Learning Milestones

All kids are different, but around 2-3 yrs old they can learn to count to 10, know colors and shapes.

Some of my friends' kids started learning at 18 months! Boys tend to be slower and you don't need worry about it for a long time. Just keep working with him and if he doesn't know by the time you start him in preschool, they will teach him! :)

HI I think it just depends on the child. And their never to young to start teaching them. My son is five and I am trying to get him ready for school while my nephew has been in daycare for a year and at 2 he knows his numbers colors shapes and letters. And at 2 his speaking skills are that of a 5-6 year old. So I just think it depends on the child. Talk to your ped if you want to know a timeline of whem they should know certain things. Good Luck!!!!

Kudos to you for being such a great mom! And as for those milestones, there is such a wide range of normal and I'm sure there are differences between boys and girls (their brains really ARE different). I have girls so I'm not sure my experience would be the same if I had boys. My oldest was very interested in learning these things and would sit patiently while I said "look, a blue ball, a red ball, and a yellow ball. Can I have the red ball? Here, you hold the red ball" etc etc. and she knew all her shapes, colors (even things like pink and gray) and her letters by 18 or 19 months. Her younger sister, however, has no interest in listening to me and it's been more of a challenge to teach her. I try to be very descriptive when I talk to her and look for those moments when she'll actually participate in learning activities. But at 19 months she knows just a few primary colors and a few shapes. So, I think you should follow your son's lead and teach him about things he seems to be interested in. Like if he likes dinosaurs, teach him colors through that. I'm sure your little boy is bright and curious and energetic. By the way, children learn better when there is movement involved, especially boys, so you could teach colors by throwing or rolling different colored balls to him and things like that. It's wonderful that you are home with your son, being a mother-teacher. I'd be willing to bet that since he's had so much individual attention from you he knows more than you might realize!

Hi! I'm the mother of 3-ages 11, 8 & 5, and I always talked a lot to my kids when they were babies (still do!) I believe, like the other moms, each child learns at their own pace-take the guidelines with a grain of salt. I always made a game of it when teaching my kids colors, shapes, etc. Sesame street is a great tool-along with books! My kids loved the flap books at this age. Leap frog has an abundance of tools for toddlers and preschoolers. Whenever I pushed my kids on the swing I would always talk to them and ask them animal sounds or what color the sky was, etc. I also never talked "baby talk" to my kids, I just talked as I would to an adult, but simplier vocabulary. They had fun and didn't even realize they were learning. Have fun! Debbie

Letters & numbers aren't typically till about 3 or 4. Colors & shapes between 2-3. These are just average ages. Depending on the child it could be earlier or later.

All kids are different. The goal for most 3 year old preschool classrooms are to know the basic shapes and colors by the end of the year - so 3-4 years old. The goal for most pre-k/4 year old classrooms is knowing all the letters and the sounds they make by the end of the year.

Many kids know most of that stuff before then, though. My kids picked up colors early - around 2 years old. I think it's mainly because everytime we say a noun, we say an adjective. We never say "look at the truck", we say "look at the red truck" or "time to put on your white diaper", etc. My youngest is 18 months old and honestly, I don't know if she knows any colors or not. Sometimes she'll pick up the red toy if we ask her to but she's wrong as much as she's right. I do know that kids understand and know MUCH more than we think they do at this age. The spoken vocabulary is tiny compared to their receptive vocabulary.

If I had the time this morning, I'd look it up for you, but I'm pretty sure you can do a search for Developmental Milestones and find what you're looking for.

The reason I'm responding is mostly to tell you to take all those kinds of charts with a grain of salt. Most will tell you approximate ages when you can look for certain things, but it's important to remember that they are approximate, not set in stone. Promise you won't freak out if he isn't right on target with something, ok? :)

If he is really far behind on something, then you can get an outside evaluation of some kind, but I doubt there's going to be anything like that.

I'm so happy that you're an involved, interested mom - what a lucky little guy to have a mom like you!

It varies from child to child, but the more stimulus and repetition you give them the quicker they tend to learn. I have a niece who knew them before she could talk. She would put the letters and number (magnetic) on the fridge. If you asked "C", she knew "C". Same with numbers. We read to her ALOT and I mean ALOT. We're sure this played a huge part in it.

