IDEA DISABILITIES AND THEIR

DEVELOPMENTAL MILESTONES
Each disorder, impairment or disease, will be broken-down into the
milestones to be met.
 DEVELOPMENTAL MILESTONES
• Each age group has different milestones that are met. According to CDC
(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), there are 4 main groups
that the milestones fall under. They are:

Social/Emotional
Language/Communication
Cognitive (learning, thinking, problem-solving)
Movement/Physical Development
 4-6 MONTH OLD MILESTONES
 Social/Emotional- smiles randomly at people & recognizes people’s faces, enjoys playing, cries
when play ends, other people’s emotions influence their emotions, imitates movements and
expressions, mirror time.
 Language/Communication- has different “cries,” i.e. “I need food cry,” “I’m tired cry.” etc.;
makes sounds after hearing sounds, likes loves/hugs, talks/babbles more and has more facial
expressions, makes vowel sounds, copies others noises, knows their name, starts to vocalize
consonant sounds.

 Cognitive- Shows emotions, happy vs. sad; can use hands singly, grabs toys with hands by
looking at it, observes people’s faces & can identify objects and people from a distance, observes
things nearby with eyes, puts things near mouth, has interest in new things and explores more,
moves things from one hand to the other.
 Movement/Physical Development- Needs no support on head, finds the ground when their feet
are on hard surfaces, might roll front to back or both, grasps toys and can shake them, puts hands
near their mouth, when on their tummy moves up to elbows, starts to sit unassisted, stands
unstably, can crawl backward before forward.
 9-12 MONTH OLD MILESTONES
 Social/Emotional- has stranger-danger, likes to be held by certain people they know, Has
toys & people they enjoy more than others, Is sad when mom/dad leave them, shows
emotions like fear on occasion, likes to be read to, says things repetitively to be noticed,
helps you when they’re getting dressed, plays baby games.
 Language/Communication- knows what “no” means, talks more in baby language,
“mama” “dada” “uh-oh,” Is a copy-cat with words and gestures, Points, Reacts to things
asked of them, Uses non-verbal ques such as: shaking their head “no” or waving their hand
“bye-bye,” Can change their tone.
 Cognitive-Follows the way when something falls, knows to look for things if you have
hidden them, Peek-a-boo is something they like to do, almost everything goes in their
mouth, Changes which hand objects are in, Uses the pincher: index finger and thumb to pick
up food & things, Shakes, bangs or throws things to explore, Can identify names of things by
looking at the correct picture, Plays copy-cat with gestures, Starts using cups, brush, spoon
and others in the correct way, hits things together, loves to use containers to dump
contents and then put contents back, is able to let objects go w/o help, likes to poke things
with pointer finger, listens and does simple instructions.
 Movement/Physical Development- Can stand assisted, knows how to get in sitting
position, can sit w/o support, tries to stand by pulling themselves up, can crawl well, can
walk if holding on to furniture, might be able to stand by themselves.
 18-24 MONTH OLD MILESTONES
 Social/Emotional- Hands objects to people as if it’s a game, can have tantrums, Continues to have
stranger danger, Hugs/kisses to show affection to people they know well, Pretend-play, can be clingy to
caregivers when in new places, draws attention to things by pointing, Wanders alone as long as parent is
nearby, Continues to play copy-cat mostly with adults and youth, Enjoys other children, Becomes more
independent, Can be disobedient, Parallel play (next to) other but starts to play tag-like games.

 Language/Communication- Uses a lot of short words, continues non-verbal communication including

shaking head and pointing to objects they want or like, Can identify body parts and names of people, Can
say very short sentences i.e 2-4 words, Can follow easy directions, Listens to conversations and can
repeat back some words being said.

 Cognitive- Can understand what some objects are used for like a phone, Gets attention by pointing,
Plays with dolls or stuffed animals and may pretend to feed them, Can point to at least 1 body part
correctly, Can scribble on their own, Follows 1-part spoken request without any non-verbal ques, Can find
things that are hidden a bit harder than before, starts to put objects in correct places, Can finish
sentences from favorite books, Pretend play games continue more, Can build a stack of 4 or more blocks,
May show hand dominance, Can follow 2-part directions, Can name animals in a picture book.

