The development of every child is amazingly woven together. Each skill impacts the other, and every individual child, and their development, is different. It’s beautiful really. But it’s hard to remember that the developmental trajectory for every child is different. The gap between each kid can be broad. The child that you have in mind when you’re reading may be behind from a developmental standpoint. Or he may be excelling in one area, but plateauing in another. And then they tend to catch up in the other area. These things are ok. And chances are, if your child is having difficulty, that’s probably why you’re here. It’s hard to remember these things when we are a parent and we want our child to succeed or when we are a provider and we want our child to progress.
The age ranges given in these categories are simply guidelines to get someone started. They are not meant to point out delay or inability. If the child in your life is unable to do a skill, work backwards from there. If you are concerned about a developmental delay, I encourage you to speak with the child’s primary care physician to get appropriate services. There are sometimes more appropriate age ranges depending on a child’s diagnosis. For example, a child with Down syndrome can follow a different trajectory, and there are resources for these, such as this one.
There will be a little bit of everything in these categories: milestones for fine motor and (some) gross motor skills, social-emotional abilities, coordination tasks, self help, and even play. While they are separated by “age group”, explore them all! You may find ideas under other ages that your child loves.
Tell me! What areas of development do you want to hear about! I’d love to discuss.