Understanding Development

To start off, let's talk about the four age stages. There's birth- 2 years old, then 3-6 years old, 7-11 years old, and lastly 12-17 years old. In each stage, there are three domains. These include physical, cognitive, and socio-emotional. 

Let's talk about the milestones that happen within each stage and go through them age by age:

From ages birth-2 years old, your child may learn how to lift their head off of the ground, they may ley on their tummy. They will learn how to smile as well as how to vocalize. They will start to become aware of their body parts. The child will start to look selectively a well as maybe learning how to pull themselves up in a standing position. They will start to develop motor skills such as putting objects in a container. They will start to learn social referencing and problem solving. They'll learn how to walk and learn self-feeding skills.

From ages 3-6 years old, your child will be able to think about objects, people, and events without seeing them. They will start to uderstand their bodies, minds, and that emotions are their own. This shows fear and imaginary things. They will start to learn the difference between feelings. They will care how others act. Their language will start to develop. The child will be interested in playing and making friends. The child will also understand family routines. 

From ages 7-11 years old, your child will start to think systematically about multiple topics. Their body strength will increase and their hand dexterity through physical activities. Their coordination will improve. They will learn how to cooperate in a group setting and group games will become easier. They will start to develop lasting friendships as well.

Finally from ages 12-17 years old, your child will follow complex instructions that contain a large amount of information. Their vocabulary will grow as well as their grammar. They will be physically mature. They will gain moe interests in romantic relationships and sexuality. They tend to got through less conflict with their parents, but they will show more independence from parents. They will have a deeper capacity for caring and sharing. They will spend less time with their parents and friends. Feelings of sadness and depression may appear.

Now that we know the things each age stage goes through developmentally, let's talk about why it's important for you as a parent to know these things. To put it simply, if we didn't know what our children go through developmentally and at what pace, then it would make it a lot harder for us to understand them. This could really create frustration for both the child as well as the parent.