Developmental Tasks.pdf - Primarily Learning

Language
Development
Listening
Development
Visual
Development
Fine Motor/
Eye Hand
Developmental Reading Tasks Birth to 3 months +
Age
Suggested Activity
Birth +
Move objects like toys, a rattle, a scarf, or pom-poms up
and down, left and right. Encourage the infant to track the
item with his/her eyes. This requires visual convergence.
Sing and talk to the baby from different angles around
his/her infant chair. The baby‟s head will follow the voice.
* *
Listen to or move to music.
*
Model facial expressions.
* *
Create interesting sounds.
*
Read books.
* *
*
String toys across the crib or bouncy chair. At this stage
the infant will just look up at them... checking each one
out… or watch the object as you move the toy(s).
Suspend a baby mirror on a chair, swing or overhead bar.
*
Bob balloons or streamers.
*
Use rattles, squeaky toys or sound makers for the infant to
track sound.
* *
3 months + Hang toys from a string and move the string as the baby
reaches for it.
* *
Mimic the baby„s sounds.
* *
Read board books together! See the cat. The cat says,
“Meow.”
* * *
Play with a pinwheel. Watch it turn.
*
Identify body parts. (i.e. Point to the nose as you say, “I
see your nose.” … eyes, mouth, stomach, elbow, knees)
*
Provide small infant rattles and toys for the baby to grab
hold of it. He/ she will gain control of wrist, palm and
fingers as well as develop his/her ability to judge distance
and shape.
Use photos to make a book of family and friend‟s faces.
Say, “Look at Tommy. Here‟s Susie.”
* *
Play a sound location game (i.e. find the toy that is
squeaking).
*
Play with a Jack in the box. Note the cause and effect.
* *
*
* *
Compiled by L. Fyke 2006 1

Language
Development
Listening
Development
Visual
Development
Fine Motor/
Eye Hand
Developmental Reading Tasks 6 to 12 months +
Age
Suggested Activity
6 months+ Open a gift or a wrapped article.
*
Present toys with cylinders, and dials that whirl and spin and
make noise.
* *
Play with pop up toys.
* *
Spin tops.
*
Dump objects.
*
Play ball.
* *
Catch a bubble.
* *
Make music with an xylophone, drums, toy piano.
* *
Use a flashlight and spot an object. Where did the light go?
* *
Make shakers. This will develop a cause and effect
connection.
*
Play with sand.
*
9 months+ Use early puzzles and shape boards.
* *
Listen to and identify sounds in the environment.
* *
Talk about the environment. “Look at the trees. I see a big
cloud. There‟s a sunflower. The grass is green.”
* * *
Knock down towers.
*
Pour liquids or sand using funnels, cups, and pails.
*
* *
12 months
+
Make an activity book with materials and paper of varying
textures, ribbons, old cards, and magazine pictures. Turn
pages. Point to and talk about the items in the book. “Look
at the red ribbon. The black paper is really rough. Can you
find the shiny gold material?”
Drop balls of varying sizes into a container.
*
Stack rings
* *
Look at and turn the pages of a board book.
*
Sing simple songs.
* *
Listen to the Jolly Songs.
* *
Name objects as you look at them.
*
Introduce new words through stories, on neighborhood
walks, in the environment.
*
Model using complete sentences.
*
Talk as you play developmentally appropriate games.
*
Notice correct use of sounds and words, do not draw
attention to incorrect usage.
*
Give the child simple one-step directions. (i.e. Bring me your
socks.)
*
Compiled by L. Fyke 2006 2