 Movement/Physical Development- Can walk unassisted, They might even walk upstairs and run, can
push and pull toys while walking, Helps when dressing and undressing, Can drink from cups and eat from
a spoon, Can stand on tippy toes, Can kick and throw a ball, Climbs on everything unassisted, Can walk
up and down stairs with assistance, Can copy straight lines & o’s.
 3-YEAR OLD MILESTONES
Social/Emotional- Can copy adults and their peers, Hugs or kisses friends w/o
being told to, Can take turns, Cares about friends if they’re sad, “mine” “his” and
“hers” makes sense to them, Expresses themselves through many emotions, Can
leave parents easily, Could become mad if a large change is made in their routine,
Can dress and undress unassisted.
Language/Communication- Can follow longer directions with 2-3 parts, Names
very familiar things, Comprehends position words such as “in,” Can tell you their
name age and gender, Can name their friends, Uses pronouns and plural words, Can
talk well enough most others understand, Can have a 2-3 sentence conversation.
Cognitive- Uses toys with moving parts better than in the past stages, Pretend Play
continues, Can complete 3-4 piece puzzels. Knows what “2” means, Can copy circles
on paper, Can turn pages of a book in correct order, Can build taller towers 6 and
higher, can open doors and screw/unscrew a jar.
Movement/Physical Development- Can climb and run very well, Can pedal a
trike, Uses stairs with one foot per stair.
 4-YEAR OLD MILESTONES
Social/Emotional- Likes to try new things, Role-plays as a parent,
Plays more creatively than before, Likes playing with others more now,
Gets along with others better, Doesn’t always know what is real or
fake, Has favorite things they can talk to you about.
Language/Communication- Knows how to use “he” and “she”
properly, Can sing or repeat a poem without help, Can say their full
name, Is a storyteller
Cognitive- Can identify some colors and numbers, Can count, Begins
to comprehend time, Recalls parts of stories, Knows the difference
between “same” & “different,” Can draw a human with up to 4 body
parts, Can use scissors, Can print a few capital letters, Can play
simple board games and card games, Can predict what will occur next
in a story.
Movement/Physical Development- Can hop, Can be on one foot
for at least 2 seconds, Can catch a bouncy ball more often than
 5-YEAR OLD MILESTONES
Social/Emotional- Is a people pleaser, Likes to be similar to their
friends, Agrees to rules more easily, Dances, sings and acts, Knows
about their sex, Knows the difference between real and pretend, Has
more independence i.e. goes to school, Can be demanding or very
cooperative at times.
Language/Communication- Can talk clear enough to be
understood, Can tell a story in complete sentences, Is aware and can
speak using future tense i.e. “Mom will arrive soon,” Can say their
name and address.
Cognitive- Can count higher than 10, Draws a human with around 6
body parts, Prints a couple letters and numbers, Copies shapes on
paper, Understands everyday things including money and food.
Movement/Physical Development- Can be on one foot for at least
10 seconds, Can hop and maybe skip, Able to do a somersault, Can
use silverware including a knife on occasion, Uses the bathroom by
themselves, Can swing on swings and climb on playgrounds without
 Autism
developmental disability that affects verbal as well as,
Characteristic Spectrum nonverbal communication and social interaction.
s
Disorder It is usually found out around age three and makes
*Aggression schooling challenging.
*Self-harm
*Struggles with social cues The way these folks learn, think and solve problems can be
anywhere from off the charts to drastically challenged.
*Sometimes means they have higher skills in
certain subjects
*Symptoms Vary
*doing repetitive movements such as
stemming
*Doesn’t like change in schedules or
environment Impact on
*responds unusually to sensory encounters Learning
Causes *ABA- applied behavior analysis
*DTT- Discrete Trial Training
*EIBI- Early Intensive Behavioral
Prevalence *Genes from Family members
Intervention
*More likely if sibling has ASD
*PRT- Pivotal Response Training
Is said to be more prevalent *In utero drugs
*VBI- Verbal Behavior Intervention
in the future *Occurs around birth: before, during and
*Early intervention is helpful to
males get it more often after.
better progression in speech
than females *Older parents may make ASD more likely
Research has continued on this disorder

ional Learners: an Introduction to Special Education; https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/index.html

 WHICH MILESTONES AUTISTIC
KIDS MIGHT NOT MEET
• May not develop all the language/communication milestones or the
social/emotional milestones
• Lacks ability to talk
• Can’t process social cues
• May not develop all the movement/physical milestones
• Especially pointing to things
• They could also have excessive movements called stemming
 Intellectual Disability
A disability in which the persons intellect is
Characteristics challenged in communicating, taking care of
*Struggles academically themselves, and picking up on verbal cues.
*Doesn’t understand simple concepts
*Cannot understand how much money
is needed for things
*Have troubles remembering things
Causes
*Doesn’t progress like other kids of *Genes from Family members
same age, crawling, walking and talking
*other diseases may cause it, or
late.
even being having extremely poor
*Don’t understand consequences health
*Don’t understand social rules *In utero development
*can’t problem solve or think logically complications
*Occurs around birth: before,
during and after.

