Parent Guide to Child Development Skills

Parents of very young children are well-versed in monitoring child development skills and milestones. They are filled with emotion as they watch for a baby’s first real smile and notice them waving bye-bye. They keep a camera close at hand when an infant seems close to taking their first steps.

Child development milestones are markers that tell parents, physicians and early child-care providers that children are growing and changing in the expected ways. Although each child develops at their own pace, development guidelines suggest what milestones a child is expected to pass at certain ages.

5 Key Areas of Child Development

Before a child begins kindergarten, they are expected to build skills in five key areas of child development:

• Cognitive development, such as the meaning of words and the ability to concentrate
• Social and emotional development, such as playing games with others
• Speech and language development, such as rhyming words and telling simple stories
• Fine motor skill development, such as using scissors or a fork, writing or drawing
• Gross motor skill development, such as pedaling a tricycle or hopping on one foot

Developmental Milestones 

There are five stages of early child development:

• Newborn
• Infancy
• Toddler
• Preschool
• School-age

Developmental milestones have been identified throughout childhood, and the checklists used to monitor the development of children younger than 5 years old were updated in 2022 for the first time in almost 20 years. The checklists, published by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, are widely used at pediatricians’ offices during regular checkups. The checklists comprise milestones that 75% or more of children can be expected to achieve at a given age, according to the AAP.

The checklists also are used to identify children with a developmental delay so treatment and/or therapy interventions may begin as soon as possible. Developmental delays refer to the slowdown, stop or reversal of a child’s progression through milestones and may include development of motor, cognitive, social or emotional skills. Developmental delays could be caused by genetic or hereditary conditions, prematurity or trauma; they also could be unexplained. Treatment for developmental delays may include occupational therapy, speech therapy and physical therapy. Interventions are most effective when provided earlier in life.

Development Skills  

At every age, children are learning and developing. Preschoolers, for instance, learn to recognize their feelings and how to express them, how to play well with others and often, letter names and sounds as well as number recognition and counting. They develop fine motor skills that allow them to manipulate scissors and pencils so they can start to write their name or draw shapes. They may start to recognize words and write letters. These skills are part of the checklist for kindergarten readiness.

By the time they begin kindergarten, children are ready to build on those skills. Students will work to hone fine motor skills so they can improve their handwriting skills even more with practice. They will begin learning how to read and learn basic math.

Growth Mindset

A growth mindset , which helps children understand that they have the ability to learn more and do more, will be important from the earliest years. As they learn more, that mindset will grow, and as the mindset grows, they will learn more.

As students progress through the early school years and begin to juggle homework and extracurricular activities, they will need to learn life skills. In addition to strengthening math and reading skills, building time management skills and understanding goal setting and the steps necessary to reach a goal are among the benefits that parents cite when enrolling their children in Kumon.

School-age students also may develop some unwelcome feelings, like test anxiety. Standardized testing has taken on enormous importance in many schools, and children – even those whose teachers and parents reassure them – certainly feel the stress of having to perform well on tests. A solid foundation in academics and life skills such as time management will not only help children score higher on tests but also help them cope better with test anxiety.

Understanding Your Child’s Growth 

Developmental milestone checklists are not the only resources parents have available. Magazines, books, online articles and handouts from your pediatrician’s office all provide information on healthy child development and milestones you should look for. Many of those resources also will help you answer your child’s own questions about why their teeth fall out or more embarrassing questions that may arise during adolescence. For parents, it’s best to open lines of communication as early as possible so children understand they can always come to you for answers about their health and development.

Parents who are concerned about specific milestones and areas of development are urged to discuss them with their child’s doctor. Just as you might chart a child’s height and weight – either in a baby book or with pencil marks on a door frame – it’s a good idea to make notes of when your child hits those key milestones and take the notes with you to your child’s doctor appointments to facilitate discussion. Monitoring your child’s milestones to discuss with your child’s doctor and early childhood caregivers is a smart and proactive step toward supporting your child’s healthy development. It’s important to remember that you have outside resources that can help your child achieve their milestones, too. In addition to leaning on your child’s caregivers and doctor, enroll your child in a local learning center like Kumon to boost their language development.