This “first puberty,” as often described by Waldorf pedagogues, usually happens between 5.5 and 7 years old. Changes you will start to see in your child experiencing this new phase look like:

1st: Physical Changes: During this phase, your child will begin losing baby teeth and getting adult teeth. They will begin losing their baby fat, and their limbs start lengthening. They may also experience growing pains in their legs.

2nd: Emotional Changes: As your child begins to develop feelings of empathy and compassion, they may appear more sensitive than previously.
You might hear phrases from them like “Everyone is mean to me. No one likes me. You don’t love me”. Don’t take these comments too seriously because in a day or two (or even within the hour) you will likely witness your child change their perspective. As you notice these changes in emotional expression, be sure to loop your child’s teacher and any other caregivers in to what is going on and to keep that line of communication open. Keep in mind that in your child’s world, this IS their whole world, and emotions will feel very heavy. An incident with a friend might feel devastating, but then the next day, they may be best friends again. Honor their feelings while keeping in mind they likely will evolve or change relatively quickly.
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3rd: Intellectual Changes. You’ll start to see differences in the way your child plays and the way they come up with ideas. You may start to see that your child takes more time to set up their play than actually play as they become the director instead of the actor. Most challenging will be how they start to test your boundaries. This is a new and different round of limit testing than the toddler years. Don’t be surprised if all the sudden they start arguing with you or outright refusing what you ask them to do, and telling you fabricated and exaggerated stories. Recognize that this is to be expected and not to cave in. Hold your boundaries with love, respect, and understanding and soon your child will be centered again. Don’t mistake their curiosity and growing intellect as a need to answer every question. There can still be a sense of wonder. Remember our parents didn’t have google!