Discover CBBC - Child development: your 4-6 year old

Making friends and resolving conflict

Between the ages of four and six, your child’s social skills will develop enormously and you might notice that they are starting to have favourite friends.

As they do so, they’ll inevitably fall out from time to time, and it can be hard to know when to step in. Read our guide for advice on when to intervene in playground conflicts.

Coping with change

At this age, your child is likely to be facing some major life changes – whether it’s starting school and being more independent, or perhaps welcoming a new baby sibling at home.

In the face of all this, structure and routine becomes even more important to them, and they’ll need to know that you’re available to talk through their experiences and help them make sense of the world.

Starting school

Whether they’re starting Reception, moving up to a new class, or you’re starting to home educate, your child’s first steps into formal education is a big moment!

Our parents’ blogs are a great resource, with real CBeebies mums and dads sharing their experiences of their little ones starting school and home education.

Learning together at home

It might feel as if your child’s teacher is the new centre of their universe sometimes, but research shows that what parents do to support learning at home accounts for 80% of a child’s academic success.

Feel like everything’s changed in the classroom since you were in Reception? Never fear, CBeebies Grown-ups can help you decode the jargon with our phonics refresher or our handy guide to maths for parents.

At this age, as children become more independent, you might find they increasingly want to make their own choices about how they entertain themselves – don’t be surprised if they come home from school talking about TV shows or websites you’ve never heard of before!

If they’re ready to make the jump to CBBC, there are lots of great introductory shows to get them started (like Dragon Riders, Minuscule, Arthur, Ooglies, Shaun the Sheep or Blue Peter). Find out more about them in this blog from the CBBC Controller.