DEVELOPMENTAL MILESTONES AND

AFFECT OF DISABILITIES ON THEM

It is important to understand the role of developmental milestones in
the lives of children and elicit any problem as early as possible if it
exists so a child can perform normal in its surroundings. Performance in
school or later in adult life may be hindered if these problems are not
identified and a solution is advised for them.
 What are developmental milestones?
• The behaviors or physical skills which are seen in infants and children
as they grow up are called developmental milestones. Walking,
crawling, interacting with strangers and showing different emotions
are all considered milestones. However, these milestones are
different for each age range.
• There is a normal range in which a child may reach a particular
milestone. For example, walking may begin as early as 8 month in
some children. Other start walking as late as of 18 months and it is
still considered normal.
 Importance

• Checking these milestones regularly when a child is not developing

normally may trouble parent of the child. At the same time these
milestones can help to identify the problem and elicit it as soon as
possible.
• Examples of developmental services include: speech therapy, physical
therapy, and developmental preschool.
 Infants and toddlers
Physical Cognitive Social Emotional Linguistic
Newborn: Sensory- Attachment: Birth-1yr: Respond to
Rough, motor: comforted by learns to trust changes in
random, explores parents; safely itself, trusts tone of voice.
Reflexive and environment explores caretakers, Moves his or
uncoordinated to learn about environment environment. her eyes in the
movement. it; repeats and trusts 1-3yr: mastery direction of
3mo: Head at movements in parents mostly. of body and sound.
90 degree order to environment. Notice the
angle, uses master them Convinces sound that
arm as a which also others to take some toys
support; tracks promotes brain care of make.
visually cell him/her.
through development.
midline.
Physical Cognitive Social Emotional Linguistic
5mo: 4-5mo: coos, 5mo: responds 12-18mo: Uses their
purposeful curious and to social “terrible twos” voice to
grasp; roll interested in stimuli; may begin; express
over; stability environment expresses willful, pleasure and
in head 6mo: babbles emotions stubborn, displeasure.
position; and tries to through facial tantrums 1-2yr: knows
grasps objects; imitate sounds expressions 18-36mo: names of some
transfer 9mo: can feel pride parts of the
objects from discriminate about being body and can
one hand to between good and bad point to them
the other; parents and about any sort when asked.
plays with feet; others of
exercises body embarrassmen
by stretching, t.
moving
Physical Cognitive Social Emotional
7mo: sits in 12mo: 9mo: socially 18-36mo: can
“tripod”; push beginning of interactive; recognize
head and torso symbolic plays games tension and
up off the thinking; with caretakers distress in
floor; support points to 11mo:develops others and
weight on legs; pictures in stranger and begins to
“raking” with books in separation develop
hands response to anxiety empathy.
9mo: gets to verbal cue; 18-36mo:
and from object attaches
sitting; crawls, permanence; emotionally to
pulls to More toys and other
standing; advanced than objects.
stooping and just expressive
recovering; language.
finger thumb
opposition;
coordination of
eyes with
hands but no
hand
preference
Physical Cognitive Social
12mo: walking 15mo: learns 2yr: imitation,
15mo: more through parallel and
complex motor imitating symbolic, play
skills complex
2yrs: Learns to behaviors;
climb stairs up knows objects
at first and are used for
then down. specific
purposes
2yrs: 2 word
phrases; uses
more complex
toys and
understands
sequence of
putting toys,
puzzles
together
 Preschool
Physical Cognitive Social Emotional Linguistic
Physically active Ego-centric, illogical, Play: Cooperative, Self-esteem based on Most children will
Rule of Three: 3yrs, 3 magical thinking imaginative, may what others tell him begin to follow 2 step
ft., 33 lbs. Explosion of involve fantasy and or her Increasing directions.
Weight gain: 4-5 lbs. vocabulary; learning imaginary friends, ability to control Children will ask
per year syntax, grammar; takes turns in games emotions; less parents to tell them
Growth: 3-4 inches understood by 75% of Develops gross and emotional outbursts more stories and read
per year people by age 3 Poor fine motor skills; Increased frustration them books.
Physically active, understanding of social skills; tolerance Better They will start
can’t sit still for long time, value, sequence experiment with delay gratification answering simple
Clumsy throwing balls of events Vivid social roles; reduces Rudimentary sense of questions like ‘who’
imaginations; some fears Wants to please self and ‘what’ .
difficulty separating adults
fantasy from reality
Accurate memory,
but more suggestible
than older children
Primitive drawing,
can’t represent
themselves in
drawing till age 4
Physical Cognitive Social Emotional Linguistic
Refines complex Don’t realize Development of Understands Children start
skills: hopping, others have conscience: concepts of right recognizing letters
jumping, climbing, different incorporates and wrong Self- and numbers.
running, ride “big perspective Leave parental esteem reflects Most children will
wheels” and out important prohibitions; feels opinions of begin to use
tricycles Improving facts May guilty when significant others appropriate
fine motor skills misinterpret visual disobedient; Curious Self- grammar.
and eye-hand cues of emotions simplistic idea of directed in many
coordination: cut Receptive “good and bad” activities
with scissors, draw language better behavior Curious
shapes 3– 3 ½ yr: than expressive till about his and
most toilet trained age 4 other’s bodies,
may masturbate
No sense of
privacy Primitive,
stereotypic
understanding of
gender roles.
 School Aged
Physical Cognitive Social Emotional Linguistic
Slow, steady Use language Friendships are Self esteem is 5-6r: Children
growth: 3 -4 as a situation based on the can recognize
inches per year communicatio specific ability to sounds that go
Use physical n tool Understands perform with different
activities to Perspective concepts of different tasks. letters of
develop gross taking: 5-8yr: right and Alternative alphabets.
and fine motor can recognize wrong Rules strategies are Reading skills
skills Motor & others’ relied upon to developed for will be
perceptual perspectives, guide behavior dealing with improved by
motor skills can’t assume and play, and frustration and this.
better the role of the provide child expressing A 6 years old,
integrated. other with structure emotions. children will
8–10yr: and security 5- They become start reading
recognize 6yr: believe sensitive to simple stories
difference rules can be others and write or
between changed opinions about copy letters of
behavior and them. alphabets.
intent
Cognitive Social Emotional Linguistic
Accurate 7-8yrs: strictly 6-9yr: have By 8 years, the
perception of adherent to questions child
events; rules. about understands
rational, logical pregnancy and what he is
thought; sexual reading. He
concrete swearing. might be
thinking; reading on his
reflect upon own. Children
self and can also write
attributes; simple stories.
understands
concepts of
space, time,
dimension Can
remember
events from
months, or
years earlier
 Effect of cognitive disabilities on milestones