Language
Development
Listening
Development
Visual
Development
Fine Motor/
Eye Hand
Developmental Reading Tasks Toddler to 3 +
NOTE:
Remember to provide numerous and varied learning opportunities through
games, music and activities for young children. Some of the activities listed may
be presented when the child is a toddler. Children develop at varying rates.
Some children will quickly grasp and enjoy the activity while other will need
repeated and varied learning opportunities.
* All of the activities listed below are presented and many are assessed during
senior kindergarten.
Determine which of three things is not like the other. Tell why.
(Visual discrimination.)
* *
Determine which two of three symbols are the same. Tell why. * *
I spy something big, red and round. * * *
Put 3-5 things on a tray. Ask the child to try to remember the items. Look
at the tray. Cover it. List items that the child remembered. Check the list
with the items on the tray. Increase to 7 items. (Visual memory)
* *
Without identifying sounds, match 2 of three symbols that are the same.
(i.e. h h n; p d p; ai ae ae)
Identify environmental sounds. (Auditory discrimination) * *
Make the sounds of a specific animal. * *
Match two sound shakers. *
Delete part of a compound word. “Say doghouse. Now say it again but
don‟t say dog.” (Auditory memory)
* *
Clap the syllables of a word. ( i.e. dog; ti-ger; hick-or-y; hel-i-cop-ter) * *
Bounce a ball or tap stick to the syllable beats of a rhyme or song. * *
Delete part of a two syllable word. “Say window. Now say it again but * *
don‟t say -dow.”
Delete part of a three syllable word. “Say wonderful. Now say it again
but don‟t say won-.”
* *
Make up silly rhymes. (i.e. willy, nilly: rog, bog, mog) * *
Fill in the missing word in a Nursery Rhyme. (i.e. “Jack and Jill went up * *
the ______”)
Copy clapping patterns. *
Remember a 7 digit phone number. *
Determine which of three words rhyme. * *
Identify if two words rhyme. * *
Make a rhyme. * *
Develop fine motor control by using scissors, crayons, chalk, pencils,
Lego, blocks, paint, sand, plasticene, and play dough; pinching tweezers;
squeezing sponges, balls or bean bags; lacing and stringing beads;
tracing; etc.
Encourage efforts to draw real people, objects and events. Talk about
and model drawing these items using shapes and position in space.
Avoid baby talk as you TALK to the child. * *
READ STORIES. Have fun! Use expression. Ask questions. Dramatize! * *
LOOK AT BOOKS. Talk about the picture, words, story. * *
Go to the LIBRARY! *
SING SONGS. Singing songs develops auditory memory skills and
provides opportunities to play with words and rhymes!
* *
Sing the Jolly Songs to introduce the sounds of our language to children. * *
Enjoy age appropriate movies. Talk about them. Sequence events. * *
*
Give the child a hand mirror. Encourage the child to watch his/her
mouth as he/she makes a sound or says a word.
*
*
Compiled by L. Fyke 2006 3

Language
Development
Listening
Development
Visual
Development
Fine Motor/
Eye Hand
Developmental Reading Tasks Toddler to 3 +
NOTE:
Remember to provide numerous and varied learning opportunities through
games, music and activities for young children. Some of the activities listed may
be presented when the child is a toddler. Children develop at varying rates.
Some children will quickly grasp and enjoy the activity while other will need
repeated and varied learning opportunities.
* All of the activities listed below are presented and many are assessed during
senior kindergarten.
Sing the abc song. * *
I spy something that starts with “x”. {sound of the letter(s)} * *
I spy something that ends with “x”. {sound of the letter(s)} * *
Make up a tongue twister with three or more words that start with the
same sound. (i.e. She sells seashells by the seashore.)
* * *
Play grocery store or food bingo. * *
Ask the child to cut words from a magazine that have one or more *
letters from his/her name.
Wear a sound, make a headband sound, or post a letter(s) on a book.
Encourage the child to inquire about or identify the sound that the letters
represent.
Use a divided tray or T chart and sort letters. Identify your sorting rules.
( i.e. These have dots. These have curves.)
Use a reading window (a square hole cut in a strip of paper) and find the
letter(s) that represent the sound of the day in the morning message,
chart story or big book.
Use a highlighter and find a specific letter or sound in a magazine or
newspaper.
* *
* *
* *
* *
Use magnetic letters to create words from picture and name cards. * *
Use alphabet stamps. * *
Print sounds in the air. This is called air writing. Provide exact * * *
directions for moving the hand.
Ask the child to record dictated letters sounds on a white board,
chalkboard or paper.
Use 8 pairs of cards and play concentration. Increase pairs as skill
develops.
* * *
* * *
Make letters or words out of playdoh or plasticene. * * *
Use pipe cleaners or wikki sticks to make letters. * * *
Make a graffiti board with letters or words. * * *
Make rainbow letters. * * *
Make large tactile letter or letter combinations. * * *
Create curves and lines in finger-paint. *
Support the child‟s efforts to write his/her name using lower case letters. * *
Initially learn the sounds of our language (phonemes) instead of
alphabet letter names. Connect the sound to the symbol(s)… (letter(s))
Learn the letter names (graphemes) as you introduce tricky words. *
Go on an alphabet hunt around the classroom or playground.
*
Using up to five cards, put them in alphabetical order.
Make lily pads. Add letter sounds. The child is encouraged to hop to the *
next sound heard.
Make stepping stones. Ask the child to say a word that has the sound of *
the next stone in it. Identify if the sound was at the beginning, middle or
end of the word.
Be creative! Use letters to create a new character or draw a picture. * *
Make Patterns. Look for patterns in nature. * *
*
Compiled by L. Fyke 2006 4

