More on Four

There is one four-year-old girl in particular that I have been working with quite a bit this week. Upon meeting her you quickly realize that she is really, really smart and has a wild imagination. That being said, she understands perfectly well what is going on around her (in terms of doctors, medicines, ect.) which makes it very hard to trick her into doing what needs to be done. Unlike most four-year-olds, telling her it won't taste bad or it won't hurt does not work. She is also very insistent on doing what she wants, when she wants, and how she wants it done. She is certainly quite a handful.

While working with her, I have found subtlety is key. I do things like; "Yes you can paint my nails," then let her do it, but later ask if I can re-do them myself, (so they can be neater), but gets to pick the colors this time. Reasoning with a four-year-old directly may not work, but indirectly, it does.