Developmental Milestones
We’ve made it easy to know any-age child’s
key developmental milestones. Using our
Head-to-Toe system, our child-experts included the major stages of development in
key categories such as Imagination, Language and Dexterity and more…broken-out in
simple-to-grasp 3-month blocks of time.
Below are the typical skills a child learns and develops for each age group. Please keep in mind that all children develop at different speeds. If your child is not able to do all of
these functions, do not be alarmed. If you believe that your child is behind in learning
and developing these skills please consult
your pediatrician.
Newborn
Newborn
IMAGINATION |
- Plays with a rattle
- Briefly looks at objects
- Attempts to imitate facial expressions
- Seeks to make eye contact with an adult
|
EDUCATION |
|
LANGUAGE |
- Moves in response to a noise
- Quiets to a familiar voice
- Looks at speaker and smiles at them (two months)
- Begins to coo and laugh
- Has a "special" cry for hunger
|
DEXTERITY |
|
LOCOMOTION |
|
SOCIAL |
|
EMOTION |
- Demonstrates generalized tension (0-1 month)
- Shows delight and/or distress
|
3 Months
IMAGINATION |
|
EDUCATION |
- Repeats enjoyable activities
- Finds partially hidden objects
- Recognizes parents' voice
- Shows interest in an object or person for approximately one minute
|
LANGUAGE |
- Turns head deliberatley toward speaker
- Responds to "no" (half of the time)
- Discriminates between angry vs. friendly voices
- Babbles whether alone or with others
- Takes turns vocalizing in response to voices and songs
|
DEXTERITY |
|
LOCOMOTION |
|
SOCIAL |
- Enjoys social play, attention and strangers
- Recognizes parents visually
- Smiles discriminately
- Expects feeding, dressing and bathing
|
EMOTION |
- Learns trust (security and basic optimism) vs. basic mistrust (insecurity and mistrustful)
- Enjoys being cuddled
|
6 Months
IMAGINATION |
|
EDUCATION |
|
LANGUAGE |
- Responds with arm gestures to "up", "bye bye", and "high"
- Recognizes own name and family member’s names
- Sings along with familiar songs
- Vocalizes two-syllable combinations
|
DEXTERITY |
|
LOCOMOTION |
|
SOCIAL |
|
EMOTION |
- Protests separation from mother
|
9 Months
IMAGINATION |
- Participates in speech routine games
- Pushes a toy car
- Covers face with a blanket during peek-a-boo
- Imitates stirring with a spoon
- Plays pat-a-cake
|
EDUCATION |
|
LANGUAGE |
|
DEXTERITY |
|
LOCOMOTION |
|
SOCIAL |
- Very attached to parents & tests parents
- Shows like or dislike of certain people, objects, and places
- Extends toys to others
- Explores environment enthusiasticallly
- Seeks reaction from others
|
EMOTION |
- Develops a fear of strangers
- Develops ability to feel anger and affection
- Gains curiousity and desire for exploration
|
1 Year
1 Year
IMAGINATION |
|
EDUCATION |
|
LANGUAGE |
|
DEXTERITY |
|
LOCOMOTION |
|
SOCIAL |
- Recognizes familiar people
- Gives toys to adults
- Displays independent behavior–learns "no"
- Acts impulsively
|
EMOTION |
- Becomes upset when separated from mother
- Shows dependent behavior
|
1 1/4 Years
IMAGINATION |
|
EDUCATION |
|
LANGUAGE |
- Follows two directions with one object
- Identifies objects by category
- Understands approximately 50 words
- Gains three-four spoken words per month
- Imitates words overheard in conversation
- Asks "more?" and "what's that?"
