Developmental Milestones

Social and Emotional

• Begins to smile at people
• Can briefly calm themself (may bring hands to mouth and suck on hand)
• Tries to look at parent

Language/Communication

• Coos, makes gurgling sounds
• Turns head toward sounds

Cognitive (learning, thinking, problem-solving)

• Pays attention to faces
• Begins to follow things with eyes and recognize people at a distance
• Begins to act bored (cries, fussy) if activity doesn’t change

Movement / Physical Development

• Can hold head up and begins to push up when lying on tummy
• Makes smoother movements with arms and legs

Social and Emotional

• Smiles spontaneously, especially at people
• Likes to play with people and might cry when playing stops
• Copies some movements and facial expressions, like smiling or frowning

Language/Communication

• Begins to babble
• Babbles with expression and copies sounds they hear
• Cries in different ways to show hunger, pain, or being tired

Cognitive (learning, thinking, problem-solving)

• Lets you know if they are happy or sad
• Responds to affection
• Reaches for toy with one hand
• Uses hands and eyes together, such as seeing a toy and reaching for it
• Follows moving things with eyes from side to side
• Watches faces closely
• Recognizes familiar people and things at a distance

Movement / Physical Development

• Holds head steady, unsupported
• Pushes down on legs when feet are on a hard surface
• May be able to roll over from tummy to back
• Can hold a toy and shake it and swing at dangling toys
• Brings hands to mouth
• When lying on stomach, pushes up to elbows

Social and Emotional

• Knows familiar faces and begins to know if someone is a stranger
• Likes to play with others, especially parents
• Responds to other people’s emotions and often seems happy
• Likes to look at self in a mirror

Language/Communication

• Responds to sounds by making sounds
• Strings vowels together when babbling (“ah,” “eh,” “oh”) and likes taking turns with parent while making sounds
• Responds to own name
• Makes sounds to show joy and displeasure
• Begins to say consonant sounds (jabbering with “m,” “b”)

Cognitive (learning, thinking, problem-solving)

• Looks around at things nearby
• Brings things to mouth
• Shows curiosity about things and tries to get things that are out of reach
• Begins to pass things from one hand to the other

Movement / Physical Development

• Rolls over in both directions (front to back, back to front)
• Begins to sit without support
• When standing, supports weight on legs and might bounce
• Rocks back and forth, sometimes crawling backward before moving forward

Social and Emotional

• May be afraid of strangers
• May be clingy with familiar adults
• Has favorite toys

Language/Communication

• Understands “no”
• Makes a lot of different sounds like “mamamama” and “bababababa”
• Copies sounds and gestures of others
• Uses fingers to point at things

Cognitive (learning, thinking, problem-solving)

• Watches the path they see you hide
• Plays peek-a-boo
• Puts things in mouth
• Moves things smoothly from one hand to the other
• Picks up things like cereal between thumb and index finger

Movement / Physical Development

• Stands, holding on
• Can get into sitting position
• Sits without support
• Pulls to stand
• Crawls

Social and Emotional

• Is shy or nervous with strangers
• Cries when mom or dad leaves
• Has favorite things and people
• Shows fear in some situations
• Hands you a book when they want ts to hear a story
• Repeats sounds or actions to get attention
• Puts out arm or leg to help with dressing
• Plays games such as “peek-a-boo” and “pat-a-cake”

Language/Communication

• Responds to simple spoken requests
• Uses simple gestures, like shaking head “no” or waving “bye-bye”
• Makes sounds with changes in tone (sounds more like speech)
• Says “mama” and “dada” and exclamations like “uh-oh!”
• Tries to say words you say

Cognitive (learning, thinking, problem-solving)

• Explores things in different ways, like shaking, banging, throwing
• Finds hidden things easily
• Looks at the right picture or thing when it’s named
• Copies gestures
• Starts to use things correctly; for example, drinks from a cup, brushes hair
• Bangs two things together
• Puts things in a container, takes things out of a container
• Lets things go without help
• Pokes with index (pointer) finger
• Follows simple directions like “pick up the toy”

Movement / Physical Development

• Gets to a sitting position without help
• Pulls up to stand, walks holding on to furniture (“cruising”)
• May take a few steps without holding on
• May stand alone

Social and Emotional

• Likes to hand things to others as play
• May have temper tantrums
• May be afraid of strangers
• Shows affection to familiar people
• Plays simple pretend, such as feeding a doll
• May cling to caregivers in new situations
• Points to show others something interesting
• Explores alone but with parent close by

Language/Communication

• Says several single words
• Says and shakes head “no”
• Points to show someone what he wants

Cognitive (learning, thinking, problem-solving)

