Issue #9 – “How To” Series

Birth to 5 months

Yes

No

Reacts to loud sounds.

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Turns head toward a sound source.

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Watches your face when you speak.

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Vocalizes pleasure and displeasure sounds (laughs, giggles, cries, or fusses).

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Makes noise when talked to.

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6 – 11 months

Yes

No

Understands “no-no.”

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Babbles (says “ba-ba-ba” or “ma-ma-ma”).

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Tries to communicate by actions or gestures.

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Tries to repeat your sounds.

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12 – 17 months

Yes

No

Attends to a book or toy for about two minutes.

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Follows simple directions accompanied by gestures.

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Answers simple questions nonverbally.

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Points to objects, pictures, and family members.

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Says two to three words to label a person or object (pronunciation may not be clear).

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Tries to imitate simple words.

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18 – 23 months

Yes

No

Enjoys being read to.

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Follows simple commands without gestures.

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Points to simple body parts such as “nose.”

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Understands simple verbs such as “eat,” “sleep.”

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Correctly pronounces most vowels and n, m, p, h, especially in the beginning of syllables and short words. Also begins to use other speech sounds.

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Says 8 to 10 words (pronunciation may still be unclear).

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Asks for common foods by name.

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Makes animal sounds such as “moo.”

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Starting to combine words such as “more milk.”

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Begins to use pronouns such as “mine.”

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2 – 3 years

Knows about 50 words at 24 months.

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Knows some spatial concepts such as “in,” “on.”

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Knows pronouns such as “you,” “me,” “her.”

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Knows descriptive words such as “big,” “happy.”

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Says around 40 words at 24 months.

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Speech is becoming more accurate but may still leave off ending sounds. Strangers may not be able to understand much of what is said.

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Answers simple questions.

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Begins to use more pronouns such as “you,” “I.”

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Speaks in two to three word phrases.

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Uses question inflection to ask for something (e.g., “My ball?”).

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Begins to use plurals such as “shoes” or “socks” and regular past tense verbs such as “jumped.”

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3 – 4 years

Yes

No

Groups objects such as foods, clothes, etc.

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Identifies colors.

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Uses most speech sounds but may distort some of the more difficult sounds such as l, r, s, sh, ch, y, v, z, th. These sounds may not be fully mastered until age 7 or 8.

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Uses consonants in the beginning, middle, and ends of words. Some of the more difficult consonants may be distorted, but attempts to say them.

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Strangers are able to understand much of what is said.

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Able to describe the use of objects such as “fork,” “car,” etc.

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Has fun with language. Enjoys poems and recognizes language absurdities such as, “Is that an elephant on your head?”

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Expresses ideas and feelings rather than just talking about the world around him or her.

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Uses verbs that end in “ing,” such as “walking,” “talking.”

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Answers simple questions such as “What do you do when you are hungry?”

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Repeats sentences.

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4 – 5 years

Yes

No

Understands spatial concepts such as “behind,” “next to.”

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Understands complex questions.

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Speech is understandable but makes mistakes pronouncing long, difficult, or complex words such as “hippopotamus.”

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Says about 200 – 300 different words.

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Uses some irregular past tense verbs such as “ran,” “fell.”

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Describes how to do things such as painting a picture.

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Defines words.

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Lists items that belong in a category such as animals, vehicles, etc.

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Answers “why” questions.

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5 years

Yes

No

Understands more than 2,000 words.

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Understands time sequences (what happened first, second, third, etc.).

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Carries out a series of three directions.

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Understands rhyming.

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Engages in conversation.

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Sentences can be 8 or more words in length.

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Uses compound and complex sentences.

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Describes objects.

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Uses imagination to create stories.

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School Behavior

Unable to comply with teacher requests; needy or has difficulty asking for help

Unwilling to comply with teacher requests; truancy; rejects help

Attitude Toward School

School is a source of confusion or angst; does much better with structure

Dislikes school, except as a social outlet; rebels against rules and structure

School Attendance

Misses school due to emotional or psychosomatic issues

Misses school due to choice

Educational Performance

Uneven achievement; impaired by anxiety, depression, or emotions

Achievement influenced by truancy, negative attitude toward school, avoidance

Peer Relations and Friendships

Difficulty making friends; ignored or rejected

Accepted by a same delinquent or socio-cultural subgroup

Perceptions of Peers

Perceived as bizarre or odd; often ridiculed

Perceived as cool, tough, charismatic

Social Skills

Poorly developed; immature; difficulty reading social cues; difficulty entering groups

Well developed; well attuned to social cues

Interpersonal Relations

Inability to establish or maintain relationships; withdrawn; social anxiety

Many relations within select peer group; manipulative; lack of honesty in relationships

Interpersonal Dynamics

Poor self-concept; overly dependent; anxious; fearful; mood swings; distorts reality

Inflated self concept; independent; underdeveloped conscience; blames others; excessive bravado

Locus of Disorder

Affective disorder; internalizing

Conduct disorder, externalizing

Aggression

Hurts self and others as an end

Hurts others as a means to an end

Anxiety

Tense; fearful

Appears relaxed; “cool”

Affective Reactions

Disproportionate reactions, but not under student’s control

Intentional with features of anger and rage; explosive

Conscience

Remorseful; self critical; overly serious

Little remorse; blaming; non-empathetic

Sense of Reality

Fantasy; naïve; gullible; thought disorders

“Street-wise”; manipulates facts and rules for own benefit

Developmental Appropriateness

Immature; regressive

Age appropriate or above

Risk Taking

Avoids risks; resists making choices

Risk taker; “daredevil”

Substance Abuse

Less likely; may use individually

More likely; peer involvement

Adapted from Social Maladjustment: A Guide to Differential Diagnosis and Educational Options (Wayne County Regional Educational Service Agency – Michigan , 2004)