The nurse is observing his 2-year-old hospitalized patient in the playroom. The nurse is most likely ...

B
The child beside another child and playing is exhibiting parallel play, characteristic of a toddler. Participating as a group leader does not usually occur until around age 5 . Preschoolers (ages 3 to 5) demonstrate their ability to think more complexly by classifying objects according to size or color. A 2-year-old child does not have this ability yet. The play of preschool children becomes more social after the third birthday as it shifts from parallel to associative play. However, gender does not become a factor until the child reaches school age, when she prefers same sex peers to opposite sex peers.