Janie Layne

FCS 400
Dr. Hoskins
31 October 2013
Developmental Assessment Lab Report: John
It is very important for parents and educators to be aware of the development and growth
of a child. Such knowledge will allow the child to be given the best care and attention both at
home and in the classroom. For my developmental assessment, I observed the physical,
cognitive, and socio-emotional development of 3-year old John. John displayed on-time and
slightly advanced developmental activities that are analyzed below.
Motor development refers to the physiology of an individual. Overall, John demonstrates
several sophisticated physical milestones in development. He has mastered the three-year old
tasks of climbing, running, walking on tiptoes, using crayons, and building with blocks. John
can also perform certain four- and five-year old tasks, like balancing on one foot, catching a
thrown ball (most of the time), drawing a person with three parts, and skipping. The physical
education time during Playschool showed much of this type of development. Despite such
progress, John does not show the three-year old ability to hop on one foot without falling over.
In addition, John is still making progress on copying certain shapes (like squares, triangles, and
rectangles) and drawing a person with a full body. In order to help Johns physical development,
the parents may encourage activities that require hopping and balance or the construction of
shapes and/or letters. Parents should not worry that John has not yet reached these actions as
children develop at their own pace with specific skills. In sum, Johns motor skills are right
where they should be developmentally.

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In addition to his physical development, Johns cognitive development is slightly
advanced. It is not uncommon to see John participate in symbolic or pretend play as he works in
the kitchen or performs a concert on the karaoke machine or guitar. He demonstrates much
pleasure in these activities that he has seen through social interactions, most likely with mom or
dad, outside of Playschool. John has also mastered other three-year old skills including the
following: Understanding of the concept of two, ability to figure things out, understanding of
mechanical toys, completion of a six-piece puzzle, color identification, and counting up to three.
He also displays the ability to recall parts of stories, color identification, and functional
household concepts (like food, money, etc.), which are common four- and five-year old
milestones. Some cognitive areas that John is making progress on include his ability to sort
objects by size and color and understand the ideas of same and different; he demonstrated
the ability to separate blocks by color during different scenarios, but he struggled to use size for
categorizing when instructed. In order to advance Johns reasoning and categorization skills, his
parents could incorporate learning in daily activities through questioning of Why? and how
objects may be similar and/or different. John is also learning how to follow short commands.
This milestone was often evident as he was quick to shoot down many invitations and commands
when asked to perform certain tasks. Although this milestone is associated with four-year olds,
parents can help improve Johns listening and obedience skills now through physical, verbal, and
emotional rewards and by setting the example for their child. Cognitively, John is doing well
and shows some need for improvement in categorization and following directions.
Johns socio-emotional developmental pace coincides with his progress physically and
cognitively. Common for most three-year olds, John shows the ability to understand language
clearly and communicate his ideas about routines, feelings, and storytelling. His language

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abilities are actually more advanced for his age as he can speak in sentences of five or more
words with basic understandings of grammar. Additionally, John shows skill in this
developmental area as he is able to name and imitate friends, while also seeking much
independence like four- and five-year olds. There are several areas that John can continue to
progress in to further his socio-emotional development. One very important milestone that
should continue to be encouraged to John is letter construction; he is very fast at identifying the
letter J, but he tended to struggle in identifying and forming other letters of the alphabet.
Another significant matter that should be encouraged to John is his social skills with his peers.
He is making some progress in recognizing the feelings of other children but still has area to be
improved to help him play and cooperate alongside children. Johns language skills and desire
for independence show some advancement in his socio-emotional development, while his
people skills demonstrate room for improvement that will develop as he continues to grow.
It has been very interesting to observe Johns behaviors through the eyes of a child
developmental researcher. Johns physical, cognitive, and socio-emotional skills display
milestones that are generally all on track and advanced in some mannerisms. In order to further
Johns development, his parents should encourage his reasoning through questioning, positive
social interactions, and letter/shape construction. Personally, I am eager to see how Johns skills
now will influence his behaviors and success in the future.