At this age, children are becoming increasingly mobile, communicative and independent.

You may notice your child beginning to:

Movement

• Run with increasing confidence

• Walk up and down stairs with support

• Kick and throw a ball

• Begin jumping with both feet

Hands + Play

• Build simple block towers

• Turn pages individually

• Make marks and simple lines with crayons

• Use a spoon with increasing independence

Everyday Skills

• Help with dressing and undressing

• Participate in simple routines

• Begin showing awareness of toileting

• Eat a wider range of foods and textures

Social + Regulation

• Engage in pretend play

• Play alongside and increasingly with other children

• Express a growing range of emotions

• Follow simple routines and instructions

At this stage, you may notice your child beginning to:

Eating + Self-Care

• Use a spoon and fork with less mess

• Tolerate a wider variety of food textures

• Help with dressing

• Begin managing simple clothing and toileting routines

Fine Motor + Visual Motor

• Draw lines and circles

• Stack blocks and build simple structures

• String beads

• Begin cutting and folding paper

Movement + Coordination

• Run and jump

• Balance briefly on one foot

• Kick and throw a ball

• Navigate stairs with increasing coordination

As children approach school age, everyday tasks begin requiring greater coordination, attention and independence.

You may notice your child beginning to:

• Balance on one foot

• Hop and navigate playground equipment

• Catch and throw with greater accuracy

• Use pencils and scissors with increasing control

• Draw recognisable pictures and simple shapes

• Manage many dressing tasks independently

• Follow multi-step routines

• Participate in group activities

• Take turns and negotiate during play

• Manage transitions with increasing independence

During the early school years, children continue developing the physical, organisational and social skills needed for increasingly complex tasks.

You may notice your child becoming more able to:

• Coordinate running, jumping, hopping and ball skills

• Use pencils and classroom tools with greater control

• Complete familiar self-care routines

• Follow multi-step instructions

• Organise themselves for familiar activities

• Maintain attention for longer tasks

• Participate in structured group activities

• Navigate friendships and classroom expectations

• Manage emotions with decreasing adult support

Not necessarily. Milestone ages are guides and there is normal variation between children. It's more useful to consider the overall pattern of development, whether skills are continuing to progress and whether difficulties are affecting everyday participation.

Consider seeking professional advice when a difficulty persists, your child is struggling across several developmental areas, everyday activities are significantly harder than expected, or your child loses a skill they previously had.

An OT can assess your child's functional development and identify areas where additional support may be beneficial. Where concerns fall outside the OT's scope or require further investigation, we can recommend discussing these with your GP, paediatrician or another relevant health professional.

Assessment is tailored to your child's needs and may involve discussion with parents or caregivers, observation, play-based or functional activities and standardised assessments. The goal is to understand your child's strengths and challenges and determine appropriate next steps.

Families can generally contact Hunter Functional Health directly about Occupational Therapy. Some funding pathways may have additional referral requirements.