Reflection on Developmental Delay

Summary

Developmental Delay

By National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities (NICHCY)

Children are expected to learn a multitude of skills while growing up, which emerge as they grow and develop. From birth to just a few months old, they are expected to smile, turn over, respond, communicate, eat solid foods, crawl, etc. These skills are referred to as developmental milestones. The normalcy varies from child to child; we cannot necessarily compare one child to another and determine whether or not one child has a delay.

The first step as a parent is to observe your child; if a parent is concerned about the development of the child, then they should discuss the situation with the pediatrician. The pediatrician would then determine the appropriate steps for screening, if necessary. Many pediatricians will first observe the child as well and ask the parent to continue to make observations and see if any progress is made. The parent and child are then to return to the pediatrician for further evaluation. However, should the pediatrician be immediately concerned about the development, he/she will go ahead and begin the screening process.

Developmental screening is looking for developmental delays. The initial screening is generally quick and measures the child's skills and development. This screening doesn't diagnose the child, but determines whether or not the child should be referred for a developmental evaluation, which is a more in-depth process. The developmental evaluation is conducted by highly trained professionals and will determine the child's strengths and weaknesses. The areas of development consist of: physical development, cognitive development, communication development, social or emotional development, and adaptive development. The results are then used to determine whether the child is in need of early intervention services and/or treatment plan.

Early intervention services are generally for children under the age of three, and are free. Pediatricians can recommend where to seek help for children with developmental delays; many schools systems now have pre-school classes which assist in this area. Special education services are meant for children over the age of three. These services are also free of charge through the public school system.

My Personal Reflection

In my first article review, I eluded to exactly what this article is referring to. We noticed my son, Derek, now nine years old, seemed to be on track for the first year or so. He smiled, at solids, turned over, crawled, stood up, and walked around the 'appropriate age'. However, once he had mastered those skills, it seemed that he went a bit downhill; at the age of 2/2.5 we noticed that he seems to be developing as fast as