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Summary
Mastering new skills such as how to walk, talk, and use the potty are developmental milestones. It is exciting to watch your toddler learn new skills. The normal development of children aged 1-3 includes several areas:
- Gross motor - walking, running, climbing
- Fine motor - feeding themselves, drawing
- Sensory - seeing, hearing, tasting, touching, and smelling
- Language - saying single words, then sentences
- Social - playing with others, taking turns, doing fantasy play
Toddlers do not develop at the same rate. There is a wide range of what is considered "normal." Your child may be ahead in some areas and slightly behind in others. If you are worried about possible delays, talk to your child's health care provider.
Diagnosis and Tests
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Developmental and Behavioral Screening Tests
(National Library of Medicine)
Also in Spanish
- Developmental Monitoring and Screening (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - PDF - In English and Spanish
Treatments and Therapies
- Physical Therapy (For Parents) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
- Speech-Language Therapy (For Parents) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
Related Issues
- Creating a Toilet Training Plan (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish
- Learning, Play, and Your 1- to 2-Year-Old (Nemours Foundation)
- Potty Training: Learning to Use the Toilet (Zero to Three)
- Separation Anxiety (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
- Stopping the Bottle (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
- Toddler Bedtime Trouble: Tips for Parents (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish
- Toddlers and Breastfeeding (American Academy of Pediatrics)
- Toddlers and Sexual Behavior (Virtual Pediatric Hospital)
- Toilet Training (Nemours Foundation)
- Toilet Training and the Older Child (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish
- What Is a Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrician? (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish
Specifics
- 12 to 24 Months (Zero to Three)
- 24 to 36 Months (Zero to Three)
- Growth and Your 1- to 2-Year-Old (Nemours Foundation)
- Growth and Your 2- to 3-Year-Old (Nemours Foundation)
-
Speech and Language Developmental Milestones
(National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders)
Also in Spanish
Videos and Tutorials
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Managing Your Toddler's Behavior
(Nemours Foundation)
Clinical Trials
-
ClinicalTrials.gov: Child Development
(National Institutes of Health)
Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)
- Article: Early Neurodevelopment of Extremely Preterm Infants Administered Autologous Cord Blood Cell...
- Article: School age outcomes of very premature infants randomized to cord milking...
- Article: Individualized Target Fortification of Breast Milk with Protein, Carbohydrates, and Fat...
- Toddler Development -- see more articles
Reference Desk
- Growth Charts (For Parents) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
Find an Expert
-
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
Also in Spanish
- KidsHealth (Nemours Foundation)
Patient Handouts
- Developmental milestones record - 12 months (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
- Developmental milestones record - 18 months (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
- Developmental milestones record - 2 years (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
- Developmental milestones record - 3 years (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
- Developmental Monitoring and Screening (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - PDF - In English and Spanish
- Normal growth and development (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
- Toddler development (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
- Toilet training tips (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish