List of Skills by Age
1-2 Months
2-4 Months
4-6 Months
6-8 Months
8-10 Months
Time: Shows awareness of consistent daily routines
10-12 Months
Amount: Puts as many small objects in a cup as possible, showing interest in adding “more”
12-15 Months
Time: Aware that certain events follow each other (nap, drink)
15-18 Months
Time: Associates objects with events that occur (coat on is followed by going out)
18-21 Months
Size: Nests objects (relates sizes)
21-24 Months
Explores measuring tools for emptying and filling
Amount: Knows more; believes that a cracker broken in several pieces is more
24-27 Months
Size: Recognizes size differences (big, little)
Time: Understands now, today, in a minute; understands and talks about sequence of events in the day
27-30 Months
Size: Knows size words (big, little), but may not be able to tell which of two things is bigger
Height: Recognizes taller on the height chart
Time: Uses words implying past, present and future; uses morning, afternoon, night, tomorrow
30-33 Months
Size: Points to smaller/ larger of two objects
33-36 Months
Length/Height: Produces labels for measuring, such as tall/long
Time: Knows today, tonight, last night
36-42 Months
Length/Height: Uses the terms longer/taller functionally in play or daily routines
Amount: Knows larger container holds more
Time: Knows yesterday, tomorrow
Time: Knows parts of the day when specific activities take place
42-48 Months
Length: Compares length or height of three objects by placing them side-by-side
Time: Knows today/ tomorrow, day/night
Time: Knows the time of day for daily activities
48-54 Months
Size: Compares size (area) by placing one on another
Weight: Compares weight (light, heavy)
Time: Knows morning, afternoon
54-60 Months
Length: Compares lengths using another object
Length: Compares the length of two objects using an object with standard units
Size: Orders six objects from smallest to largest
Time: Knows day before yesterday, day after tomorrow; learns days of the week and seasons
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/.