|
DEXTERITY |
|
LOCOMOTION |
|
SOCIAL |
- Identifies self in mirror
- Enjoys being the center of attention
- Hugs and kisses parents
- Shows toy preferences
|
EMOTION |
|
1 1/2 Years
IMAGINATION |
|
EDUCATION |
|
LANGUAGE |
|
DEXTERITY |
|
LOCOMOTION |
|
SOCIAL |
|
EMOTION |
- Learns autonomy vs. shame
- Throws temper tantrums
|
1 3/4 Years
IMAGINATION |
|
EDUCATION |
|
LANGUAGE |
|
DEXTERITY |
|
LOCOMOTION |
|
SOCIAL |
- Recognizes self in photographs
- Expresses a variety of emotions
- Feels frustration
- Begins imagining
|
EMOTION |
- Resists change
- Throws temper tantrums
- Resents new baby
|
2 Years
2 Years
IMAGINATION |
|
EDUCATION |
|
LANGUAGE |
- Increases understanding of action words
- Points to three or more smaller body parts
- Uses two-three word sentences frequently
- Asks for help verbally for personal needs
- Uses: 'to be' + ing, and posessives
|
DEXTERITY |
|
LOCOMOTION |
|
SOCIAL |
- Defends possessions (I.e. toys)
- Demonstrates empathy
- Displays dependent behavior
- Says "no" but submits anyway
- Extends relationships to other people
|
EMOTION |
- Is very self-centered
- Frustrates easily
|
2 1/4 Years
IMAGINATION |
|
EDUCATION |
|
LANGUAGE |
|
DEXTERITY |
|
LOCOMOTION |
|
SOCIAL |
|
EMOTION |
- Is very self-centered
- Frustrates easily
- Is unable to choose between alternatives
|
2 1/2 Years
IMAGINATION |
- Represents personal but infrequent experiences
- Pretends to perform caregiver activities
- Talks to dolls
|
EDUCATION |
|
LANGUAGE |
- Follows two-step unrelated commands
- Asks "why" questions
- Answers yes/no
- Understands adjectives
- Uses plurals, prepositions and states gender
|
DEXTERITY |
|
LOCOMOTION |
|
SOCIAL |
- Shows independence
- Demonstrates extremes in emotions
- Displays difficulty with transitions
- Insists on sameness of routines
|
EMOTION |
|
2 3/4 Years
IMAGINATION |
|
EDUCATION |
|
LANGUAGE |
- Shows interest in how and why things work
- Follows 3 step complex commands
- Converses in sentences & understands complex sentences
- Uses regular past tense
- Relates recent past experiences
|
DEXTERITY |
|
LOCOMOTION |
|
SOCIAL |
|
EMOTION |
- Is unable to choose between alternatives
- Resists change
|
3 Years
3 Years
IMAGINATION |
|
EDUCATION |
|
LANGUAGE |
|
DEXTERITY |
|
LOCOMOTION |
|
SOCIAL |
|
EMOTION |
- Is less resistive to change
- Has a stronger sense of personal identity
|
3 1/4 Years
IMAGINATION |
|
EDUCATION |
|
LANGUAGE |
|
DEXTERITY |
|
LOCOMOTION |
|
SOCIAL |
- Understands when tasks are finished
- Becomes curious about other children's bodies
|
EMOTION |
- Likes to conform
- Has a more easy going attitude
- Is affectionate towards parents
|
3 1/2 Years
IMAGINATION |
|
EDUCATION |
|
LANGUAGE |
|
DEXTERITY |
|
LOCOMOTION |
|
SOCIAL |
- Defends ownership of property verbally
|
EMOTION |
- Learns autonomy vs. shame
- Learns initiative (imagines, leads & follows others) vs. guilt (fearful, remains on fringes of groups, relies unduly on adults)
|
3 3/4 Years
IMAGINATION |
|
EDUCATION |
|
LANGUAGE |
|
DEXTERITY |
|
LOCOMOTION |
|
SOCIAL |
|
EMOTION |
- Learns initiative (imagines, leads & follows others) vs. guilt (fearful, remains on fringes of groups, relies unduly on adults)
- Shows jealousy towards same-sex parent
|
4 Years
4 Years
IMAGINATION |
|
EDUCATION |
|
LANGUAGE |
- Uses relational terms (first, next, then…)
- Continues to expand ability to tell stories
- Uses increasingly complex sentences
- Easily composes sentences of four or five words
- Will ask the most questions of any age
- Can control volume of voice for periods of time if reminded
- Speaks clearly enough for strangers to understand
|
DEXTERITY |
|
LOCOMOTION |
|
SOCIAL |
- Conforms to group decisions
- Cooperates with teacher
- Prefers to play with gender appropriate activities
- Shares, and cooperates
- Your child will often put his/her arm around a friend, and understands when a friend is upset
- However, still lacks a sense of loyalty to friendships
|
EMOTION |
- Needs controlled freedom
- Demonstrates defiant behaviors at times
- Tries to be very independent
- Your child is developing an awareness of feelings; able to understand and appreciate the feelings of others, as well as express her own
|
4 1/4 Years
IMAGINATION |
|
EDUCATION |
- Identifies what is missing
- Establishes one-to-one correspondence (3 napkins to 3 plates)
- Begins to make patterns with colors, then shapes
- Thinks literally; starting to develop logical thinking
- Show difficulty following through on a task and become easily sidetracked
|
LANGUAGE |
|
DEXTERITY |
|
LOCOMOTION |
|
SOCIAL |
|
EMOTION |
- Seems to be testing himself/herself
- Demonstrates defiant behaviors at times
- May sometimes lie to protect herself, but understands the concept of lying
- Lacks moral concepts of right and wrong
|
4 1/2 Years
IMAGINATION |
|
EDUCATION |
|
LANGUAGE |
|
DEXTERITY |
|
LOCOMOTION |
|
SOCIAL |
- Takes turns in games
- Talks about personal family matters to others
- Your child delights in anything new; new activities satisfy part of their questioning nature
|
EMOTION |
- Needs controlled freedom
- Demonstrates defiant behaviors at times
- Takes pride in accomplishments
- The four-year-old is temperamental; has extreme mood changes
- Views self as a whole person involving body, mind and feeling
- Expresses anger verbally rather than physically
|
4 3/4 Years
IMAGINATION |
|
EDUCATION |
|
LANGUAGE |
- Can use the past tense
- Has a clearer understanding of words and can correctly use such words as” under," "on," "above," and "below."