Language
Development
Listening
Development
Visual
Development
Fine Motor/
Eye Hand
Developmental Reading Tasks Toddler to 3 +
NOTE:
Remember to provide numerous and varied learning opportunities through
games, music and activities for young children. Some of the activities listed may
be presented when the child is a toddler. Children develop at varying rates.
Some children will quickly grasp and enjoy the activity while other will need
repeated and varied learning opportunities.
* All of the activities listed below are presented and many are assessed during
senior kindergarten.
ORALLY BLEND SOUNDS to make consonant-vowel-consonant (cvc)
or cv, vc words. (i.e. Guess my word: r-e-d, -c-ar, d-o-g, g-ir-l)
Orally blend sounds to make more complicated words. (i.e. Guess my
word: s-t-o-p, b-e-l-t, ch-ai-n, b-l-e-n-d)
Place a dot under each letter or letter combination that represents a
sound. Use the dots as you point to the letter(s) to read the sounds.
Blend the sounds together to read the word.
Make up sound cards. Give the child a limited number of sound cards to
choose from. Using those cards ask the child to find the sounds to make a
word. ( i.e. s-ee, m-a-d, r-a-n, r-ai-n, d-ee-r)
Play letter sound or word dominoes! (i.e. ai /ee, ee/ a: dog/cat,
cat/pig, pig/cup)
Make a rhyming circle using two sizes of paper plates and a brad. Try
to sound out the words!
Be a detective! Ask the child to look through a magnifying glass at an
word and blend the sounds to read the word.
* *
* *
* *
* *
ORALLY SEGMENT SOUNDS of words. ( i.e. house = h-ou-se) * *
Hold up a finger for every sound heard in a word. * *
Move a marker for every sound heard in a word. * *
Record the sounds of words dictated by the teacher. * * *
Make a shopping list. * *
Introduce tricky words. Explain why they are tricky. *
Make a word wall with tricky words in alphabetical order. *
After learning some tricky words, and experiencing numerous successful
opportunities to read decodable sentences, read simple decodable
*
stories.
Learn how to print tricky words. *
After developing fine motor control and many experiences printing
sounds and recording dictated words, write short, dictated sentences.
*
*
*
* * *
Write a story! * * *
Encourage the child to retell a story in their own words. * *
Using pictures from the story, sequence story details. * *
Tell jokes and riddles! * *
Ask questions and expect answers! * *
Print words on index cards. Ask the child to unscramble the words to
make a sentence. (i.e. I see a big tree. Look at the fat cat.)
Create building word steps. Draw one step. Under the first stair write a
common noun. Ask the child to think of a word to describe the noun. Add
up to 5 adjectives and stairs. (i.e. Ball. Big ball. Big, red ball. Big, red,
bouncy ball. Big, red, bouncy spotted ball.
Talk about parts of speech when you read stories. *
Talk about punctuation when you read stories. *
*
* *
Compiled by L. Fyke 2006 5