North Carolina Early Learning and Development Progressions: Birth to Five

Domain: NC Foundations for Early Learning: Emotional and Social Development (ESD)

Subdomain: Developing a Sense of Self with Others

Goal: Children form relationships and interact positively with familiar adults who are consistent and responsive to their needs.

Skill Progression: Separation

Age: 21-24 Months

Click here to go to all skills for ages 21-24 Months.

Alternates between clinging and resistance to familiar adult

Situations for Observation of Skill

Observe the child in interaction with the adult within daily routines.

Elicitation Strategy

No elicitation needed.

Behavior Observed

Particularly when on an outing, the child wants to be picked up and carried then put down. The toddler fluctuates between wanting to be carried and wanting to walk independently. Also runs away and then comes back.

Routines-based Intervention (Embedded Instruction)

The child at this level is practicing being self-reliant, but also wanting to be reassured of the adult’s love. Encourage the parents to play chase games at home or in the park to give the child that practice in a fun way. (Have rules for where these games can be played.)

 North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, 2015

©2015 by the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/.