Milestones: By the age of five

Hear it, get it
Your five-year-old can look at you when you talk to them and think about what you are saying. They can listen to and understand instructions, even if they are doing something else.

They can understand longer sentences with two to three parts, e.g. “Get a plate from the cupboard, choose a piece of fruit and sit at the table.” They can understand “how” or “why” questions, e.g. “How did the family escape from the bear in the story?”

• Play a game with your child: “Choose a pencil in a colour you like, then draw round your hand really carefully onto the piece of paper.”

• Talk to your child: “Why couldn’t the wolf blow down the house made of bricks?”

Words up
Your five-year-old can put words into the right groups, like animals, transport, food. They understand how to describe ideas like time (soon, early, late) shape (square, triangle) texture (soft, hard and smooth) size (big, small).

• Give your child the animal challenge: “What animal is this, “It lives in the jungle and is fierce with big teeth and has stripes.”

• Ask your child: “How many types of food can you think of in 20 seconds?

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Age 5-7 milestones

5 years > 7 years