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Health & Fitness

Developmental Milestones of a 6 Year Old

Every child is unique and every parent has great expectation from other children. Before looking at the developmental milestones one could expect to observe in a 6 year old it is important to remember that no 2 kids are the same. Environmental and genetic predispositions along with the experiences that the child undergoes all affect his or her development. Additionally, a child who does not display any of the milestones indicated here could start showing them a little late but then accelerate and catch up or even overtake the developmental objectives of other children of the same age. Having said this, here are some of the common milestones that could be expected to be seen in a 6 year old.

  • 6 year olds have noticeably longer attention spans and are willing to take on more responsibility and to accept new roles. However, they still prefer structured activities with clear objectives to more open ended ones. These kids still require a great deal of adult supervision and guidance but they are now ready to ask questions to see if they are doing things the right way.
  • At the age of 6 children’s language skills become increasingly sophisticated. Their vocabularies increase rapidly and their use of language now extended beyond communications to become the foundation of learning. Independent reading skills grow and their instinctive appreciation of the complexities of basic grammar become evident. The pronunciation of complex multi-syllabic words is also much better. The ability to use extra words and phrases to add detail to what they are trying to communicate also improves.
  • At 6 most children are real readers who can now begin to decode new and unfamiliar words. The accuracy and fluency with which they read also improve significantly. They also now begin to be able to write down more complex ideas and thoughts.
  • In terms of social development this is the age when the children begin to enjoy displaying their skills and talents. They also now begin to become aware of both their own emotions as well as those of others and develop ways to adjust their behavior to accommodate these moods. Sharing and closer relationships with friends begin to grow in importance although conflicts with other kids of the same age will continue as before, at least for another year or two.
  • In physical terms you can expect a child to gain 5 to 7 pounds in weight and grow about 2½ inches in height every year from now till the age of 12. The first "baby teeth" will start falling out. Vision is now as sharp as that of an adult. Improving body awareness leads it better balance, and sophisticated “gross motor skills” which means that they are able to walk, jump, skip hop, walk on walls and beams etc. The ability to ride a cycle and catch a ball without the additional security of bringing it to the chest may now begin to appear. "Fine motor skills" - the ability to draw and write better and perform tasks like tying shoelaces also begins to be noticeable. The ability to build complex structures with bricks and do more complicated jigsaw puzzles is also apparent.
  • The new found motor skills leads to an increasing enjoyment in movement as can be seen in the enthusiasm for new games and activities such as running and the manipulation of their bodies in terms of jumping, controlled falls, rolling and getting back on their feet.

It is worth repeating that these are just indicative developmental milestones and a delay in the appearance of some of these is no cause for concern. Forcing a child to keep up with his or her peers when he or she is not yet ready can have a negative impact on development.

Read the original article here:
http://www.babybirthday.biz/Blogs/2013/July/developmental_milestones_of_a_6_year_old.html


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