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16.5: Social and Emotional Milestones

  • Page ID
    225521
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    Learning Objectives
    1. Identify social and emotional milestones by age in the early childhood stage.

    That expanding understanding of themselves and others develops with age. Here is a table of social and emotional milestones that children typically experience during early childhood.

    Table \(\PageIndex{1}\): Social and Emotional Developmental Milestones by the CDC is in the public domain.
    Typical Age What Most Children Do by This Age
    3 years
    • Copies adults and friends
    • Shows affection for friends without prompting
    • Takes turns in games
    • Shows concern for a crying friend
    • Dresses and undresses self
    • Understands the idea of “mine” and “his” or “hers”
    • Shows a wide range of emotions
    • Separates easily from mom and dad
    • May get upset with major changes in routine
    4 years
    • Enjoys doing new things
    • Is more and more creative with make-believe play
    • Would rather play with other children than by self
    • Cooperates with other children
    • Plays “mom” or “dad”
    • Often can’t tell what’s real and what’s make-believe
    • Talks about what she likes and what she is interested in
    5 years
    • Wants to please friends
    • Wants to be like friends
    • More likely to agree with rules
    • Likes to sing, dance, and act
    • Is aware of gender
    • Can tell what’s real and what’s make-believe
    • Shows more independence
    • Is sometimes demanding and sometimes very cooperative

    Many factors influence how children develop milestones, such as their self-perception and interactions with those around them. Let’s look more at these.


    This page titled 16.5: Social and Emotional Milestones is shared under a CC BY-NC 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Heather Carter.

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