She had a short bout with a problem of stuttering but the doctor said that her cognitive was far ahead of her verbal development and that she'd outgrow it. And.......she did.

Same with colors and shapes.

My daughter is in the 3-4 year old classroom at her preschool and she is working on learning her letters and the sounds they make. We have been using Leapfrog to help her and it works great. The classroom's goal is to have all the kids know their letters, sounds and be able to write a little bit before leaving the classroom. My daughter knew her numbers, shapes and colors earlier than that. All kids learn at their own pace though.

It really depends on the child. At 18 months my daughter was starting to learn her letters, colors and shapes. She's now 22 months and knows all her letters, primary colors plus a few others (like pink) and her basic shapes (square, rectangle, heart, star, circle, oval) and is starting to pick up on the sounds letters make. I spent a lot of time working with her and she has a great set of Leap Frog magnets with all the letters. It sings and tells you what sounds the letters make. It has really helped her pick up her letters. As far as teaching the colors, we just used a crayon and paper. Same with the shapes. It took a lot of time and consistency, but she eventually got it. Your son will too. Just keep working with him. Also, some kids put all their developmental energy into one specific area. With my daughter it was her motor skills at first. She walked WAY before she talked. Now that she has all of her motor skills perfected (as much as they can be ;) ) She's focusing on her language. It may be just the opposite with your guy. Again, it just depends on the child! They all learn at their own rate. It's never too early to start teaching though! :D

I have a background in Montessori early childhood ed, and I was taught that development in young children is very individual and uneven. So you can't really compare your child to others of the same age. They seem to learn colors 1st. They may learn the ABC song but not really know what the letters are, or the difference between letters and numbers. They usually learn to count out loud before recognizing the numbers by sight. At 19 months formal lessons are not recommended. Just provide a stimulating, safe environment that he can explore. Lots of manipulatives like blocks, board books, stuffed animals, dolls, stacking cups, age appropriate puzzles, etc... Play a variety of music, including classical. Videos and television are not recommended, although an occasional Baby Einstein is great for the music and vivid colors. Read to your child every day. Go to library story times. Your pediatrician will also ask you questions at regular well baby check ups to make sure development is on target.

All children learn at their own pace. If he is talking it is okay to work with learning colors, shapes, etc. Puzzles help. If you are reading with him this will help too. Believe it or not shows like Sesame Street playing in the background are a good teaching tool. We have a VHS of the alphabet with animals in it, each animal is a letter of the alphabet with a song my 10 year old really enjoyed and helped with his alphabet.
Good luck.

First & foremost every child learns at their own pace, always keep that in mind. However I would say it's never to early to start with colors & shapes, then shortly after you can start capital letters & numbers.
I am a former nanny & I now have an in home childcare. I've taught kids as young as 18 months their shapes & colors, while others don't get the concept until about 2 1/2 years old. I'm a firm believer that education starts early!
Most importantly have fun teaching him & make sure he has fun learning!

Dear S.,
It really depends on your child. The way I taught my child with colors was with the clothes I was wearing. I would point at the color and tell her what it was then I would ask her to repeat it. She would tell me on her own what they were. She was probably around 18 months. You could try colors and shapes with him now but wait with the letters and numbers until he is a little older. I did notice with my children that boys don't want to learn as early as girls. They just like to play. So you might have to turn it into a game for him. L. J

The timeline is different for each child. My 2 yr. old knows all shapes and colors and can tell you every letter of the alphabet and its sound along with counting to 10. Now, her older brother didn't know his sounds until he was 4. I exposed them to the same things at the same ages. So..I guess what I'm saying is, expose them and teach them as much as you can. I don't think there is a certain "time" when a toddler will pick it up. It's really up to your kiddo and how interested they are and at what age. Just keep doing what you're doing. :)

Boys and girls really are very different. Either way, the sooner you start the better. We started with my son during his playtime. We would count 1,2,3 then do whatever trick we had up our sleeve for that day. Before I knew it, he was counting 1,2,3 before he would jump off of something, jump, play, things like that. Now, he is 2 yrs old and for the most part can count to 10. He still gets a little confused right around 7&8 but he's doing really well with it.
If you are concerned at all or really want more detail on timelines, try baby center. They have some really great timeline charts. Good luck, troubledmama