- May be starting to show an interest in reading
- Can retell a three to four step sequence in a story or directive
- Uses correct grammar most of the time
|
DEXTERITY |
|
LOCOMOTION |
|
SOCIAL |
|
EMOTION |
- Seems sure of himself/herself
- Needs controlled freedom
- Demonstrates defiant behaviors at times
- Can feel jealousy
- Is rebellious if expectations are excessive
- Developing a sense of humor
|
5 - 8 Years
5 Years
SOCIAL AND
EMOTIONAL
DEVELOPMENT |
- Has a good sense of humor, and enjoys sharing jokes and laughter with adults
- Is less fearful of the world than toddlers
- Sometimes critical of other children and embarrassed by own mistakes
- Seeks adult approval
- Can understand relationships among people and similarities and differences in other families
- Sometimes needs to get away and be alone
- Understands and enjoys both giving and receiving
- Understands and respects rules - often asks permission
- Plays contentedly and independently without constant supervision
- Begins to have a very basic understanding of right and wrong
- Likes to feel grown up
- Prefers company of 1 or 2 children at a time; may become bossy or sulky when others join in
- Notices when another child is angry or sad
- Likes to make own decisions and try new things
- Uses swear words or "bathroom words" to get attention
- Often excludes other children in play - best friends only
- Carries on conversations with other children and adults
- Likes to test muscular strength and motor skills, but is not emotionally ready for competition
- Expresses anger and jealousy physically
- Can take turns and share, but doesn't always want to
- Often fears loud noises, the dark, animals, and some people
- Still confuses fantasy with reality sometimes
- organizes other children and toys for pretend play
- Invents games with simple rules
- Distinguishes right from wrong, honest from dishonest, but does not recognize intent
- Mimics adults and seeks praise
- Plays with both boys and girls but prefers the same sex
- Strongly identifying with the parent of the same sex
- Mental reasoning improves; will argue and link cause and effect. "I won’t talk to Ted because he hit me"
- Play becomes more innovative and organized. Will invent simple games, make teams, and assign roles.
- Understands relations like parents, uncle, aunt, etc.
- Have distinct ways of playing according to gender. Most 5-year-old boys play in rough or physically active ways, whereas girls of the same age are more likely to engage in social play.
|
PHYSICAL
DEVELOPMENT |
|
INTELLECTUAL
DEVELOPMENT |
- Understands about 13,000 words
- Uses 5-8 words in a sentence
- Likes to argue and reason; use words like "because"
- Able to memorize address and phone number
- Understands that stories have a beginning, middle, and end
- Enjoys creating and telling stories
- Understands that books are read from left to right, top to bottom
- Enjoys riddles and jokes
- Draws pictures that represent animals, people, and objects
- Enjoys tracing or copying letters
- Can place objects in order from shortest to tallest
- Can understand and use comparative terms like big, bigger, or biggest
- Sorts objects by size
- Identifies some letters of the alphabet and a few numbers (if taught)
- Understands "more," "less," and "same"
- Counts up to 10 objects
- Recognizes categories ("These are all animals; these are all toys.")
- Understands before and after, above, and below
- Dramatic play is much more elaborate and complex
- Has good attention span and can concentrate well
- Is project minded - plans buildings, play scenarios, and drawings
- Can understand time concepts like yesterday, today, and tomorrow
- Speaks fluently; correctly uses plurals, pronouns, tenses
- Understands and names opposites
- Identifying coins
- Can write name
- Fluent speech with few infantile substitutions in speech
- Talks about the past, present and future with a good sense of time
- Know what household objects are used for, such as money, food, or appliances
- Understand relationships between objects, such as "the boy who is jumping rope."
