Foundations First - Growth Guide
- Growth: ↑ physical size. Development: ↑ functional capacity & skill.
- Key Factors: Genetics, nutrition, hormones (GH, thyroid), environment, psychosocial.
- Parameters: Weight (WT), Height/Length (HT/L), Head Circumference (HC), BMI; use growth charts.
- Domains: Gross Motor, Fine Motor, Language, Social-Personal, Cognitive.
⭐ Head circumference is a crucial indicator of brain growth, especially in the first 2 years of life.
Milestone March - Tiny Triumphs
Key developmental achievements:
- Gross Motor (GM):
- 3m: Neck holding
- 6m: Sits with support
- 8m: Sits unsupported
- 10m: Crawls, pulls to stand
- 12m: Stands alone, walks with 1 hand
- 13-15m: Walks alone
- 18m: Runs
- 2yr: Kicks ball, stairs 2ft/step
- 3yr: Tricycle, stairs 1ft/step up
- 4yr: Hops (1 foot), stairs 1ft/step down
- 5yr: Skips
- Fine Motor (FM):
- 6m: Palmar grasp, transfers objects
- 9-10m: Immature pincer
- 12m: Neat pincer, tower 2 blocks
- 18m: Tower 3-4 blocks, scribbles
- 2yr: Tower 6-7 blocks, copies vertical line
- 3yr: Tower 9-10 blocks, copies circle
- 4yr: Copies cross, person (3 parts)
- 5yr: Copies triangle
- Social & Language (S/L):
- 2m: Social smile
- 3m: Cooing
- 6m: Monosyllables, stranger anxiety starts
- 9-10m: Babbles "mama/dada" (non-specific), waves "bye-bye"
- 12m: 1-2 words (meaning), responds to name
- 18m: 10-20 words, points to body parts
- 2yr: 2-3 word sentences (~50 words), parallel play
- 3yr: Knows name/age/gender, 3-4 word sentences (~250 words)
- 4yr: Tells stories, cooperative play
- 5yr: Fluent speech, dresses alone
⭐ Red flag: No babbling by 10 months or no single words by 16 months warrants evaluation.
Reflex Roundup - Baby's First Moves
Key primitive reflexes and their typical disappearance timelines:
| Reflex | Disappears (months) | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Moro (Startle) | 3-6 | Arms abduct, then adduct on sudden stimulus |
| Rooting | 3-4 | Head turns to stimulus on cheek/mouth |
| Sucking | 3-4 | Rhythmic sucking with object in mouth |
| Palmar Grasp | 3-4 | Infant grasps object placed in palm |
| Plantar Grasp | 8-10 | Toes curl downwards when sole is stimulated |
| ATNR (Fencing) | 4-6 | Head turn → ipsilateral arm/leg extension |
| Stepping (Walking) | 2-3 | Automatic walking movements when held upright |
⭐ Persistence of Asymmetric Tonic Neck Reflex (ATNR) beyond 6 months is a red flag for cerebral palsy.
Screening Scene - Checkup Champs
- Purpose: Early ID of developmental delays for timely intervention.
- Universal screening: At 9, 18, 30 months (AAP).
- Autism-specific (e.g., M-CHAT): At 18 & 24 months.
- Tools: DDST-II, ASQ, PEDS. Indian: TDSC, Baroda DST.
- Surveillance at every well-child visit.
⭐ DDST-II assesses 4 domains: Gross Motor, Fine Motor-Adaptive, Language, Personal-Social.
Variation Voyage - Spotting Signals
⭐ Loss of previously acquired developmental milestones is a critical red flag warranting immediate investigation.
High‑Yield Points - ⚡ Biggest Takeaways
- Primitive reflexes (e.g., Moro) fade by 4-6 months; persistence indicates CNS dysfunction.
- Social smile at 2 months; stranger anxiety by 6-8 months.
- Motor: head control 3-4m, sits alone 6-8m, walks alone 12-15m.
- Fine motor: pincer grasp by 9-10 months.
- Language: 1-3 words by 1 yr; 2-3 word sentences by 2 yrs.
- Early hand preference (<18 months) may signal hemiparesis.
- Global Developmental Delay (GDD) is delay in ≥2 developmental domains.
Continue reading on Oncourse
Sign up for free to access the full lesson, plus unlimited questions, flashcards, AI-powered notes, and more.
CONTINUE READING — FREEor get the app
