Children change every day, physically, cognitively, and emotionally.
Categorizing the ways in which children grow and change is a helpful way to keep track of the many ways children develop, and it gives some insight into how they learn and mature. We do this by looking at developmental milestones – things most children can do at a certain age – and associating these milestones with five different developmental stages:
- Motor & Physical
- Cognition & Perception
- Social & Emotional
- Adaptive & Self Care
- Communication & Language
As your child grows, you can play and participate in activities with them that will encourage and support their development. This wheel shows an activity to do together that relates to each Stage of Development at different ages.
Click on the wheel to see the different activities!
- Follow my doctor’s schedule for check ups
- Allow me to have tummy time every day
- Hold me and smile at me
- Put me on my back to sleep
- Talk to me and sing to me
- Help me stand and encourage me when I roll over on my own
- Tell me stories using finger play like “The Itsy-Bitsy Spider”
- Make noises and facial expressions for me to imitate
- Give me baby-safe toys to touch, hold, and mouth
- Look at books with me and describe the pictures
- “Baby proof” stairs and sharp corners so I can crawl and explore safely
- Take me on walks outside and describe what we see
- Respond to my sounds and cries with words, eye contact, or touch
- Give me soft pieces of food I can feed myself
- Use repetition for words I should know, like my name, milk, eat, and sleep
- Feed me three meals and healthy snacks throughout the day
- Help me learn what I can and can’t do by using “no” in a calm voice and showing me safe ways to play
- Play with me, read to me, sing to me, and talk to me
- Give me a spoon to use at mealtimes
- Repeat words I say and add more to form longer sentences
- Offer me a variety of foods and let me choose what to eat
- Give me time to explore outside every day
- Schedule time for me to meet and play with other children
- Teach me how to put on shoes
- Give me crayons and paper to scribble with
- Take me to the park where I can run, jump, swing, and slide
- Ask me questions about what I see and what I’m doing
- Talk with me about feelings and how to express them
- Help me brush my teeth with toothpaste
- Teach me simple songs and rhymes
- Teach me how to use the bathroom on my own
- Encourage me to be creative by dancing and doing crafts with me
- Ask me about what I’m thinking and feeling
- Let me cook with you
- Ask me about characters and what happens in my favorite books
- Show me how to draw different shapes
- Count with me throughout the day
- Schedule play dates with my friends
- Let me know when there are changes to my daily routine
- Teach me to write the letters in my name
- Help me balance lots of physical activity with quiet time
- Start conversations with me using open-ended questions
- Listen to my stories, remember what I say, and ask me about it again later
- Let me pick out my own clothes and get dressed on my own
- Let me help you with chores
See developmental milestones for different ages!
Learn More About Us!
A campaign from the Wyoming Department of Health, Screen for Success is on a mission to spread the word about the multitude of benefits of early childhood screenings, how screenings lead to healthy children, and why every child in Wyoming should get their free screening.
“We may not be able to prepare the future for our children,
but we can at least prepare our children for the future.”
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Wyoming Department of Health
(307) 777-6972
(307) 777-7515
Screen for Success is for every child and every family in Wyoming, without exception, and without discrimination.
