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Childhood developmental milestones
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Developmental milestones are goals or markers: things a child is expected to achieve while maturing. They're like the pencil marks on a door frame that track how much a child has grown, except that here what gets marked isn't height but what the child can already do.
These goals keep changing as the child grows, and in babies they are grouped by area. One is gross motor skills, the large movements of the body, like sitting or crawling. Another is fine motor skills, the small movements of the hand, like picking up a small piece of cereal between the thumb and a finger. There is also language, like learning a few words, and social skills, like playing with family. And there are other areas besides these.
And here is the important part: babies don't develop at the same pace. What is considered normal covers a wide range, and the same baby can be ahead in some areas and a little behind in others.
In brief
Developmental milestones are goals or markers a child is expected to reach while maturing.
They evolve with the child; in babies, areas include gross motor skills, like sitting or crawling; fine motor skills, like picking up a bit of cereal between the thumb and a finger; language, like learning words; and social skills, like playing with family.
Babies don't develop at the same pace: normal covers a wide range, and a baby can be ahead in some areas and a little behind in others.
Sources (2)
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, StatPearls PublishingDevelopmental Milestones, StatPearlsPublished
- MedlinePlus, U.S. National Library of MedicineInfant and Newborn Development, MedlinePlus Health TopicsPublished
This page explains the topic in general terms; it does not tell anyone what treatment to follow.
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