Your little reporter

Your 4-year-old now

Conversations can sometimes feel like interrogations with curious, chatty 4-year-olds. A particular favorite now is the "wh" words: Where are we going, Mom? When will we get there? Who are we going to see? Why isn't Dad coming with us?

As part of her new mental abilities, she's getting all the connections put together. She wants to see the order of things. Another reason for the nonstop questions is that your child's vocabulary is exploding, and she wants to practice using words to probe her world. Intellectually, she's beginning to understand that there are reasons for things — and she wants to know what they are.

Try not to brush off questions, relentless though they may be. Keep your answers short and sweet. She doesn't really want a long-winded scientific explanation of why the sky is blue. When you get tired of answering, ask questions back instead: "What do you think?" If you notice a persistent theme to questions that show your child is really curious about something — say, clouds — visit the library together and check out a few books that fuel the interest. Who knows where her questions may take you? At the very least, you'll learn how to tell a cirrus from a cumulus.

Your life now

Perseverance is an important trait to model for your child. Studies show that people who are persistent — rather than those who have high IQs — tend to achieve greater success in life. Let your child see you going the extra mile, whether it's fixing something around the house or sticking with the same project such as a big book or a painting night after night.

* Hm.. agree betul dengan article nih ... bagi aku setiap soalan anak anak tuh perlu dijawab dengan penuh logic dan simple agar anak anak tuh boleh faham. Jangan sesekali menipu... yang paling banyak terjadi bila parents di soal dengan soalan biology.. soalan soalan tentang sex.. cam... bagaimana adik boleh ada dalam perut... cam mana mak lahirkan adik... cuba jawab soalan tuh dengan jawapan yang paling baik ... jangan cuba memutar belitkan jawapan.... sehingga anak anak tuh frust dengan jawapan kita.. dan kalau kita tak berapa pasti dengan jawapan yang hendak disampaikan .. cuba cari kat mana mana web atau pergi jer library mana mana untuk penjelasan yang lebih jelas...