AGE

PHYSICAL

SOCIO-EMOTIONAL

COGNITIVE

0-3 MONTHS

Born with birth reflexes - Sucking, grasping;
Lifts head when held at shoulder;
Moves arms and legs actively;
Able to follow objects and focus

Concerned with satisfaction of needs;
Smiles spontaneously and responsively;
Likes movement-being held and rocked;
Expresses discomfort by crying or tensing body

Makes sounds (coos);
Smiles and expresses pleasure when sees faces;
Looks at patterns (eg., faces, shapes)

3-6 MONTHS

Rolls over;
Holds head up when in sitting position;
Lifts up knees / crawling motion;
Reaches for objects;
Uses both hands to grasp object

Makes sounds to get attention;
Smiles responsively;
Laughs aloud;
Socializes with anyone but knows mother or father;
And other primary caregivers;
Smiles at reflection in mirror

Recognizes primary caregiver;
Likes to watch objects and people;
Recognizes bottle

6-9 MONTHS

Able to sit in upright position;
Explores objects while mouthing them;
May be able to crawl;
May be able to climb stairs;
Develops eye-hand coordination;
Transfers objects from hand to hand;
Drops objects repeatedly

Prefers primary caregivers;
May cry when strangers approach;
Commonly exhibits anxiety when parent or caregiver leaves;
Pats own reflection in the mirror;
May push away things not wanted (e.g., bottle, toys);
Begins to play with adults (e.gpeek-a-boo);
SOCIO-EMOTIONAL

Babbles to himself or herself;
Solves simple problems., (e.g., Will move obstacles aside to reach objects);
Responds to changes in environment and is able to repeat actions that cause change (e.g., sound of rattle);
Fascinated with small objects;
Begins to respond to words

9-14 MONTHS

Achieves mobility - strong urge to climb and crawl;
Stands and walks;
Learns to grasp with thumb and finger;
Feeds self

Extends attachment for primary caregivers to the world - in love with world and wants to explore everything;
Knows that objects exist even when they cant be seen (object permanence);;
Thus knows that when parents or caregivers leave, they will return;
Typically friendly and affectionate with caregivers - less so with strangers;
Responds to his or her name

Demonstrates intentional behavior - initiates action;
Eager for sensory experiences; explores everything ,has to touch and mouth everything;
Curious about everything;
Realizes objects exist when out of sight and will look for them ( object permanence);
Stares for long periods to gain information;
Interested in and understands words;
Says words such as: "mama" and "dada";
Likes to look at books;
Combines gestures with words - waves hand and says "bye-bye"

14-24 MONTHS

Walks runs;
Drinks from cup alone;
Turns pages of books;
Scribbles spontaneously ;
Walks backward;
Loves gymnastics, climbing, going down slides;
Stacks two to three blocks;
Climbs into chairs

Tends to be opinionated - "no" stage and / or very directive;
Aware of being an independent person; starts;
to assert independence;
Tests limits;
Develops concepts of self,;
is fearful of injury (band aid stage, "I wanna";
stage, everything "mine," stage);
Tends to stay near mother or father and make regular overtures, seeks approval,;
asks for help;
Plays beside other children but has difficulty sharing

Can follow simple directions;
Uses language to serve immediate needs ("mine", "cookie") and names familiar objects;
Imitates words readily and understands a lot more than he or she can say;
Has improved memory;
Experiments to see what will happen and observes cause-and-effect relationships;
Learns to use new means to achieve end (i.e., can tilt objects to get them through bars in crib);
Spends long periods of time exploring a single object;
Loves to play with others;
Recognizes self in mirror;
Begins to be able to think about an action before doing it (e.g., reaching for a toy

2-3 YEARS

Has sufficient muscle control for toilet training;
Highly mobile skills are refined;
Uses spoon to feed self;
Throws and kicks a ball;
Takes apart simple objects and puts them back together;
Has increased eye-hand coordination - can do simple puzzles, string beads, stack blocks;
Likes to help dress and undress self;
Washes and dries hands

Has strong urges and desires but is developing ability to exert self-control; wants to please parents but sometimes has difficulty not acting impulsively;
Displays affection - especially for caregiver;
Imitates own play activity and occupies self;
Able to hold a conservation;
Developing interest in peers but may still have difficulty sharing;
Displays sense of humor;
May exhibit fears of the dark, "scary" faces, masks, or witches

Has a beginning awareness of time;
Capable of thinking before acting;
Becoming very verbal;
Enjoys talking to self and others;
Loves to pretend and to imitate others;
Enjoys;
Creative activities such as block play and art;
Thinks through and solves problems in head before acting (has moved beyond action-bound stage);
Can make simple choices;
Begins to use language to express ideas and feelings

3-4 YEARS

Jumps in place;
Walks down stairs;
Balances on one foot;
Uses toilet consistently;
Begins to dress self;
Builds with blocks and construction toys;
Has developed fine muscle control;
Has boundless energy

Knows name, sex, age, and sees self as part of family unit;
Plays alongside other children and begins to interact with them; is learning to share;
Helps with small household tasks;
Likes to be "big" and to achieve new skills;
Shows affection for friends;
Can express anger verbally

Believes there is a purpose for everything and asks "why?";
Uses symbolic play - has strong fantasy life, loves to imitate and role-play;
Understands some number concepts, comparisons, colors;
Shows logical thinking;
Interested in letters;
Able to scribble and draw;
Recognizable objects and circles;
Speaks in longer sentences and uses language to describe events and explain behavior;
Asks lots of questions

4-6 YEARS

Has improved coordination and is learning many new skills;
Has improved coordination in fingers - able to hold and use a pencil, cut with scissors, catch a ball, use a fork and spoon, brush his or her teeth;
Climbs, hops, skips, and likes to do stunts;
Able to ride a tricycle

Plays cooperatively with peers;
Can share and take turns;
Identifies with own gender and ethnic group;
Displays independence;
Protects self and stands up for rights;
Identifies with parents and likes to imitate them;
Often has "best friends";
Likes to show off skills to adults;
Continually forms new images of self;
Enjoys being a leader

Shows increased attention span;
Expands dramatic play with attention to detail and reality;
Has increasingly more complex language skills;
Expresses idea, asks questions, engages is discussion;
Speaks clearly;
Able to draw pictures that represent objects or things;
Likes to tell or act out stories

6-12 YEARS

Enjoys using new skills, both large and small muscle skills;
Likes to achieve in sports;
Energetic and may have large appetite;
Gaining in height and weight;
Has increased coordination and strength;
Developing body proportions;
Similar to adult;
Practices self-care habits;
Independently (e.g., brushing teeth, combing hair, dressing)

Developing a more defined personality;
Acts very independent and self assured but at times can be childish and silly;
Enjoys working/playing with others and alone;
Defines self-image in part by success at school;
Has a strong group identity;
May play exclusively with same sex;
Begins to experience conflicts between parents values and those of peers;
Has a strong sense of fairness and fair play;
Believes that rules are important and must be followed;
Likes affection from adults;
Increasingly independent but still emotionally dependent on adults - want them to be there to help;
Able to assume responsibility for younger siblings

Enjoys projects that are task oriented (e.g., sewing, cooking, woodworking);
Highly verbal - enjoys jokes and puns, uses language creativity;
Asks questions that are fact oriented - wants to know how, why, and when;
Likes to make up stories, plays, and puppet shows;
Understands cause-and-effect relationships;
Able to deal with abstract ideas;
Judges success on ability to learn to read, write, and do arithmetic;
Organizes collections and enjoys sorting objects by shape, size, color, etc.