- Use the future tense, such as "Let's go to the zoo tomorrow!"
|
6 Years
MOTOR
DEVELOPMENT |
|
LANGUAGE &
THINKING
DEVELOPMENT |
- Moving toward abstract thinking
- Develops reasoning skills
- Shifts from learning through observation and experience to learning via language and logic
- Wants it all; has difficulty making choices
- Copies a diamond
- Knows right from left and number of fingers
- Draws with precision and to detail
- Developing reading skills well
- May write independently
- Speech should be completely intelligible and socially useful
- Can pronounce majority of the sounds of his own language
- Talk fluently and with confidence
- Can repeat a sentence that is a least 6 or more words long
- Attention span starts to increase
- Memory will increase often remembering favorite nursery rhymes
- He or she will describe actions, events and enjoy telling stories, frequently remember fine details
- Will understand categories well, such as, “A dog is an animal”.
- Should be able to tell one a rather connected story about a picture, seeing relationships between objects and happenings
- Has a broader sense of right and wrong
- Shows a strong desire to learn
- Can put events in order, such as beginning, middle, and end
- They should know their whole name, address and birthday
- Is able to differentiate between fact and make believe
|
SOCIAL &
EMOTIONAL
DEVELOPMENT |
- Grows more independent, yet feels less secure
- Craves affection from parents and teachers
- Friendships are unstable; can be unkind to peers
- Needs to win and may change rules to suit herself
- May be hurt by criticism, blame, or punishment
- Can be rigid, demanding, and unable to adapt
- Is increasingly aware that others have may have different feelings
- Eager for fresh experiences
- Is now able to hold a conversation and will enjoy talking with friends and family
- Starts to show more interest in adults and peers outside of the family
- Will tell you what he or she is going to do
- Will show signs of separating from parents easier
- Will start to show more interest in taking care of his or her self alone without help
- Cleans his or her room, including making the bed
- May pack school bag, including making their own lunch
- Will handle most bathroom needs on their own, such as going to the toilet, cleaning his or her self, etc.
- He or she will enjoy constructive and creative playing with friends, such as digging, building models, tunneling in the sand and other large scale constructive play things
- Likes board games, crafts and other constructive projects
- Likes crafts
- Their mood swings are more stabilized as they settle into childhood and become comfortable with who they are
- They can show protective tendencies toward pets, younger siblings, and even parents
|
7 Years
MOTOR
DEVELOPMENT |
- Hand-eye coordination is well developed
- Has good balance
- Can execute more complicated gymnastics such as a cartwheel
- Activities become more sport specific
- Is vigorous, full of energy, and generally restless, e.g., foot tapping, wiggling, being unable to sit still
- Eats with fingers and talks with mouth full
- Commonly suffers more colds, sore throats, and other illness, because of exposure at school
- Lose about four baby teeth each year. These are replaced by permanent teeth
- Are becoming more coordinated in activities that use the large muscles, such as swimming or climbing
- Use safety scissors easily
- Can draw a triangle
- Draw a person with 12 parts
- Use a pencil to write their name
|
LANGUAGE &
THINKING
DEVELOPMENT |
- Uses a vocabulary of several thousand words
- Demonstrates a longer attention span
- Uses serious, logical thinking; is thoughtful and reflective
- Able to understand reasoning and make the right decisions
- Can tell time; knows the days, months, and seasons
- Can describe points of similarity between two objects
- Begins to grasp that letters represent the sounds that form words
- Able to solve more complex problems
- Individual learning style becomes more clear-cut
- Learns to distinguish between reality and fantasy
- Solves problems by initiating and creating
- May develop stuttering when under stress
- Begins to have organized, continuous memories
- Most children learn to read and write, although some don't until after age 7
- Begin to show a preference for learning style. For example, some children like hands-on activities, such as a science experiment with color. Others like to work independently and quietly, such as practicing printing
- Can solve simple math problems using objects (such as counting beads)
- Consider issues and problems using only one factor at a time
- Tend to talk a lot in situations where they are comfortable
- Pronounce words correctly. For example, most children do not substitute the sound "fr" for "thr" in words like "through."
- Are becoming better readers, but sounding out vowels often can still be difficult
- Still have some difficulty with basic spelling
|
SOCIAL &
EMOTIONAL
DEVELOPMENT |
- Desires to be perfect and is quite self-critical
- Worries more; may have low self-confidence
- Tends to complain; has strong emotional reactions
- Understands the difference between right and wrong
- Takes direction well; needs punishment only rarely
- Avoids and withdraws from adults
- Is a better loser and less likely to place blame
- Waits for her turn in activities
- Starts to feel guilt and shame
- Initiate discussions about right vs. wrong.
- Provide opportunities for independent decision-making
- Becomes comfortable with own gender identity
- Makes connections and distinctions between feelings, thoughts, and actions
- May blame mother for anything that goes wrong. Male children will identify strongly with father
- Child doesn't like being kissed in public, especially boys
- May help out with the housework, such as vacuuming or washing dishes
- Most kids understand that death is final and that they, too, will die one day - although they are often more worried about parents dying
- Overcome some fears they had when they were younger, but still can be terrified of the unknown
|
