Social and emotional development supports children in developing relationships with others, cooperating with peers and adults, understanding others’ feelings and perspectives, and maintaining some control of their behaviors and emotions. These characteristics help ensure that children are able to get along and participate with others.
Here’s some examples of what most children are expected to do at ages 1 and 2 within this developmental domain.
1 year old:
- plays games with you, like pat a cake
- requests help from familiar adults to address wants and needs
- initiates back and forth play
- expresses a range of basic emotions like happiness, sadness, fear, and anger
2 year old:
- notices when others are hurt or upset, like pausing or looking sad when
- someone is crying
- looks at your face to see how to react in a new situation
In addition to looking for key milestones to monitor your child’s development, you can monitor for signs or look-fors that may indicate that your child needs extra support or may have a developmental delay.
A developmental delay could be detected if your child is not meeting the milestones for their age in one or more of the domains.
Bringing any concerns to your pediatrician and early childhood provider can ensure that your child gets the support that they need to help them be successful in school and beyond.
Definition
Strategies
Developmental Milestones
Resources
Detecting Delays
Who to Contact
Screening/Monitoring