Age 4–5: Preschool
"Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds... Teach them to your children..." – Deuteronomy 11:18–19
Your child is stepping into a new world—kindergarten, new friends, and new responsibilities. Spiritually, this is a beautiful time to deepen faith rhythms and prepare them to ask big questions and build trust in God's Word.
Your child is stepping into a new world—kindergarten, new friends, and new responsibilities. Spiritually, this is a beautiful time to deepen faith rhythms and prepare them to ask big questions and build trust in God's Word.
FAITH MILESTONES
- Use their First Bible regularly
Encourage your child to “read” their Bible by looking at the pictures and retelling the stories. Read with them and let them ask questions—even silly or hard ones! - Practice prayer in their own words
Ask them: “What do you want to thank God for?” and “Who can we pray for today?” - Explore worship participation
Invite them to stand, sit, and sing with the congregation. Let them follow along with parts of the service—offering, Lord’s Prayer, etc. - Talk about forgiveness
Help your child understand when they’ve hurt someone and what it means to say “I’m sorry” and “I forgive you”—and that God forgives too. - Introduce giving and serving
Let them bring a coin for offering or help collect food for a church pantry. Show them that they belong to the Body of Christ through active love. - Introduce the church year
Use Advent candles, Easter readings, and Holy Week visuals to help your child begin recognizing the seasons of the Christian calendar.
DEVELOPMENTAL MILESTONES
Children in this stage begin to take initiative, test boundaries, and explore more structured learning.
Children in this stage begin to take initiative, test boundaries, and explore more structured learning.
- Physical: Fine motor skills (writing, coloring, cutting), improved coordination
- Language: Full sentences, story sequencing, asking more complex “what if” questions
- Cognitive: Recognizing letters, numbers, patterns; beginning to problem-solve
- Social-Emotional: Growing empathy, learning group cooperation, developing deeper friendships, dealing with disappointment
PARENTING ENCOURAGEMENT
This is a transition for you, too. As your child steps into a new stage of independence, your role shifts—but never disappears.
📖 Scripture for parents:
This is a transition for you, too. As your child steps into a new stage of independence, your role shifts—but never disappears.
📖 Scripture for parents:
“Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it.” – Proverbs 22:6
- You’re building lifelong faith not in grand gestures—but in small, repeated ones: bedtime prayers, Sunday worship, forgiveness shared at home.
- Let your child see you growing in faith too—reading Scripture, praying, forgiving, and worshiping.
- It’s okay to not have all the answers. Your child’s questions are invitations to walk with them in wonder, not quizzes to pass.
- Be patient with big emotions, new fears, and clumsy faith. God is forming both of you in this season.
