Author: Natasha Boskic

Adaptive Skills

When a child is between 8 and 10 years old, basic adaptive skills are almost completely developed. They are independent and any difficulty with this area of development should be taken seriously. It might indicate difficulties or delays in other developmental areas as well.

When it comes to adaptive skills, there are some signs of delay. A child may:

need help in the shower;
not rinse properly when washing their hands or bodies (Fig. 1);
need help cutting their food;
spill when drinking from a cup;
need help brushing their teeth;
need help with dressing and undressing;
need help with buttons, snaps and zippers;
need help with grooming;
continue to have bowel and bladder “accidents”.

Figure 1. Washing hands

see References

3.0 Eight to Ten: Academic Skills

Eight to Ten: Academic Skills

Post author By Natasha Boskic
Post date May 6, 2012
No Comments on Eight to Ten: Academic Skills

Between ages 8 and 10, children’s academic skills are getting better and better. They are now very good at reading and writing. They can spell a large number of words and can perform mathematical operations. This is the time when many delays or difficulties with academic skills become more apparent and difficult to ignore. Children who get diagnosed with ADHD and/or a learning disability usually get referred for a psychological or psycho-educational assessment during this time. Although the signs and symptoms of ADHD or a learning disability can usually be noticed before this age, it is between the ages of8 and 10 are the time when most referrals for a diagnosis are made. It is extremely that those working with children this age be aware of the most common signs of academic delays (Fig. 1).

Figure 1. Academic delay

READING

Children experiencing delays reading, may:

avoid reading and resisting reading activities;
take a very long time to read a simple paragraph (Fig. 2);
be unable to recognize most common words by sight (that is, without having to decode them);
not understand that we read for a reason, and that this reason is comprehension;
not be able to retell a story that he or she just read (possibly because he or she was so busy decoding words, she did not pay attention to the meaning of what she was reading);
heavily rely on others when reading and need help decoding a word;
struggle with the identifying of nouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs in sentences;
be unable to put words in alphabetical order (for example: apple, boat, cookie…);
not know the difference between numbers and letters;
struggle with phonemes (like “s” sound) and syllables, like “ba-na-na” or “ti-ger.” For more information, please visit the following website.

Figure 2. Difficulties reading

WRITING

Children experiencing delays in writing, may:

take a very long time to write a simple sentence (Fig. 3);
struggle with writing even simple words, like “mine” or “apple,” from memory;
have unclear printing or writing;
write words very close to each other in a sentence (that is, not spacing words properly. For example, “Iam notgoing toschooltoday” instead of “I am not going to school today”);
struggle with punctuation (that is, using very little or no punctuation; for example: “My sister and I went home we played with friends,” instead of “My sister and I went home. We played with friends”);
have difficulty copying words from the blackboard or an example;
avoid any form of writing activities at all cost (this could include writing activities that most children this age enjoy like text messaging or sending email messages);
struggle with homework and written reports;
not know when to use capital letters; for example, proper names, like “Megan” or “Canada;” at the beginning of a sentence, or following periods, like “You ate the last cookie. Now we are out of cookies!”

Figure 3. Difficulties writing

MATH

When experiencing delays in math, a child may:

struggle with the addition of basic one and two digit numbers;
struggle with the addition of simple fractions (Fig. 4);
struggle with the subtraction of one and two digit numbers;
have difficulty counting in twos (that is: 2, 4, 6, 8) and fives (5, 10, 15, 20);
not know the difference between odd and even numbers;
struggle with counting high numbers (that is, numbers over 100);
not know how much change they will get when paying $5.00 or less for an item;
not be able to tell time, with either a digital or analog watch or clock;
struggle with basic math concepts (such as “less than” and “more than”);
know the rules of basic multiplication; this consists of counting by grouping and repeating the same number instead of counting one by one
struggle with relative concepts (such as “bigger” and “biggest”) (Fig. 5)
struggle with simple word problems (for example: “If Johnny has three cookies and Harpreet has five cookies, who has more?”);
be unable to count down from 10 to zero.

$doing fractions$

Figure 4: Doing fractions

Figure 5. Relative concepts, such as “bigger” and “biggest”

see References

2.5 Six to Eight: Social/Emotional Skills

Social/Emotional Skills

Children at this age are really trying hard to develop their social and emotional skills. They are trying to understand and label their emotions as well as those of others. They are also making new friends and learning the social skills needed to keep those friends. Friendships are important at this age and it is really important that we make sure children have the necessary skills to keep them (Fig. 1).

