Developmental Milestones by Age from the CDC

Important Milestones: 3 months

Social and Emotional Development:

• Begins to develop a social smile
• Enjoys playing with other people and may cry when playing stops
• Becomes more expressive and communicates more with face and body
• Imitates some movements and facial expressions

Movement:

• Raises head and chest when lying on stomach
• Supports upper body with arms when lying on stomach
• Stretches legs out and kicks when lying on stomach or back
• Opens and shuts hands
• Pushes down on legs when feet are placed on a firm surface
• Brings hand to mouth
• Takes swipes at dangling objects with hands
• Grasps and shakes hand toys

Vision:

• Watches faces intently
• Follows moving objects
• Recognizes familiar objects and people at a distance
• Starts using hands and eyes in coordination

Hearing and Speech Development:

• Smiles at the sound of your voice
• Begins to babble
• Begins to imitate some sounds
• Turns head toward direction of sound

Download the 3 month fact sheet from the CDC.

Talk to your Pediatrician if your Child:

• Does not seem to respond to loud noises
• Does not notice hands by 2 months
• Does not follow moving objects with eyes by 2 to 3 months
• Does not grasp and hold objects by 3 months
• Does not smile at people by 3 months
• Cannot support head well by 3 months
• Does not reach for and grasp toys by 3 to 4 months
• Does not babble by 3 to 4 months
• Does not bring objects to mouth by 4 months
• Begins babbling, but does not try to imitate any of your sounds by 4 months
• Does not push down with legs when feet are placed on a firm surface by 4 months
• Has trouble moving one or both eyes in all directions
• Crosses eyes most of the time (occasional crossing of the eyes is normal in these first months)
• Does not pay attention to new faces, or seems very frightened by new faces or surroundings
• Experiences a dramatic loss of skills he or she once had

Important Milestones: 7 months

Social and Emotional Development:

• Enjoys social play
• Interested in mirror images
• Responds to other people's expressions of emotion and appears joyful often

Cognitive Development:

• Finds partially hidden object
• Explores with hands and mouth
• Struggles to get objects that are out of reach

Language Development:

• Responds to own name
• Begins to respond to "no"
• Can tell emotions by tone of voice
• Responds to sound by making sounds
• Uses voice to express joy and displeasure
• Babbles chains of sounds

Movement:

• Rolls both ways (front to back, back to front)
• Sits with, and then without, support on hands
• Supports whole weight on legs
• Reaches with one hand
• Transfers object from hand to hand
• Uses hand to rake objects
  

Vision:

• Develops full color vision
• Distance vision matures
• Ability to track moving objects improves

Download the 7 month fact sheet from the CDC.

Talk to your Pediatrician if your Child:

• Seems very stiff, with tight muscles
• Seems very floppy, like a rag doll
• Head still flops back when body is pulled to a sitting position
• Reaches with one hand only
• Refuses to cuddle
• Shows no affection for the person who cares for him or her
• Doesn't seem to enjoy being around people
• One or both eyes consistently turn in or out
• Persistent tearing, eye drainage, or sensitivity to light
• Does not respond to sounds around him or her
• Has difficulty getting objects to mouth
• Does not turn head to locate sounds by 4 months
• Does not roll over in either direction (front to back or back to front) by 5 months
• Seems impossible to comfort at night after 5 months
• Does not smile on his or her own by 5 months
• Cannot sit with help by 6 months
• Does not laugh or make squealing sounds by 6 months
• Does not actively reach for objects by 6 to 7 months
• Does not follow objects with both eyes at near (1 foot) and far (6 feet) ranges by 7 months
• Does not bear weight on legs by 7 months
• Does not try to attract attention through actions by 7 months
• Does not babble by 8 months
• Shows no interest in games of peek-a-boo by 8 months
• Experiences a dramatic loss of skills he or she once had

Important Milestones: 1 year

Social and Emotional Development:

• Shy or anxious with strangers
• Cries when mother or father leaves
• Enjoys imitating people in his or her play
• Shows specific preferences for certain people and toys
• Tests parental responses to his actions during feedings
• Tests parental responses to his or her behavior
• May be fearful in some situations
• Prefers mother and/or regular caregiver over all others
• Repeats sounds or gestures for attention
• Finger-feeds himself or herself
• Extends arm or leg to help when being dressed

Cognitive Development:

• Explores objects in many different ways (shaking, banging, throwing, dropping)
• Finds hidden objects easily
• Looks at correct picture when the image is named
• Imitates gestures
• Begins to use objects correctly (drinking from cup, brushing hair, dialing phone, listening to receiver)

Language Development:

