| 27 August 2009
From the New York State Department of Health publication “Early Help Makes a Difference.”
3 months
- Turn head toward bright colors and lights

- Move both eyes in the same direction together
- Recognize bottle or breast
- Respond to their mother’s voice
- Make cooing sounds
- Bring their hands together
- Wiggle and kick with arms and legs
- Lift head when on stomach
- Become quiet in response to sound, especially speech
- Smile
6 months
- Follow moving objects with their eyes
- Turn toward the source of normal sound
- Reach for objects and pick them up
- Switch toys from one hand to the other
- Play with their toes
- Help hold the bottle during feeding
- Recognize familiar faces
- Imitate speech sounds
- Respond to soft sounds, especially talking
- Roll over
12 months
- Get into a sitting position
- Pull to a standing position
- Stand briefly without support
- Crawl
- Imitate adults using a cup or telephone
- Play Peek-a Boo or Pat-a-Cake
- Wave Bye-Bye
- Put objects in a container
- Say at least one word
- Make “ma-ma” or “da-da” sounds
18 months
- Like to push and pull objects
- Say at least 6 words
- Follow simple directions
- Pull off shoes, socks and mittens
- Point to a picture that you name in a book
- Feed themselves
- Make marks on paper with crayons
- Walk without help
- Walk backwards
- Point, make sounds or try to use words to ask for things
- Say “no” shake their head or push things away they don’t want
24 months
- Use two-three word sentences
- Say about 50 words
- Recognize familiar pictures
- Kick a ball forward
- Feed themselves with a spoon
- Demand a lot of your attention
- Turn two or three pages together
- Like to imitate their parent
- Identify hair, eyes, ears and nose by pointing
- Build a tower of four blocks
- Show affection
36 months
- Throw a ball overhand
- Ride a tricycle
- Put on their shoes
- Open the door
- Turn one page at a time
- Play with other children for a few minutes
- Repeat common rhymes
- Use three-to-five word sentences
- Name at least one color correctly





