By the age of two years the average child can distinguish accurately between that which is food and that which is not fit for eating. The wrapping from candy or cookies or other well-liked food will be removed or torn away before an attempt is made to eat the food. Frequently this will result in great annoyance when the child opens sacks and packages to which he is not entitled.
The child at this age has usually learned to walk quite erectly without hesitation to any desired location. If the child is placed upon a “kiddie-kar” his first reaction is to run it backward, but by the age of two years he should be able to guide it well in going forward. Some attempts will be made at running and a great many attempts at climbing by the time the child has reached this age.
Three Years
At three years of age a child when asked to point out different parts of its body (nose, eyes, mouth, and hair) can do so without hesitation. Familiar objects, such as a key, a penny, a pocketknife (closed), a watch, and a pencil (common wooden) will be named at once if held out to the child with the question, “What is this?”
The pictures used in the Stanford Revision of the Binet test may be shown to the child with the direction “Tell me what you see in this picture,” or “Look at the picture and tell me everything you can see in it.” In response to such questions the child should be able to enumerate different objects, such as the little girl, the window, the chair, and the woman in the picture of the Dutch Home; or the men, the basket, and the newspaper in the picture of the Post office.
At this age the child has had enough experience to be able to repeat its last name and to know whether people call it a “girl” or a “boy.” The question should be asked in the following fashion: “What is your name?” If the answer is in terms of the given name only, then the question should be amplified as follows: “Yes, but what is your other name? Walter what?” If the surname is still not given, a fictitious one may be framed and the question asked in some such fashion as follows: “Is your name Walter Smith?” If the child is still unable to reply then it is probable that he does not know the family name or is too frightened to give it. In finding whether the child knows his sex the formula for a boy should be: “Are you a little boy or a little girl?” For a girl the question should be: “Are you a little girl or a little boy?”
At the age of three years a child should be able to repeat sentences containing six or seven syllables. Those used by Terman are: (1) “I have a little dog.” (2) “In summer the sun is hot.” (3) “The dog runs after the cat.” In leading up to these repetitions it is well to ask the child first to say single words, such as “school.” “Can you say school?” “Now say, ‘I go to school.’” Then ask the child to say “I have a little dog.”
Four Years
By this time the child should be able to distinguish between circles, squares, triangles, and other geometric forms. Ten drawings of circles, squares, and triangles should be presented to the child and he should be able to find one or two others just like the one to which the examiner points.
The child should by this time be able to count pennies or buttons, at least up to four, without any error. The child should be able to handle a pencil well enough so that a square one inch each way could be copied fairly well. The child’s memory has developed to such an extent that if four numbers are repeated to him at the rate of one per second he should be able to repeat them in correct order at once. Three trials should be allowed and at least one of the three should be right. By this time, also, a sentence of twelve or thirteen syllables should be remembered correctly. The sentences used by Terman are: (1) “When the train passes you will hear the whistle blow.” (2) “We are going to have a good time in the country.” (3) “The boy’s name is John. He is a very good boy.” The method of getting the child’s attention and leading up to these longer sentences is the same as was described under Year Three.