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Original poster

Children knowing when their birthday is?

33 replies

LightUpShoes · 11/04/2023 15:47

Went to the park this afternoon with DS 3 and a little girl was wearing a birthday badge saying she was 5 today. My child whilst playing together told this little girl when his birthday was and was asking the other children when there birthdays were, several of the other children didn't know and the conversation moved on.

Whilst supervising DS and making small talk with the other parents a few of them they thought my child was very unusual in knowing what month his birthday was and that it wasn't actually that common for a 3 year old to know what month they were born in. I appreciate it would have been more unusual if he knew the exact date or how long it was until his birthday but surely between 3-4 most children know what month they were born in?

So I'm curious how old were your children when they knew what month their birthday was?

OP posts:
transformandriseup · 11/04/2023 17:10

My almost 4 year old knows it's almost her birthday yet doesn't know what month it is even though we often tell her. She just doesn't grasp time yet but we are not worried as she will just get in a bit later.

JenniferBarkley · 11/04/2023 19:13

I think at three it's just one of those things some kids have learned to parrot as the answer iykwim - they might know their birthday is in March, but it's not like they know what February or April are, or how long a month is, or even if March is any time soon. I think it's more normal for them to know the season of their birthday as that means a little more to them at that age.

My eldest is 5 this week and so is of course obsessed with birthdays. She knows the date of her birthday now but that's recent and she's only recently started to show any understanding of what a month is.

pimplebum · 11/04/2023 22:09

My daughter is 10 and doesn't get it right SEN

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Zola1 · 11/04/2023 22:18

My 4 year old definitely knows when his birthday is, and Alexa reminds us every morning when he asks how many days until the date

Reugny · 11/04/2023 22:36

Ithurtsthebackofmyeyes · 11/04/2023 16:42

My two year old knows his exact birthday, and mine, and his dad’s and his grandparents’. He can recite the month and day. It didn’t occur to me that that might be weird.

Being able to recite things and to say things where the meaning is understood is different.

But then I was a mean aunt in my 20s....

MargaretThursday · 12/04/2023 00:04

It depends on hearing people talk about it, and their interest.
Dd1 knew from 2yo... But didn't know her colours until 3.5yo.
Dd2 wouldn't have had a clue, but was reading fluently by 3yo.
Ds at 3yo would have given you a date very confidentally... But would have been one of his sister's birthdays. He'd also have told you he was 6yo and probably a dog.

That gives you a little insight into their interests and personalities.
Dd1 did maths at uni and still likes facts and figures. Dd2 loves stories and drama, and ds wanted to grow up and be like his big sisters and loves animals.

Saltired · 12/04/2023 00:15

JenniferBarkley · 11/04/2023 19:13

I think at three it's just one of those things some kids have learned to parrot as the answer iykwim - they might know their birthday is in March, but it's not like they know what February or April are, or how long a month is, or even if March is any time soon. I think it's more normal for them to know the season of their birthday as that means a little more to them at that age.

My eldest is 5 this week and so is of course obsessed with birthdays. She knows the date of her birthday now but that's recent and she's only recently started to show any understanding of what a month is.

Exactly.

A kid being able to parrot their birthday doesn’t actually mean they understand the concept of the passage of time, the length of a day, week, month, the order of the days of the week, the order of the months of the year, and so on.

My daughter was probably about 4 before she grasped this concept. Maybe older, actually.

She didn’t know her date of birth because we didn’t specifically teach her that fact. It made no sense to teach her, since she had no idea how to conceptualise time. She knew lots of other things instead, though.

There is a difference between knowing something through rote learning and understanding it.

SkankingWombat · 12/04/2023 00:44

At 3, my DCs knew the month and season their birthday was in, but they had no idea of the concept of what either was, so used them interchangeably if asked. DD1 learnt her exact DOB at 4-ish, whilst DD2 was a bit later at around 5yo. DD1 was quicker to learn our full address too (4yo), but DD2 was quicker with our phone numbers (it took her 30mins per number to learn mine and DH's mobile recently at 6yo. She'll now call me with reminders whilst I'm at the supermarket 🙄).

I would say knowing their full birthday at 3yo is less common, but not really unusual IME.

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