning coloursOrange, blue, green, red, purple, yellow - learning colours is fun for most preschoolers. The trick is lots of practice. Fortunately, colour is everywhere, so you can easily drop references to it into conversations, asking your child to bring you the blue socks or remarking that you''re serving him green peas on his yellow plate. During a walk, see how many red objects you can find together.