Understanding your Child’s Growth and Development

Most parents are concerned about whether or not their children are developing and progressing at a normal rate.

“When should my child crawl?”

“When should she start speaking?”

“At what age should he be walking?”

These are important questions that are commonly on a mother’s mind. If the birth of a baby came with an instruction manual then it may be easy for parents to track observed changes in their children. The purpose of this article is to enlighten you on the developmental progress of your child. Parents and caregivers who have a good understanding of the normal child development will be more alert  and better able to detect the signs of abnormal development and behavior. This will in turn help in seeking early intervention for such children.

Although, each child develops differently, Developmental milestones  are a set of functional skills or age-specific tasks that most children can do at a certain age range. Developmental milestones are the keys to detecting typical or atypical development in your child. As such when you are familiar with these milestones, you will begin to eagerly anticipate you child reaching them at the stipulated age ranges.

Before your child reaches adolescence, three developmental stages they pass through sequentially include:

• Infancy (Birth -2 years )
• Early Childhood (2- 5 years)
• Middle and Late Childhood (6 – 12 years)

Tracking the changes you observe in your child will give you an insight into his/her needs. Knowing which milestone your child has reached at a certain age can also give a hint as to the possibility of a developmental delay.The main areas of development include:

Click below to download charts on motor development and language development in infancy and early childhood.

CHILDREN DEVELOPMENTAL MILESTONES – Motor Development

CHILDREN DEVELOPMENTAL MILESTONES- Language Development