• Includes mental retardation as well as specific learning disabilities.

• Children with mild mental retardation are limited in academic
performance.
• Children with severe grades of mental retardation are more likely to have
multiple disabilities (e.g., vision, hearing, motor, and/or seizure in
addition to cognitive disability) and to be dependent on others for basic
needs throughout their lives.
• Students can be made to do each step of their assignment in different
color to accommodate for this disability. Teachers can use visual cues to
reinforce and demonstrate from lectures.
 Effect of Physical disabilities on milestones

• Limitations in walking and in use of upper extremities.

• Some also affect speech and swallowing.
• Motor disabilities during childhood include cerebral palsy.
• Muscular dystrophies.
• Cerebral palsy leads to other disabilities like mental retardation, learning
disabilities, language disorders and behavioral problems.
• Unable to properly coordinate muscle movements.
• Removing obstacles and arranging furniture in such a way to
accommodate a student can help him/her to overcome their disability.
 Effect of linguistic disabilities on milestones
• Receptive language issues: Children have difficulty in understanding what
others are saying.
• Expressive language issues: Children face difficulty in expressing thoughts
and ideas.
• Mixed receptive-expressive language issues: Children face difficulty in
understanding and using spoken language.
• Acquired language disorders occur after a neurological illness or injury.
• Developmental language disorder is much common. Children with this type
of disorder start speaking late.
• Tactile and visual cues can be used to accommodate such students. Teachers
can focus on interactive communication so such students may not feel left
out.
 Effect of social disabilities on milestones

• Trouble communicating with others.

• Difficulty in understanding social cues and things such as non verbal
communication.
• Difficulty on inability to perform in a setting. Such as a classroom.
• Inability to make choices.
• Group work can be incorporated and feedback will boost the
confidence of such students.
 Effect of emotional disabilities on milestones
• Depression: Can result in children being isolated.
• Anxiety: Can cause overthinking and hence they perform poorly in
classroom as well as outside.
They can include self-injury, physical or verbal aggression, non-compliance,
disruption of the environment, inappropriate vocalizations, and various
stereotypies. These behaviors can impede learning, restrict access to normal
activities and social opportunities, and require a considerable amount of
both manpower and financial resources to manage effectively.
• Motivational strategies can be used to accommodate such students.
Positive behavior should be rewarded and activities should be simple and
clear.