The third year of life is a period of transition between toddlerhood and preschool, and children make much progress in all areas of development.  The most significant is in social/emotional development.  Three year olds can identify and talk about personal feelings, can identify and talk about others’ feelings, shows interest in helping, and can recite rules but cannot follow them consistently.   Even at three years of age, children show caring for those around them.  Empathy is elicited by concrete occurrences.  Today, a child came to school with a broken arm.  Every child was willing to help her throughout the day. For example, they helped her get her sandals, helped her wash her hand, helped her put away her cup, helped her play with toys, and helped her lay out her sleeping mat.  It was very heart-warming to observe.