Growth

At every visit we plot weight, height and, in the early months, head circumference on a growth chart. One measurement says very little. The line those measurements make over time says a great deal.

  • Babies usually double their birth weight by five months and treble it by one year.
  • A child who is small but growing steadily along their own curve is usually fine.
  • A child who was growing well and then flattens off or drops needs assessment, whatever the actual number is.

Movement

  • 3 months: holds the head steady, smiles back at you.
  • 6 months: rolls over, sits with support, reaches for objects.
  • 9 months: sits without support, transfers a toy from hand to hand.
  • 12 months: pulls to stand, may take first steps, uses thumb and finger to pick up small things.
  • 18 months: walks well, climbs, scribbles.
  • 2 years: runs, kicks a ball, walks up stairs.

Speech and social development

Screen time slows speech. Under two years, keep it at zero. Talking, reading and playing with your child does more for speech than any app.

  • 6 months: babbles, turns to a voice.
  • 12 months: one or two words with meaning, responds to their name, waves bye.
  • 18 months: several words, points at what they want.
  • 2 years: joins two words together, follows simple instructions.
  • 3 years: short sentences, and speech that people outside the family can understand.

Where is my child on the growth chart?

Enter today's measurements and see where they fall. Under 5 years this uses the WHO standards, the charts printed in every immunisation card. From 5 to 18 it uses the IAP 2015 charts for Indian children. Nothing you enter leaves this phone.

Check the milestones

Enter the date of birth, then tick what your child can do today. The list is what most children can do by that age, so one missing item is a reason to ask, not to worry.