Figure 1. Friends

SOCIAL

Here are some signs of delay in the social domain:

child appears not to have any friends;
child does not seem to get invited to parties or outings that others are invited to;
child always wants things done their way (closer to age 8);
child appears to be quite dependent on others and may be clingy in certain situations;
child does not like or want to share with others, even asked to;
child does not seem to like to wait for her turn, even if asked to (closer to age 8);
child does not seem to understand that one has to ask for permission when they want to use an item that does not belong to them;
child chooses not to follow the rules at home or at school;
child appears to get upset most of the time when playing simple card and board games with adults and peers (Fig. 2) (closer to age 8);

Figure 2. Playing chess

child does not seem willing to cooperate with others;
child refuses simple suggestions from others, even when struggling with a task;
child does not appear to understand that what she likes is not necessarily what others like (closer to age 8);
child does not appear to sense when others are upset or angry;
child seems equally friendly with those she knows and those she does not know; for example, being willing to engage in lengthy conversations, hug and kiss and leave with anyone who they meet up on the street. (Then add Maya’s comment);
child seems to fidget a lot, in social situations;
child seems to prefer to be alone instead of with others most of the time;
child does not seem to understand the facial expressions of others, according to one’s culture; for example, surprise, joy, sadness, anger;
child does not join a group of children playing, unless asked to do so;
child does not comfort others when they are sad;
child hits;
bites;
kicks others most of the time when angry or within a conflict situation (instead of trying to find other ways to solve problem);
child gets very angry when things do not go his or her way, or when he or she does not get what he or she wants.

EMOTIONAL

The emotional domain is very important. Children need to be secure, happy and full of self-confidence. Emotional skills also impact other developmental areas, specifically the cognitive and social domains. Children with good emotional skills will try harder and are more willing to learn. They are more likely to make new friends and keep them. It is very important that we monitor these skills, in order to offer help as early as possible if need be (Fig. 3).

Figure 3. Playing with others

A child may be experiencing delays in the emotional domain if he or she frequently:

does not seem to be able to understand or label her own emotions (For example: “I am happy,” “I am angry”);
cannot tell how others are feeling (closer to age 8);
seems to rely on others a lot, even when performing the simplest of tasks (for example, seems to need constant encouragement from others);
does not seem to like it when given negative feedback (closer to age 8) as in “you need to work a bit more on your reading”;
has a very fragile self-esteem, and asks for reassurance a lot;
is constantly asking significant others if they love him;
seems to have trouble communicating how he/she is feeling;
does not respond well to any change in routine (for example, may not like it if he is not read a story before bedtime, like he usually is);
suddenly feels sick when asked to do something he/she does not want to do;
will sometimes eat objects that are not edible (for example, play dough);
will destroy his or others’ property when upset;
is too scared to sleep alone;
appears to have trouble getting to sleep or staying asleep;
may take a long time to finish his/her meal;
hurts him/herself on purpose;
has excessive temper tantrums (that is, a temper tantrum that lasts for more than 10 minutes);
appears to worry a lot over simple things and events;
appears to be very difficult to comfort;
seems to move from one extreme feeling to another very quickly (for example, goes from being very happy to very upset in just a few seconds).

see References

2.4 Six to Eight: Motor Skills

Motor Skills

Children at this age are continuing to refine their motor skills. They are quite active and are able to take part in a variety of new and exciting motor activities.

GROSS MOTOR

Here are some possible signs of gross motor delay:

child is unable to ride a bike with training wheels (Fig. 1) (and after practice);
child does not run very well and continuously bumps into objects when running;
child cannot hop forward for a few feet or meters;
child cannot catch a large ball from several feet or meters away (Fig. 2);
child does not alternate feet, when going up and down the stairs (closer to age 8).

Figure 1. Riding a bike

Figure 2. Playing a ball

FINE MOTOR

It is very important to watch out for any delays in fine motor skills, because they impact most other areas of development. For instance, difficulties with fine motor skills can impact a child’s ability to use a pencil or pen, hold a spoon or fork, tie her shoelaces and button the buttons of her coat.

Here are some possible signs of fine motor delay:

child writes words and sentences that are not understood by others or even the child himself;
child struggles with copying and tracing activities;
child struggles with scissors and cannot cut simple shapes (Fig. 3);
child continues to use the whole hand while holding a pencil, instead of the tripod position (Fig. 4);
child struggles with typing simple sentences or her name on a computer keyboard (for children who have computers at home and are allowed to use them);
child tears the page when using an eraser;
child cannot tie shoelaces;
child appears not have good posture (Fig. 5) when writing.

