Child Care Aware of Eastern Washington

Stages of Development

The following is an overview of the stages of development your child will go through from birth to five years old. Remember that children grow and develop at their own pace.

Birth to six months

Sleeps an average of 15 hours per day
Able to track objects by sight and sound
Begins to smile, later laughs out loud
Loves bright and contrasting colors
Able to lift head; later able to support head on own
Rolls over on own
Primary source of nutrition is breast milk or formula
Reaches and touches things
Makes babbling or gurgling sounds

Six to nine months

May sleep through the night
Sits up on own
Begins on solid foods
Begins to crawl
Enjoys interactive games, such as peekaboo
Puts things in mouth a lot
Teething may begin
Loves finger games and songs
Enjoys playing with and mouthing soft toys

Nine months to one year

May get onto a more regular sleep schedule, with one morning and one afternoon nap
Begins to drink from a cup, and is able to feed self with finger foods
Pulls self up from sitting to standing position
Begins to "cruise" (walking while holding onto things)
Likes to be around other children, beginning to be more social
Laughs out loud frequently
Claps hands together, responds to music by "dancing"
May have a special blanket or toy
Realizes when he is separate from parent
May develop "stranger anxiety," a fear of new people

One year to two years

Still napping during the day
Begins to acquire more body control, becomes aware of own body and self
Stands up on own, and begins to take steps
Able to feed self on more regular basis
May develop picky eating habits
Watches and imitates behavior of others
Speech and language development are very important -- first in single words, later in simple sentences
May develop "irrational" fears and anxieties
Learns to run and jump
May begin toilet-training
Learns self-help skills
Testing of limits that are set around behavior or safety -- says "no" a lot
Wants control over surroundings
Loves routines and consistency
Relatively short attention span, goes from one activity to another quickly
May show frustration through temper tantrums
Engages in "parallel play" with peers (side-by-side play)
Transitions in the day can be very hard
Begins to learn concept of cause and effect
Begins to demonstrate empathy for others (e.g., if another child is upset)
May show aggressive behavior through biting, hitting, and pushing
Develops gender identity

Two years nine months to five years

May still nap during the day (for shorter periods of time)
Gains much more body control; becomes fully toilet trained
Better able to express himself through words
Able to play cooperatively with other children
Starts to have more self-control over behavior
Develops close attachments or "best friends"
Still not able to differentiate between fantasy and reality
Acts out a lot of fears and anxieties; nightmares may occur
Still needs control, may have set ideas of what to wear or eat
Transitions can still be hard
May experiment with lying or telling tales
Develops awareness of death
Loves to engage in dramatic or fantasy play

References:

The American Academy of Pediatrics. Shelow, Steven, ed. Caring for Your Baby and Young Child. New York: Bantam Books, 1991.

Schor, Edward L., ed. Caring for Your School-Age Child. New York: Bantam Books, 1995.

Brazelton, T. Berry. Touchpoints. Addison Wesley, 1992.

Eisenberg, Arlene, Murkoff, Heidi E., and Sandee E. Hathaway, (eds.) What to Expect the First Year. Workman Publishing Co., 1989.

Leach, Penelope. Your Baby and Child: From Birth to Age Five. Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. 1989.