• Pays increasing attention to speech
• Responds to simple verbal requests
• Responds to “no”
• Uses simple gestures, such as shaking head for “no”
• Babbles with inflection (changes in tone)
• Says “dada” and “mama”
• Uses exclamations, such as “Oh-oh!”
• Tries to imitate words

Movement:

• Reaches sitting position without assistance
• Crawls forward on belly
• Assumes hands-and-knees position
• Creeps on hands and knees
• Gets from sitting to crawling or prone (lying on stomach) position
• Pulls self up to stand
• Walks holding on to furniture
• Stands momentarily without support
• May walk two or three steps without support

Motor Skill Development:

• Uses pincer grasp
• Bangs two objects together
• Puts objects into container
• Takes objects out of container
• Lets objects go voluntarily
• Pokes with index finger
• Tries to imitate scribbling

Download the 1 year fact sheet from the CDC.

Talk to your Pediatrician if your Child:

• Does not crawl
• Drags one side of body while crawling (for over one month)
• Cannot stand when supported
• Does not search for objects that are hidden while he or she watches
• Says no single words ("mama" or "dada")
• Does not learn to use gestures, such as waving or shaking head
• Does not point to objects or pictures
• Experiences a dramatic loss of skills he or she once had.

Important Milestones: 2 years

Social and Emotional Development:

• Imitates behavior of others, especially adults and older children
• More aware of herself as separate from others
• More excited about company of other children

Emotional Development:

• Demonstrates increasing independence
• Begins to show defiant behavior
• Separation anxiety increases toward midyear then fades

Cognitive Development:

• Finds objects even when hidden under two or three covers
• Begins to sort by shapes and colors
• Begins make-believe play

Language Development:

• Points to object or picture when it's named for him or her
• Recognizes names of familiar people, objects, and body parts
• Says several single words (by 15 to 18 months)
• Uses simple phrases (by 18 to 24 months)
• Uses 2- to 4-word sentences
• Follows simple instructions
• Repeats words overheard in conversation

Movement:

• Walks alone
• Pulls toys behind him or her while walking
• Carries large toy or several toys while walking
• Begins to run
• Stands on tiptoe
• Kicks a ball
• Climbs onto and down from furniture unassisted
• Walks up and down stairs holding on to support

Motor Skill Development:

• Scribbles on his or her own
• Turns over container to pour out contents
• Builds tower of four blocks or more
• Might use one hand more often than the other

Download the 2 year fact sheet from the CDC.

Talk to your Pediatrician if your Child:

• Cannot walk by 18 months
• Fails to develop a mature heel-toe walking pattern after several months of walking, or walks only on his or her toes
• Does not speak at least 15 words
• Does not use two-word sentences by age 2
• By 15 months, does not seem to know the function of common household objects (brush, telephone, bell, fork, spoon)
• Does not imitate actions or words by the end of this period
• Does not follow simple instructions by age 2
• Cannot push a wheeled toy by age 2
• Experiences a dramatic loss of skills he or she once had

Important Milestones: 3 years

Social and Emotional Development:

• Imitates adults and playmates
• Spontaneously shows affection for familiar playmates
• Can take turns in games
• Understands concept of "mine" and "his/hers"

Emotional Development:

• Expresses affection openly
• Expresses a wide range of emotions
• By 3, separates easily from parents
• Objects to major changes in routine

Cognitive Development:

• Makes mechanical toys work
• Matches an object in his or her hand or room to a picture in a book
• Plays make-believe with dolls, animals, and people
• Sorts objects by shape and color
• Completes puzzles with three or four pieces
• Understands concept of "two"

Language Development:

• Follows a two- or three-part command
• Recognizes and identifies almost all common objects and pictures
• Understands most sentences
• Understands placement in space ("on," "in," "under")
• Uses 4- to 5-word sentences
• Can say name, age, and sex
• Uses pronouns (I, you, me, we, they) and some plurals (cars, dogs, cats)
• Strangers can understand most of his or her words

Movement:

• Climbs well
• Walks up and down stairs, alternating feet (one foot per stair step)
• Kicks ball
• Runs easily
• Pedals tricycle
• Bends over easily without falling

Motor Skill Development:

• Makes up-and-down, side-to-side, and circular lines with pencil or crayon
• Turns book pages one at a time
• Builds a tower of more than six blocks
• Holds a pencil in writing position
• Screws and unscrews jar lids, nuts, and bolts
• Turns rotating handles

Download the 3 year fact sheet from the CDC.