• Knows what ordinary things are for; for example, telephone, brush, spoon
• Points to get the attention of others
• Shows interest in a doll or stuffed animal by pretending to feed
• Points to one body part
• Scribbles on their own
• Can follow one-step verbal commands without any gestures; for example, sits when you say “sit down”

Movement / Physical Development

• Walks alone
• May walk up steps and run
• Pulls toys while walking
• Can help undress themself
• Drinks from a cup
• Eats with a spoon

Social and Emotional

• Copies others, especially adults and older children
• Gets excited when with other children
• Shows more and more independence
• Shows defiant behavior (doing what they have been told not to)
• Plays mainly beside other children, but is beginning to include other children, such as in chase games

Language/Communication

• Points to things or pictures when they are named
• Knows names of familiar people and body parts
• Says sentences with 2 to 4 words
• Follows simple instructions
• Repeats words overheard in conversation
• Points to things in a book

Cognitive (learning, thinking, problem-solving)

• Finds things even when hidden under two or three covers
• Begins to sort shapes and colors
• Completes sentences and rhymes in familiar books
• Plays simple make-believe games
• Builds towers of 4 or more blocks
• Might use one hand more than the other
• Follows two-step instructions such as “Pick up your shoes and put them in the closet.”
• Names items in a picture book such as a cat, bird, or dog

Movement/Physical Development

• Stands on tiptoe
• Kicks a ball
• Begins to run
• Climbs onto and down from furniture without help
• Walks up and down stairs holding on
• Throws ball overhand
• Makes or copies straight lines and circles

Social and Emotional

• Copies adults and friends
• Shows affection for friends without prompting
• Takes turns in games
• Shows concern for crying friend
• Understands the idea of “mine” and “his” or “hers”
• Shows a wide range of emotions
• Separates easily from mom and dad
• May get upset with major changes in routine
• Dresses and undresses self

Language/Communication

• Follows instructions with two or three steps
• Can name most familiar things
• Understands words like “in,” “on,” and “under”
• Says first name, age, and sex
• Names a friend
• Says words like “I,” “me,” “we,” and “you” and some plurals (cars, dogs, cats)
• Talks well enough for strangers to understand most of the time
• Carries on a conversation using two to three sentences

Cognitive (learning, thinking, problem-solving)

• Can work toys with buttons, levers, and moving parts
• Plays make-believe with dolls, animals, and people
• Does puzzles with three or four pieces
• Understands what “two” means
• Copies a circle with pencil or crayon
• Turns book pages one at a time
• Builds towers of more than six blocks
• Screws and unscrews jar lids or turns door handle

Movement / Physical Development

• Climbs well
• Runs easily
• Pedals a tricycle (three-wheel bike)
• Walks up and down stairs, one foot on each step
• Eats with a spoon

Social and Emotional

• Enjoys doing new things
• Plays “Mom” and “Dad”
• Is more and more creative with make-believe play
• Would rather play with other children than by themselves
• Cooperates with other children
• Often can’t tell what’s real and what’s make-believe
• Talks about what they like and what they are interested in

Language/Communication

• Knows some basic rules of grammar, such as correctly using “he” and “she”
• Sings a song or says a poem from memory such as the “Itsy Bitsy Spider” or the “Wheels on the Bus”
• Tells stories
• Can say first and last name

Cognitive (learning, thinking, problem-solving)

• Names some colors and some numbers
• Understands the idea of counting
• Starts to understand time
• Remembers parts of a story
• Understands the idea of “same” and “different”
• Draws a person with two to four body parts
• Uses scissors
• Starts to copy some capital letters
• Plays board or card games
• Tells you what they think s is going to happen next in a book

Movement / Physical Development

• Hops and stands on one foot up to two seconds
• Catches a bounced ball most of the time
• Pours, cuts with supervision, and mashes own food

Social and Emotional

• Wants to please friends
• Wants to be like friends
• More likely to agree with rules
• Likes to sing, dance, and act
• Is aware of gender
• Can tell what’s real and what’s make-believe
• Shows more independence (for example, may visit a next-door neighbor by himself [adult supervision is still needed])
• Is sometimes demanding and sometimes very cooperative

Language/Communication

• Speaks very clearly
• Tells a simple story using full sentences
• Uses future tense; for example, “Grandma will be here.”
• Says name and address

Cognitive (learning, thinking, problem-solving)

• Counts ten or more things
• Can draw a person with at least six body parts
• Can print some letters or numbers
• Copies a triangle and other geometric shapes
• Knows about things used every day, like money and food

Movement / Physical Development

• Stands on one foot for ten seconds or longer
• Hops; may be able to skip
• Can do a somersault
• Uses a fork and spoon and sometimes a table knife
• Can use the toilet on her own
• Swings and climbs
• Walks up and down stairs, one foot on each step
• Eats with a spoon