Figure 3. Cutting with scissors

Figure 4. Holding a pencil

Figure 5. Good posture

see References

2.3 Six to Eight: Language Development

Language Development

Children aged 6 to 8 years speak almost as well as adults. They speak in very long and complex sentences and are even starting to play with words and language. Any sign of language delay should be taken seriously, because it could indicate a difficulty with the process of language, or a deeper difficulty with cognition, which is reflected through language.

RECEPTIVE LANGUAGE:

Here are some signs of delays in receptive language:

child does not appear to be learning new words every week or so;
child (closer to age 8) appears to be very literal in his understanding of language and does not understand figurative speech (for example, it is raining cats and dogs, or something similar in your native language if it is not English);
child may be able to follow a one-step command, but struggles with two and three-step commands;
child struggles with the understanding of the passive form (for example, the dog is chased by the chicken);
child appears to struggle with following directions they heard five minutes earlier;
child appears not to understand complex spatial terms such as ‘below’ and ‘beside;’
child (closer to age 8) has difficulty with complex colors such as purple, navy and grey;
child has difficulty with complex and embedded sentences or phrases (for example, the boy whose mother is a doctor was sick today) and seems to only understand basic sentences;
child has difficulty with any reference to objects and items that are not in the here and now (for example, talking about something that happened in the past, or will happen in the future).

EXPRESSIVE LANGUAGE:

Here are some signs of delays in expressive language:

child uses extremely simple sentences and hardly ever uses complex or embedded sentences and phrases (like: the girl whose cat is lost is very sad);
child does not seem to be learning new words on a regular basis (that is: learning a new word almost every day);
child is not yet using the passive form, at all (for example, the dog was fed by my mother);
child appears to continually (that is, not occasionally) struggle with the usage of the irregular plural, (for example, child might say “mouses” instead of “mice”);
child appears to continually (that is, not occasionally) struggle with the usage of the irregular past tense, (for example, child might say: “eated“ instead of “ate”);
child uses mainly the present tense when talking, even when referring to events in the future (for example: “Tomorrow I am going to schoo”);
child appears to struggle with figurative speech (closer to age 8) and is not yet using any idioms; for example, “having a full load” to indicate they are carrying a lot of weight or they have a lot to do;
child does not ask a lot of questions, and when a question is asked, it is asked by simply raising the inflection, at the end of a sentence;
child mixes certain words that may have similar meanings (for example, may say “dog” for “fox”);

ARTICULATION

Here are some signs of delay in articulation:

child appears to struggle with basic sounds in the English language (for example: “m” and “p”);
child struggles with more complex sounds such as “n” and “r”.

PRAGMATIC LANGUAGE

Here are some signs of delays in pragmatics:

child appears not to understand some basic non-verbal cues (closer to age 8), (for example, “child is moving away from me, maybe he does not want to play with me anymore”);
child constantly interrupts others and does not seem willing or able to wait for his turn, while conversing with others;
child seems to struggle with personal space and constantly gets too close to others when talking to them (please note that this varies from culture to culture);
child does not seem to understand that in some situations, such as the movies or church, people should speak in a soft voice;
child will often talk about something and then start talking about something else (closer to age 8), when conversing with others;
child appears to get upset, if he/she cannot get his/her point across;
child does not appear to understand jokes.

Did you know?

Some children continue to struggle with the pronunciation of some difficult sounds, such as the “r” and the “zh (sound in pleasure)”. It would be a good idea to get a consultation with a speech and language pathologist if that is the case.
Children may make silly grammatical mistakes that they never made before. For example, a child who has always used the verb “went,” may start saying “goed” or “wented.” You should not be concerned if your child does that. A younger child saying “went” is just mimicking what adults are saying. This same child, when he or she gets older and starts to internalize the rules of grammar, will sometimes overuse a certain grammatical rule. That is because he or she does not yet know about grammatical exceptions to the rule. That is why this child will now say “goed” instead of “went.”
As with verbs, a child may change the way he or she uses regular and irregular plural nouns. Your child, who has been saying “feet” for the longest time, may now start to say “foots.” Again, at this age, this is not a cause for concern.

see References

2.2 Six to Eight: Cognitive Development

Cognitive Development

Between 6 and 8 years of age, cognitive skills are becoming more complex. Children are starting to perform simple operations. In fact, they are starting to use logic when solving problems. Children at this age are improving the cognitive skills that they already have and are learning new ones. They are learning to make connections between different bits of information and are generalizing what they learn from one setting to the next. It is very important to watch children who appear to be struggling with their cognitive skills, and get them help as soon as possible.

