While most children have "learned to read" by age seven, they are still building confidence in their fluency, vocabulary and reading comprehension skills as they grow into strong readers. Create a playful reading atmosphere at home by encouraging your child's curiosity about books and the world around them. Your example and interest in them will leave a lasting impression.

At age five, kids develop more stable friendships and social conflict among friends becomes inevitable. Kids are more likely to have conflict with close friends than with acquaintances because they spend more time with friends and have to negotiate different opinions, temperaments and styles of play. The good news is kids this age are highly motivated to solve these social problems because they care about the relationships. As parents, we can help children learn how to collaborate, cooperate, communicate, negotiate, self-advocate and respect others.

Emotions influence behavior. Part of growing up is learning how to manage our emotions and exercise self-control so that we can treat ourselves and others with respect. Five-year-olds can articulate the difference between appropriate and inappropriate behaviors and can often change their behavior with reminders (e.g., "Remember, we keep our hands to ourselves at school."). They can apply strategies they have learned for controlling their impulses but will need continued support from parents — particularly when they feel overwhelmed by emotions.

As a parent, you want your children to feel happy and confident about themselves. You also want them to have a healthy self-esteem. But at some point, your children may say things about themselves that will cause you some concern. Negative statements about their physical appearance, academic performance, athletic ability, peer interactions, or overall existence may be unexpected and unsettling as a parent.