Motor

4
months
Head
control;
discover
fingers;
objects to
mouth

Play

Adaptiv
e

8
months
Sit up on
own; use
furniture
to stand;
pick
items up
with
hands;
begin to
crawl

Banging
two toys
together;
arm
moveme
nts

Recogniz
e bottles;
teething
can start

Feed
themselv
es pieces
of food;
begin
chewing

1 year
Crawl
well;
stand
alone;
support
to walk;
mess
with
things
(open
drawers,
pull
doorknob
s)
Examine
toys;
drop/pick
up; in
and out
places

Exploring
; eating
and
drinking;
attempt
to dress;
begin
potty
train

18
months
Walking;
stairs
with
assistanc
e; push
and pull
large
toys

2 yrs

3 yrs

4 yrs

5 yrs

6-8 yrs

Walk &
run well;
stairs;
balancing
; turn
pages in
book;
string
beads

Stop
quickly
and turn
without
falling;
playgroun
d
activities

Very
active;
run, skip,
jump;
racing up
the
stairs;
good
balance
(carry
cup of
water)

Enjoy
challenge
s;
balancing
on curbs;
motor
skills are
pretty
refined

Move
toys
around;
color;
hug dolls
or
animals

Small
toys;
wagons;
clay/sand
; imitate
chores

Imaginati
on;
toys for
pretendin
g
(airplanes
); crayons
well

Construct
out of
blocks,
sand, etc;
draw
simple
figures;
cut on
line well

Drink
from
glass;
use
spoon;
recognize
when to
go potty

Listen &
follow
directions
; try to
button
own
clothes;
use
spoon
well; try

Help with
dressing;
little
spilling w/
spoon;
start fork;
pour
liquids;
wash
hands;

Dress
themselv
es minus
tying
shoes;
feed
selves;
few
accidents
at night,

Less
active;
more
complex
activities;
goalorient;
climbing;
recogniza
ble
picture;ha
nd
dominanc
e
Games
more
competitiv
e (tag,
hide &
seek,
hopscotch
); pretend
games;da
nce
Need help
tying
shoes;
visit
neighbors
w/ help
crossing
streets

Active &
competiti
ve
games;
gymnasti
c stunts;
doll/
action
figures;
act
Selfsufficient;
bed
alone; go
to potty
alone at
night;
understa
nd social
situations

10-11
yrs
Improve
d
strength,
balance,
&
dexterity
; Body
begins to
change
for
puberty

Different
type of
play;
boys &
girls
form
own
groups

More
aware of
selves &
world;
form
own
identity;
new
tasks;
focus on

Social

Languag
e

Recogniz
e familiar
faces;rea
ch,
smile,lau
gh,
squirm
Attention
to
sounds;
gurgling,
babbling,
cooing

Facial
expressio
ns;
gestures
like
waving

Watching
reactions;
love
attention

Frequent
babbling;
say few
simple
words

Listening;
saying
more
words;
understa
nd simple
comman
ds

Like
other
kids
around
but dont
play w/
them
Vocab 350
common
words;
answer
simple
questions

wash
hands

need
wiping at
potty

may still
need
help
wiping

Play
alongside
but not
w/ each
other;
Emotions

Attention
to adults;
seek
approval;
reasoning;
start
sharing
Longer
phrases;
plurals,
pronouns,
&
prepositio
ns;
memory
of name,
etc.

Prefer
kids over
adults;
ask qs
like what,
why, and
how
Aggressiv
e like
namecalling;
vocab
grow;
grammar
mistakes;
tell
stories

2-3
words
together;
say 50+
words;
identify
objects

academi
cs

Acknowled
ge
right/wron
g; enjoy
group;
family
activities
More
complex;
grammar
more
accurate;
draw #s &
letters

Social
interactio
ns;
sensitive
to
criticism

Attention
of peers;
improve
d social
skills

More
refined;
express
themselv
es more
clearly;
use puns

Vocab
contd to
increase;
depth
and
insight;
improve
d
grammar