Here are some signs of developmental delay to watch out for:

difficulty paying attention for longer than 10 minutes;
difficulty engaging in basic classification activities (such as: grouping items based on one characteristic: putting all red blocks together);
difficulty planning ahead for a certain activity (for example, making sure child has everthing he or she needs in order to play soccer outside);
difficulty grouping items together based on their function (for example, the cup goes with the saucer and the pencil goes with the eraser);
difficulty getting started with an activity, and often needing encouragement from others to do so;
not knowing what their age will be next year;
not knowing what day of the week it is;
not knowing the difference between right and left;
difficulty predicting what will happen next in a story;
not knowing which activities usually occur at night and which activities usually occur during the day;
difficulty naming the four seasons, the seven days of the week and the twelve months of the year;
difficulty organizing parts of an event into a logical, sequential order (for example: we get undressed and then we get in the bathtub);
difficulty describing how items are alike (for example: blue and red are alike because they are both ‘colors’);
difficulty describing how items are different (for example, you drink soup with a spoon and you eat steak with a fork);
difficulty understanding basic and simple inferences (for example: the bike got stolen because we left it outside, unattended);
difficulty identifying objects by their uses (for example, a knife is something you use to cut your meat);
difficulty playing simple card or board games that require keeping simple scores (for example: crazy eights and snakes and ladders) (Fig. 1);
difficulty understanding the concept of “opposite” (for example: the opposite of long is short);
difficulty understanding that objects can fit into more than one category (for example: a ball can fit into the categories of “toys” and “things that are round”);
difficulty understanding “cause and effect” relations (for example, I got all wet because it was raining and I wasn’t wearing a hat or carrying an umbrella);
not knowing their home phone number and home address (closer to age 8);
not being able to tell time, even with a digital clock or watch;

Figure 1. Snakes and ladders

Did you know?

Children at this age are very curious and eager to learn. Lack of motivation to learn new things and lack of curiosity should be investigated thoroughly because it could indicate problems with learning.
Children at this age tend to ask a lot of “why” or “how come” questions. If they rarely do so, and do not seem to be interested in the world around them, we should be asking ourselves why that is the case.

see References

2.1 Six to Eight: Adaptive Skills

Adaptive Skills

Children at this age are expected to perform a lot of tasks by themselves, both at home and at school. Most children have chores at home. Such chores include keeping their rooms tidy and helping keep the rest of the house tidy as well (Fig. 1). At school, they are expected to go to the bathroom, eat, dress and undress on their own, or with minimal help. Adaptive skills are very important because they can draw a lot of negative attention if they are not performed well. It is very important to make sure children’s adaptive skills are strong.

Figure 1. Cooking with mom

Some signs of delay in the adaptive domain include:

not knowing that what we wear depends on the weather (that is, fewer layers in the summer and more layers in the winter);
being unable to get undressed independently;
being unable to move independently or with minimal help;
difficulty tying one’s shoelaces (for ages 7 and 8) (Fig. 2);
wearing the left shoe on the right foot and vice versa;
difficulty buttoning large buttons, or buttoning large buttons in the incorrect button holes (Fig. 3);
difficulty fastening snaps;
difficulty zipping up a zipper, even if it has been connected at the bottom;
not knowing how to brush hair on their own;
difficulty brushing their teeth and rinsing;
requiring a lot of help when washing their face and/or hands;
difficulty holding eating utensils properly;
not knowing which public washroom to use (girls versus boys’ washroom);
not looking both ways when crossing the street (closer to age 8);

Figure 2. Tying shoelaces

Figure 3. Large buttons

DID YOU KNOW?

Adaptive skills are influenced by the culture in which the child lives. In some cultures, children below the age of 7 are not expected to dress or undress on their own, and they are often given help when cleaning up, whether they need it or not. It is therefore very important to take the child’s culture into account, when determining whether or not a child has a delay in the adaptive area.

see References

2.0 Six to Eight: Academic Skills

Six to Eight: Academic Skills

Post author By Natasha Boskic
Post date May 6, 2012
No Comments on Six to Eight: Academic Skills

Children between the ages of 6 and 8 years are now in school full time and a lot is expected of them. They are expected to sit still for long periods of time, to take part in individual and group work, and practice a certain amount of autonomy (see full Glossary) (Fig.1). This is a very important time in the lives of children who may not have been identified as having special needs, but who still show delays. The differences between these children and their typically developing peers are now becoming obvious to parents, relatives, teachers and other service providers. It is very important to keep a close watch on these children, and make a referral for a psycho-educational assessment, if it becomes obvious that the child is struggling with school.

