by Dr. Krislyn Carlson
“My second child speaks few words at the same age that my first child began to string together her first sentences. Should I be worried?”
“Should I be concerned if my coworker’s toddler takes his first steps while my child who is two months older seems content to scoot along on her tummy?”
As a parent, you may inevitably find yourself comparing your child to the children of friends and coworkers or perhaps to other children at your child’s daycare center. Understandably, you may grow concerned when you see other children doing things your child is not yet able to do. You might be wondering what is considered normaldevelopment and asking what you should do if you are concerned with your child’s development.
While early development varies, most children typically follow similar developmental patterns. Developmental milestones are things most children can do at a certain age. These developmental milestones help parents, caregivers, and medical providers determine if a child may be experiencing a developmental delay.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) established developmental milestones that outline development during the first five years of a child’s life in the following areas: social-emotional, cognitive, language/communication, and motor development. Parents can download a free Milestones Tracker app to monitor their child’s development. These developmental checklists can help parents identify potential developmental delays and suggest when they should reach out to their child’s doctor to discuss these concerns.
Early childhood is a critical developmental period with long-term effects on future health and educational success. If children are experiencing developmental delays, the earlier parents can obtain intervention services to address these delays the better the outcomes for children. In next month’s column, we will explore early intervention services available for infants and toddlers in South Dakota.
References and Resources
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2019, November 1). Learn the signs: Act early. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/actearly/index.html
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2019). CDC Milestone Tracker (Version 1.3.42). [Mobile application software]. Retrieved from https://play.google.com
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2020). CDC’s Milestone Tracker (Version 1.1.86). [Mobile application software]. Retrieved from https://apps.apple.com/
Sheldrick, R. C., Schlichting, L. E., Berger, B., Clyne, A., Ni, P., Perrin, E. C., & Vivier, P. M. (2019). Establishing new norms for developmental milestones. Pediatrics, 144, 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2019-0374
Dr. Krislyn Carlson is a K-5 special education teacher with the Beresford Public School District. She has twenty-two years of experience teaching special education at the elementary and middle school levels. Krislyn obtained her doctorate degree with an emphasis on special education and administration from the University of South Dakota. Current interests include adapting literacy and language instruction for students with significant cognitive disabilities and complex communication needs.