Talk to your Pediatrician if your Child:

• Frequent falling and difficulty with stairs
• Persistent drooling or very unclear speech
• Cannot build a tower of more than four blocks
• Difficulty manipulating small objects
• Cannot copy a circle by age 3
• Cannot communicate in short phrases
• No involvement in "pretend" play
• Does not understand simple instructions
• Little interest in other children
• Extreme difficulty separating from mother or primary caregiver
• Poor eye contact
• Limited interest in toys
• Experiences a dramatic loss of skills he or she once had

Important Milestones: 4 years

Social and Emotional Development:

• Interested in new experiences
• Cooperates with other children
• Plays "Mom" or "Dad"
• Increasingly inventive in fantasy play
• Dresses and undresses
• Negotiates solutions to conflicts
• More independent

Emotional Development:

• Imagines that many unfamiliar images may be "monsters"
• Views self as a whole person involving body, mind, and feelings
• Often cannot tell the difference between fantasy and reality

Cognitive Development:

• Correctly names some colors
• Understands the concept of counting and may know a few numbers
• Tries to solve problems from a single point of view
• Begins to have a clearer sense of time
• Follows three-part commands
• Recalls parts of a story
• Understands the concepts of "same" and "different"
• Engages in fantasy play

Language Development:

• Has mastered some basic rules of grammar
• Speaks in sentences of five to six words
• Speaks clearly enough for strangers to understand
• Tells stories

Movement:

• Hops and stands on one foot up to five seconds
• Goes upstairs and downstairs without support
• Kicks ball forward
• Throws ball overhand
• Catches bounced ball most of the time
• Moves forward and backward with agility

Motor Skill Development:

• Copies square shapes
• Draws a person with two to four body parts
• Uses scissors
• Draws circles and squares
• Begins to copy some capital letters

Download the 4 year fact sheet from the CDC.

Talk to your Pediatrician if your Child:

• Cannot throw a ball overhand
• Cannot jump in place
• Cannot ride a tricycle
• Cannot grasp a crayon between thumb and fingers
• Has difficulty scribbling
• Cannot stack four blocks
• Still clings or cries whenever parents leave
• Shows no interest in interactive games
• Ignores other children
• Doesn't respond to people outside the family
• Doesn't engage in fantasy play
• Resists dressing, sleeping, using the toilet
• Lashes out without any self-control when angry or upset
• Cannot copy a circle
• Doesn't use sentences of more than three words
• Doesn't use "me" and "you" correctly
• Experiences a dramatic loss of skills he or she once had

Important Milestones: 5 years

Social and Emotional Development:

• Wants to please friends
• Wants to be like his or her friends
• More likely to agree to rules
• Likes to sing, dance, and act
• Shows more independence and may even visit a next door neighbor by himself or herself
  

Emotional Development

• Aware of gender
• Able to distinguish fantasy from reality
• Sometimes demanding, sometimes eagerly cooperative

Cognitive Development:

• Can count 10 or more objects
• Correctly names at least four colors
• Better understands the concept of time
• Knows about things used every day in the home (money, food, appliances)

Language Development:

• Recalls part of a story
• Speaks sentences of more than five words
• Uses future tense
• Tells longer stories
• Says name and address

Movement:

• Stands on one foot for 10 seconds or longer
• Hops, somersaults
• Swings, climbs
• May be able to skip

Motor Skill Development:

• Copies triangle and other shapes
• Draws person with body
• Prints some letters
• Dresses and undresses without help
• Uses fork, spoon, and (sometimes) a table knife
• Usually cares for own toilet needs

Download the 5 year fact sheet from the CDC.

Talk to your Pediatrician if your Child:

• Acts extremely fearful or timid
• Acts extremely aggressively
• Is unable to separate from parents without major protest
• Is easily distracted and unable to concentrate on any single activity for more than five minutes
• Shows little interest in playing with other children
• Refuses to respond to people in general, or responds only superficially
• Rarely uses fantasy or imitation in play
• Seems unhappy or sad much of the time
• Doesn't engage in a variety of activities
• Avoids or seems aloof with other children and adults
• Doesn't express a wide range of emotions
• Has trouble eating, sleeping, or using the toilet
• Can't tell the difference between fantasy and reality
• Seems unusually passive
• Cannot understand two-part commands using prepositions ("Put the doll on the bed, and get the ball under the couch.")
• Can't correctly give his or her first and last name
• Doesn't use plurals or past tense properly when speaking
• Doesn't talk about his or her daily activities and experiences
• Cannot build a tower of six to eight blocks
• Seems uncomfortable holding a crayon
• Has trouble taking off clothing
• Cannot brush his or her teeth efficiently
• Cannot wash and dr his or her hands
• Experiences a dramatic loss of skills he or she once had