Figure 1. In the classroom

READING

Children at this age are reading. They are expected to make sense of what they are reading. If they do not, they may need extra help, either from the regular teacher or the special educator. Some signs of developmental delays may be:

child struggles with the alphabet and is unable to say it;
child struggles with individual letters and cannot name them all;
child uses language that is very simple;
child struggles with new words, or the use of old words in new contexts;
child struggles with the phonemic segmentation of a word;
child struggles with the syllabic segmentation of a word;
child struggles with the phonemic blending of sounds;
child struggles with the phonemic blending of words ;
child struggles with basic alliterations;child may be able to read, but cannot answer simple questions about what he is reading, that is, he or she struggles with reading comprehension;
child struggles with basic elements of readings, and is only able to read very simple sentences (between ages seven and eight);
child struggles with the recognition of sight words, even simple and familiar ones (for example: dog, cat);
child struggles when it comes to decoding new words (see full Glossary);
child struggles with basic aspects of figurative speech and does not seem to understand basic idioms (such as: It is raining cats and dogs);
child does not seem to understand the difference between a phoneme (for example, the sound “c” in “cat”) and a syllable (for example, the sound “ba” in “baby”);
child does not seem able to predict what will happen next in a story;
child does not seem to be able to build upon what she has read in a story to create a new story (between ages seven and eight);
child cannot seem to know the difference between nouns (for example, boy) and verbs (for example, go);
child cannot seem to be able to identify the main idea in a text or a story.

Did you know?

Children 6 to 8 years old are very interested and motivated to read (Fig. 2). If a child is not interested in reading, or resists being read to, she could be struggling with basic elements of reading. It is very important to watch these children carefully in order to determine why they are not interested in reading or being read to.

Figure 2. A boy reading

WRITING

Most children at this age are writing. In fact, 7 and 8 year olds are writing simple sentences and paragraphs quite well. It is very important to watch for signs of writing difficulties in children, so they can be addressed as early as possible (Fig. 3). Here are some signs of developmental delay:

Figure 3. Writing

child continues to hold pens and pencils with their whole fists, as opposed to the tripod position;
child writes words that cannot be read by others, because they are not well-written; for example, letter tracing is very irregular and letters and words are stuck to each other;
child makes a lot of language mistakes, when writing, and very often erases what he has written, in order to write it again;
child takes a long time to write even a simple sentence;
child’s drawing skills appear to be immature for his or her age; for example, child’s drawings appear to be those of a much younger child. They do not have as much detail or are simpler than they should be. For more information about the development of drawing skills in children, please visit the two websites.
child struggles with the spacing of letters in a word and the spacing of words in a sentence. That is, child may place letters in words too close together, as if they were one word (Iam instead of I am). They may place several words very close together, as if they were one word (thecatchasedthedog, instead of the cat chased the dog) ;
child struggles with basic correspondence (such as writing a thank you note or a get well soon card);
child struggles with the basic spelling of simple words (such as “boy” and “cat”), and makes a lot of mistakes;
child seems to struggle and get frustrated when attempting to copy something from a blackboard;
child’s writing contains very little capitalization and punctuation, for example: “mary went home she called her mom” instead of “Mary went home. She called her mom.”

MATH

Most children at this age enjoy math. They use it often during the day whether they know it or not (Fig. 4). The math skills that children develop at this age are very important and set the foundation for more complex and abstract math skills. It is extremely important that children master these early math skills, and that they get help as soon as possible if they appear to be struggling with these basic skills.