Prevalence
Impact on
Intellectual disabilities affect Learning Adaptive Skill learning
approximately 7-8 million US
citizens General Education provided
Aides and services to supplement learning
Plans for transition to real world life after high
school

http://www.parentcenterhub.org/intellectual/
 WHICH MILESTONES INTELLECTUALLY
DISABLED KIDS MIGHT NOT MEET
• May not develop all the language/communication milestones or the
social/emotional milestones
• May not develop all the movement/physical milestones
• May not develop all the cognitive milestones
• May not develop all the social/emotional milestones

(Since intellect is based on all of these things they can have lower
milestones in all areas of development.)
 Characteristics Specific Learning Disability

Specific disabilities that affect the persons learning. Examples

Struggle in reading, writing or math include dyslexia, dyscalculia, dysgraphia.
specifically. Does not include disorders
May have troubles taking turns in school
May not be able to start on an
assignment by themselves.
Impact on Learning

Prevalence
Biggest in SPED, they are
very common
In the US, 1 in 5 people have
Learning Disabilities
Children aged 6-21 in the US
who have SpEd help and
learning disabilities comes
out to be about 1 million
kids.
Causes
According to a PBS website titled,
“Causes of Learning Disabilities,” no
one knows the exact cause.
Some leads on it involve:
getting it from the parents,
during pregnancy drug consumption
(specifically alcohol or cocaine)
Medical/birth complication factors,
The biggest lead on LD is a theory on
how when the brain is formed subtle
disturbances could cause LD
problems.
http://www.pbs.org/parents/education
/learning-disabilities/basics/causes/
Teachers will need to learn about the
learning disability so they can help the
student,
Emphasize the student’s strengths rather
than their weaknesses,
Give student accommodations when
necessary,
Change the way of testing if necessary,
Set appropriate IEP goals and try to meet
them,
Teach students how to organize their notes,
subjects and help them learn their learning
style,
Develop a relationship with parents so as to
have them help reinforce what is being
taught to the home setting.

http://www.parentcenterhub.org/ld/
 WHICH MILESTONES LEARNING
DISABLED KIDS MIGHT NOT MEET
• May not develop all the language/communication milestones or the
social/emotional milestones
• May not develop all the cognitive milestones
 Emotional Disturbance Exhibiting signs lasting a long period of time including
not being able to learn, not being able to make
relationships with other students, extreme behaviors
or emotions, appearing depressed, and having
physical problems due to other problems (personal,
Characteristics family or school).
There are many different Emotional Disturbance
*Depressed diagnoses such as schizophrenia, eating disorders,
*Aggressive conduct disorders, OCD, anxiety disorders, bipolar
*Self-harm disorder and psychotic disorders.
*Struggle to learn
*Symptoms Vary
*Hyperactive
*Avoids others or withdrawn
*Acts immature for their age
Impact on
Causes Learning

No one really knows but there Varies based on actual emotional

Prevalence
17.1 million out of
74.5 million children
have a psychiatric
disorder.
are factors: disturbance.
*something traumatic happened
*test anxiety might have an
*gained from genes
accommodation for testing
*what a person eats
*disorders in the brain *adaptations made for
*stress behavioral problems
*the function of the family unit
 WHICH MILESTONES EMOTIONALLY
DISABLED KIDS MIGHT NOT MEET
• May not develop all the language/communication milestones
• May not develop all the social/emotional milestones

**Often this Disability comes after the person has gone through something
emotionally disturbing which could happen at any stage of life.**
 This impairment refers to the fact that the person affected has
troubles with strength, vitality and more alertness when it comes to
environmental stimuli and also are less alert in school places.
Other Health Because this impairment can affect schooling they are provided
Impairment with help to make schooling possible.
A few examples of impairments OHI lists: ADD and AH/HD,
Characteristics Diabetes, Epilepsy, Heart conditions, Hemophilia, Lead poisoning,
Cancer, Leukemia, Nephritis, Rheumatic fever, Sickle cell anemia,
*Vary based on which Tourette syndrome
impairments the person has Although this is a short list there are other times when impairments
*weakness that are not listed receive the OHI support and help from the
*low energy school.
*triggered by environmental
changes
Causes
*The impairment
the person has Impact on
makes it so they Learning
are not able to do
as much due to
health problems
Prevalence that cause The school must be able to accommodate the health
weakness, lower related needs of the student
energy, and make There must be a school nurse who is able to help in
In 2003-2004 school year 452,045
them less alert. time of need
students out of 5,971,945 received the OHI
classification. May miss a lot of school because of hospitalization
Make a plan of transition for when the student is able
^According to the Project IDEAL site. to go back to school

ttp://www.projectidealonline.org/v/health-impairments/
http://www.parentcenterhub.org/ohi/
 WHICH MILESTONES OTHER HEALTH
IMPAIRMENT KIDS MIGHT NOT MEET
• May not develop all the Movement/Physical milestones
 AUTISM
Milestones to check
· Social/Emotional
· Language/Communication
 
OTHER HEALTH IMPAIRMENTS
Milestones to check
· Movement/Physical Development
LEARNING DISABILITIES
Milestones to check
· Social/Language
· Cognitive Milestones
DIFFERENCES AT MOST DEVELOPMENTAL
STAGES IN THE VARIOUS DISABILITIES
INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES
Milestones to check
¨ Social/Emotional
¨ Language/Communication
¨ Cognitive (problem-solving) WORST!
¨ Movement/Physical Development
 
PHYSICAL DISABILITIES
Milestones to check
· Movement/Physical Development
EMOTIONAL DISABILITIES
Milestones to check
· Social/Emotional
· Language/Communication