Developmental Milestones

Age Group	Gross Motor Development Milestones	Limit Age for Milestone
New-born	Limbs flexed, symmetrical pattern Marked head lag on pulling up	–
6-8 weeks	Raises head to 45 degrees in prone (tummy-time)	–
6-8 months	Sits without support (initially with a round back, then with a straight back by 8 months)	9 months
8-9 months	Crawling	–
10 months	Stands independently Cruises around furniture	–
12 months	Walks unsteadily- a broad gait, with hands apart	18 months
15 months	Walks steadily	–
2.5 years	Runs and jumps

Age Group	Vision and Fine Motor Development Milestones	Limit Age for Milestone
6 weeks	Follows moving object or face by turning the head (fixing and following)	3 months
4 months	Reaches out for toys	6 months
4-6 months	Palmar grasp	–
7 months	Transfers toys from one hand to another	9 months
10 months	Mature pincer grip	12 months
16-18 months	Makes marks with crayons	–
14 months-4 years	Brick building Tower of three – 18 months Tower of six – 2 years Tower of eight or a train with four bricks – 2.5 years Bridge (from a model) – 3 years Steps (after demonstration) – 4 years	–
2-5 years	Pencil skills: Line- 2 years, Circle – 3 years, Cross – 3.5 years, Square – 4 years, Triangle – 5 years Drawing without seeing how it is done	–

Age Group	Hearing, Speech, and Language Development Milestones
Newborn	Startles to loud noises
3-4 months	Vocalises alone or when spoken to, coos and laughs “aa, aa”
7 months	Turns to soft sounds out of sight, polysyllabic babble (“babababa, la/a/ala/a”)
7-10 months	Sounds used indiscriminately at 7 months; discriminately to parents at 10 months (“Dada, Mama”)
12 months	Two to three words other than ‘Dada’ or ‘Mama’, understands name “Drink”
18 months	6-10 words; can show two parts of the body (“Where is your nose?”)
20-24 months	Joins two or more words to make simple phrases (“Give me teddy”)
2.5-3 years	Talks constantly in 3-4 word sentences; understands 2 joined commands (“Push me fast Daddy”)

Age Group	Social, Emotional, and Behavioural Development Milestones	Limit Age
6 weeks	Smiles responsively	8 weeks
6-8 months	Puts food in their mouth
10-12 months	Waves bye-bye, plays peek-a-boo
12 months	Drinks from a cup with two hands
18 months	Holds spoon and gets food safely to mouth
18-24 months	Symbolic play	2 – 2.5 years
2 years	Toilet training: dry by day, Pulls off some clothing
2.5-3 years	Parallel play, Interactive play evolving, Takes turns

Note: ‘Limit age’ denotes the age by which most children should have achieved that milestone; if they haven’t, it may be a point of concern that warrants further evaluation.