There are standard guidelines for infant development that are widely used to assess whether a child’s cognitive, emotional, and physical development is appropriate for his or her age.
While these guidelines are not hard and fast rules, and childhood development happens on a continuum, knowing what behaviors a child should exhibit and what constitutes normal development can help parents to determine if their child is developing normally or has a developmental delay.
Delays in some developmental areas can be indicative of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), so knowing what the warning signs are can help parents to secure early screening, diagnosis, and treatment if warranted.
According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there are warning signs of developmental delay, broken down into 3-month, 7-month, and 1-year of age categories.
Some signs of a possible developmental delay at 3 months of age are a baby’s lack of response to loud noises, or failure to notice his or her hands by 2 months. Not following a moving object with his eyes by 2 or 3 months and not smiling at people by 3 months are also “red flags.” Three months is also the age at which normally developing babies should support their heads and grasp and hold objects. Other signs of normal development are reaching for toys and babbling by age 3 to 4 months.
By 6 months, normally developing babies should also be able to move one or both eyes in all directions and only occasionally cross their eyes. Not trying to imitate sounds a parent or caretaker makes by age 4 months and not paying attention to – or seeming frightened of – new faces, as well as a dramatic loss of skills once mastered are all signs of a possible developmental delay.
Normally developing children smile spontaneously by 5 months, sit alone by 6 months, and reach for objects by 6 or 7 months. By 6 months, a normally developing baby should laugh or make squealing sounds.
Although not all delays are indicative of a developmental delay, if your child exhibits any of the following “red flags” for developmental delay around age 6 months, consult your pediatrician right away:
Baby seems either very stiff or very floppy;
Baby refuses to cuddle;
Baby shows no affection for those who care for him or her;
Baby does not respond to sounds;
Baby seems inconsolable at night after age 5 months;
Baby cannot roll over either front to back or back to front by five months.