Figure 4. Math

Here are some signs of developmental delay:

child struggles with basic counting, makes a lot of mistakes and does not seem to be able to count to 100 and beyond;
child does not seem to be able to count, except when counting from one (that is: child is unable to count up from 10 or 20);
child (between 7 and 8) seems to struggles with fractions (for example: half and whole);
child seems to struggle with basic addition (that is: adding two single digits: 2 + 3);
child is unable to tell which of two or three numbers the biggest or smallest number is;
child is unable to tell which number comes after a certain number (for example, which number comes after the number 8);
child (between 7 and 8) seems to struggle with basic principles of class inclusion (that is: when asked if there are more blue blocks or blocks, the child answers: there are more blue blocks);
child (between 7 and 8) appears to think that adding something to a group will automatically make it bigger than another group, to which nothing was added (for example: one group has 3 puppies and another has 7 puppies. The child seems to think that adding one puppy to the group of 3 would make this group larger than the group of 7, to which nothing was added). For more information, please visit the following website;
child does not appear to know that there is a difference between numbers and letters;
child seems to struggle with basic sequencing activities (that is: child does not appear to understand what comes first and what comes next in a sequence);
child (between 7 and 8) is unable to tell time, even with a digital clock or watch (Fig. 5);
child (between 7 and 8) appears to struggle with basic subtraction (for example: 4-2 = 2);
child appears to struggle with basic patterns (for example: red, blue, red, blue);
child seems to really struggle with simple word problems which he or she does not appear to understand (for example: if I have two candies and you give me two more, how many will I have?);
child seems unable to identify complex geometric shapes (for example: an octagon).

Figure 5. Watch

Did you know?

Most children who are afraid of math are so because of the way we talk about it in front of them. We need to watch ourselves when communicating with children and make sure we are not always referring to math as “that difficult subject that everyone hates and struggles with” (Fig. 6).

Figure 6. A girl studying

see References

1.5 Kindergarten: Social/Emotional Skills

Social/Emotional Skills

Children’s social and emotional skills thrive during the kindergarten year. This is the age children start having favourite or best friends, and it is the age at which children start to really enjoy each other’s company, and hanging out at each other’s houses (Fig.1). Play dates become increasingly popular. The more friends a child has, the more likely she is to have positive self-esteem. Children with a positive self-esteem are more willing to try new activities. Good social/emotional skills are extremely important in their own right and also because are related to other developmental areas.

Figure 1. At each other’s house

There are some signs of delay in the emotional development domain. A child may:

be too clingy to the parent and refuse to let go (which could indicate insecure attachment to the parent);
constantly ask parents if they love them;
constantly ask others for reassurance;
be withdrawn and keep to his or herself, most of the time;
constantly refer to self in derogatory terms (For example: I am stupid, I am an idiot).

There are also some signs of delay in the social development domain. A child may:

not have many friends;
not get invited to birthday parties and outings;
struggle with taking turns;
refuse to share with others, even when asked to do so;
use parts of their body (for example, their fists) to indicate displeasure, instead of using language;
constantly hit, kick or bite others, for no real reason.

DID YOU KNOW?

Children at this age really like to have friends and prefer friends of the same sex. Children who do not have any friends at all should be referred for an evaluation, as they may be struggling with issues that are likely related to their social/emotional development.
Children at this age are in the process of developing a healthy self-esteem. They are very dependent on others to determine whether or not they are “good” or “bad”. Most children will sometimes refer to themselves as “bad” or as having “done something bad”. When this happens children should always be reassured that they are not bad and that it is sometimes what they have done that is not very good. This is a typical part of development that may not indicate anything clinical or significant. But if a child constantly uses unkind language toward herself and states that she is “no good”, a referral for a psychological evaluation may be warranted good idea. It is not typical for a child to be constantly stating that she is “no good.” This could and probably will have very negative and serious consequences on her development if not addressed as early as possible.

see References

1.4 Kindergarten: Motor Skills

Motor Skills

Most kindergarten children have very well developed motor skills. They are running and enjoying playground equipment. In the classroom, they are painting, and using all sorts of markers, paints and pencils. Delays in motor skills can and do negatively influence other areas of development.

Figure 1. A girl painting

GROSS MOTOR SKILLS

Some signs of gross motor delay include:

running in an awkward way and constantly bumping into objects;
difficulty going up and down the stairs, or going up and down the stairs by placing both feet on each step;
difficulty with jumping and hopping forward;
difficulty with skipping (Fig. 2);
difficulty catching large and medium size balls;
difficulty throwing balls of any size;
difficulty walking backward.

Figure 2. Skipping rope

FINE MOTOR SKILLS

Some signs of fine motor delay include:

using the entire hand to hold a pencil (that is, instead of the tripod position);
difficulty using scissors and cutting simple shapes;
difficulty staying within line, when coloring a shape;
holding a pen or pencil too strongly (could indicate hypertonia) or too softly (could indicate hypotonia);
difficulty with lacing activities (where the child pushes a thread through holes on a board);
difficulty tracing (where the child writes or marks something by marking over an already traced word or image.