P-MELDS

Domain: Physical Development & Health

This document can be used for planning within this Domain.  You can type directly into the “My Planning” boxes.

Goal Topic

Element

Code

Indicators- 34-48 Months

My Planning

Wellness

Health
Knowledge
and
Practices

10a

Completes personal care tasks
with increasing independence.

Participates in structured and
unstructured physical
activities.

Regularly participates in active
games, outdoor play and
other forms of exercise that
enhance physical fitness.

Transitions from high-energy
to low-energy activities with
support.

Follows health routines with
support (versus
independently).

Cooperates during doctor and
dentist visits and health and
developmental screenings.

My Planning

Indicators- 46-60 Months
Identifies specific practices that
support body development and
function.
Independently demonstrates the
ability to wash hands, participate
in oral hygiene, and utilize proper
cough and sneeze etiquette.

Combines and uses different
senses depending on the activity.

Recognizes the importance of
doctor and dentist visits and
identifies the roles of a doctor
and dentist in maintaining
health.
Identifies medicine and knows
that it is used to stay healthy.
Understands what medicine is
and why it is used.
Identifies which school and
community health helpers are
needed in a given situation.

  MELDS Toolkit Funded by Preschool Development Grant #90TP0097-01-00, 2024

Cooperates during
developmental screenings.

Regulates own emotions and
behaviors.

Maintains physical growth and
well being.

Wellness

Physical
Health
Status

10b

Demonstrates body spatial
awareness in relationship to
stationary objects.

Participates in games, outdoor
play, and other forms of
physical activity.

Demonstrates an increasing
ability to perform self-care skills
independently when eating,
tooth brushing, dressing,
toileting, grooming.
Participates easily and knows
what to do in routine activities.
Observes basic hand and oral
hygiene.
Helps with routine care of the
environment. (e.g., composting,
trash pick-up, etc.).
Recognizes there are multiple
components of health.
Identifies physical changes in the
body that accompany moderate
to vigorous physical activity (e.g.,
heart rate increase, respirations,
etc.).

   Participates in sleep routines.
Participates in games, outdoor
activities like hiking, and other
forms of exercise to increase
movement and increase physical
activity repertoire.

Develops an awareness of
personal health and fitness.

Develops an awareness of
personal health and an
understanding of how to
advocate for themselves (e.g.,

  MELDS Toolkit Funded by Preschool Development Grant #90TP0097-01-00, 2024

Engages in adaptive physical
activities, as appropriate.

Makes nutritional needs/
interests known. (e.g., when
thirsty, asks for water,
verbalizes when hungry, etc.).

Assists with set-up and clean-
up at meal time as
appropriate to the setting, is
responsible for own area, and
gathers needed materials for
snack and meal time.

Child serves self to include but
not limited to taking food
from one container to
another, opening packages
accordingly, and serving bowl
to plate.
With support, participates in
nutrition related activities.
Recognizes and names people
who keep them safe in
dangerous situations.

Has an awareness of
strangers.

Wellness

Nutrition

10c

Wellness

Safety

10d

requests the calming corner,
speaks up when belly hurts, etc.).

Participates in moderate to
vigorous physical activities that
increase strength, endurance,
and flexibility, both
independently and in groups.

With support, child recognizes a
variety of health foods that come
from other cultures.

Identifies foods by their food
group, where they come from
(e.g., apples from trees, eggs
from chickens, milk from cows or
goats, etc.) and understands the
difference between healthy and
unhealthy food choices.

Shows a growing awareness of
proper nutrition and
independence in hygiene and
personal care when eating.

Engages in food preparation
when possible.
Identifies how people help keep
them safe in dangerous
situations.

Follows basic safety rules and
practices. Can respond
appropriately to harmful or

  MELDS Toolkit Funded by Preschool Development Grant #90TP0097-01-00, 2024

Develops awareness of and
the ability to follow basic
safety rules and practices.

Avoids hazardous chemicals
and unsafe materials.

Seeks adult approval before
approaching unknown pets.
Holds drawing, writing, and
painting tools with fingers and
thumb, creating more
recognizable drawings (letter
like symbols, shapes), but may
hold the instrument too close
to one end.
Develops increasing strength,
dexterity, and hand-eye
coordination to use hands,
fingers, and wrists to
manipulate objects.

Cuts paper in straight line.

Motor
Skills and
Movement
Pattern

Fine Motor  11a

unsafe situations, objects,
substances, and environments,
and can identify the
consequences of unsafe
behavior.
Demonstrates behaviors to
reduce personal health risk. (e.g.,
wearing a helmet while biking,
and applying sunscreen with
assistance, etc.).
Can identify potential unsafe
situations such as proximity to
wildlife and unknown pets,
talking to strangers, hazardous
chemical exposure, etc.
Follows emergency routines after
adult instruction.

Holds drawing, writing, and
painting tools by using a three-
point (tripod) finger grip, writing
more detail, and drawing more
recognizable facial features.

Can write letters, basic shapes
and lines and can draw more
recognizable facial features.

Continues to progress with use of
utensils independently with
limited support, including the
demonstration of spearing food

  MELDS Toolkit Funded by Preschool Development Grant #90TP0097-01-00, 2024

Completes interlocking
puzzles.

Develops ability to have
increased dexterity with
utensils.

Uses increased skill in self-
serving with little spilling
during meals, including
pouring and using tongs.

Moves purposefully from
place to place with control.

Motor
Skills and
Movement
Pattern

Gross
Motor

11b

Moves with an awareness of
personal space in relationship
to others.

Hops on one foot one time
without losing balance or
falling.

with a fork, scooping with a
spoon, spreading, and cutting
with a knife or other culturally
appropriate practice.

Demonstrates increased skills in
using scissor grip to cut shapes or
simple pictures while holding
paper stationary with other
hand.
Practice self-help skills including
buttoning, zipping, fastening,
tying etc.
Uses small, precise finger and
hand movements (e.g. picking up
small rocks and acorns or taking
seeds out of sunflower heads). ›
Uses fingers, hands, and wrists to
manipulate a variety of small
tools. (e.g., stapler, hole
punchers, spray bottles).

Coordinates complex movements
in play and games.

Understands movement
concepts, how the body moves,
an awareness of space and
directionality, and that the body
can move independently or in
coordination with other objects.
Demonstrates progressive
locomotive skills, successive
hopping, and forward jumping.

  MELDS Toolkit Funded by Preschool Development Grant #90TP0097-01-00, 2024

Jumps down from a step and
forward ten inches.

Walks forward and backward
along a line or a beam using
normal stride.
Walks up and down stairs,
alternating feet.

Develops motor coordination
and skill while using objects
for a range of physical
activities, such as pulling or
throwing.

Combines large motor
movements with the use of
equipment.

Has control over speed and
direction and balance such as:
running, sliding, galloping
forward, back, right, left.
Demonstrates body awareness
skills while participating in group
physical activities.
Manipulates objects with a full
range of motion.
Develops coordination and
balance using a variety of
playground equipment, outdoor
play, and/or naturebased
exploration (i.e. balancing on a
log).
Shows enthusiasm for mastery of
gross motor movements through
repetitive practice.

  MELDS Toolkit Funded by Preschool Development Grant #90TP0097-01-00, 2024

