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Signs & concerns
What signs suggest my child may need support with adaptive skills?
Between ages 3 and 7, signs your child may need support with adaptive skills include needing far more help than peers to dress or feed themselves, ongoing toileting difficulty, trouble following simple daily routines, and limited everyday safety awareness. Children master self-care at different rates, so these are signs to observe and understand, not to diagnose at home. If a gap persists or affects several parts of daily life, a gentle developmental screen is the kind next step.
Read the answer AnswerWhat signs suggest my child may need support with adaptive skills?
For a toddler, signs that adaptive (self-help) skills may need support include little interest in self-feeding or dressing, not pointing or gesturing to ask for things, difficulty following simple routines, no readiness for toilet learning near age 2–3, and prolonged distress with small daily changes. These are signs to observe and gently support — not to diagnose at home. A gap that persists or widens across several months is worth a friendly developmental screen.
Read the answer AnswerWhat signs suggest my child may need support with aggression control?
Between 3 and 7 years, occasional anger and even hitting are a normal part of learning to manage feelings. Signs that suggest your child may need support with aggression control include outbursts that are frequent, intense or long-lasting, behaviour that hurts others or themselves, difficulty calming down, struggling to use words for feelings, and trouble keeping friends. These are signs to observe and discuss with a clinician — not to diagnose at home — and early, gentle behaviour support helps.
Read the answer AnswerWhat signs suggest my child may need support with attention and inhibition?
Between 3 and 7 years, signs a child may need support with attention and inhibition include difficulty staying with a task, frequently darting off, struggling to wait or take turns, blurting and interrupting, and acting before thinking despite reminders. At this age these are patterns to observe and support, not diagnose at home, since young children are still building these skills. What matters is whether the difficulty is bigger than peers', appears in more than one setting, and disrupts play, learning or friendships. A developmental screen is a kind first step if concerns persist.
Read the answer AnswerWhat signs suggest my child may need support with attention to detail?
For a child aged about 3–7, signs that they may need support with attention to detail include frequently missing small parts of tasks, careless errors in colouring or early writing, skipping steps in instructions, and drifting off mid-activity. Much of this is normal as focus is still developing, so these are signs to observe and gently support — not to diagnose at home. A pattern across home and preschool that lasts several months is worth a friendly developmental check.
Read the answer AnswerWhat signs suggest my child may need support with attention to others?
Between 3 and 7 years, signs a child may need support with attention to others include rarely looking at faces when spoken to, seldom sharing interests by pointing or showing, struggling to notice others' feelings, and finding turn-taking and group play hard. These are signs to observe and note, not to diagnose at home. What matters most is a pattern across settings that persists over several months — and warm, early support helps. A developmental screen is a calm next step.
Read the answer AnswerWhat signs suggest my child may need support with autonomy?
Between 3 and 7 years, signs a child may need support with autonomy include needing far more help than peers with dressing, eating, toileting or hand-washing; difficulty making simple choices or starting familiar tasks; freezing or saying 'I can't'; and distress when independence is expected. Many children bloom at their own pace, so these are signs to observe and encourage rather than diagnose at home. A gap that persists, widens or affects several areas is worth a friendly developmental check.
Read the answer AnswerWhat signs suggest my child may need support with balance & hopping?
Between ages 3 and 7, balance and hopping sharpen with practice — standing on one foot, hopping on the spot and walking a line. Signs worth noticing include frequent falls beyond peers, difficulty standing on one leg or hopping by 4–5, avoiding climbing, stairs or active play, and seeming unusually clumsy or tired by movement. These are things to observe and monitor, not diagnose at home, and play-based support helps when a pattern persists across months or sits clearly behind same-age peers.
Read the answer AnswerWhat signs suggest my child may need support with balance control?
In children aged 3–7, signs that balance control may need support include frequent falls beyond peers, difficulty standing on one foot or hopping, leaning on furniture or people to stay steady, avoiding climbing or stairs, and tiring quickly when upright. Many children build steadiness at their own pace, so these are patterns to observe over weeks, not diagnose at home. If several appear together or persist, a gentle developmental screen is the kindest next step.
Read the answer AnswerWhat signs suggest my child may need support with ball catching?
For a child aged about 3–7 years, signs worth noticing in ball catching include turning the face away or closing eyes as the ball arrives, hands moving too late or early, trapping the ball against the body rather than the hands, frequent fumbles beyond same-age peers, or avoiding ball games. These are signs to observe and explore, not to diagnose at home. Catching matures gradually with practice, so a clear, lasting gap from peers or clumsiness across other motor skills is what suggests a closer, kinder look.
Read the answer AnswerWhat signs suggest my child may need support with bead threading?
For a child of about 3–7 years, signs that bead threading may need support include difficulty holding the lace and bead together, a clumsy grasp instead of a neat pinch, beads dropping often, trouble lining up the lace with the hole, and avoiding fine tasks like lacing, drawing or buttons. Bead threading is a skill that grows with practice, so these are signs to observe and support through play — not to diagnose at home. A wider pattern across several fine-motor activities, or a persistent gap from peers, is worth a gentle developmental screen.
Read the answer AnswerWhat signs suggest my child may need support with behaviour awareness?
For a child aged 3 to 7, signs that behaviour awareness may need support can include frequent difficulty noticing how their actions affect others, big reactions that are hard to settle, trouble pausing before acting, and difficulty following familiar rules and routines. These are signs to observe and discuss, not to diagnose at home. What matters is a pattern that persists across months, appears in more than one setting, and affects friendships, learning or daily life. Warm, early support helps the most.
Read the answer AnswerWhat signs suggest my child may need support with behaviour patterns?
Between 3 and 7 years, signs your child may need support with behaviour patterns include frequent intense meltdowns lasting far longer than peers', big trouble with transitions or change, difficulty following routines, aggression or withdrawal that strains daily life, and behaviour that limits play, friendships or learning. These are signs to observe over weeks, across settings, not to label at home. A gentle developmental screen is the calm next step.
Read the answer AnswerWhat signs suggest my child may need support with behavioural regulation?
Between 3 and 7, meltdowns and impulsiveness are partly normal as children learn to manage feelings. Signs worth a closer look include tantrums far more intense, frequent or long than peers', difficulty calming even with help, frequent aggression or risk-taking, and trouble waiting, sharing or following routines. These are signs to observe and support, not to diagnose at home. If the struggle affects daily life, friendships or learning, a gentle developmental check helps.
Read the answer AnswerWhat signs suggest my child may need support with block stacking?
For a child aged about 3 to 7, signs that block stacking may need support include towers far behind same-age peers, an awkward or clumsy grasp, knocking the tower over each time, frustration or avoidance of fiddly hand play, and trouble aligning blocks. Many children stack a few blocks by 18 months and build neater towers nearing 3–4 years. These are signs to observe and encourage, not diagnose at home — a gap that persists across months or affects several hand skills is best raised at a friendly developmental check, where playful occupational therapy can help.
Read the answer AnswerWhat signs suggest my child may need support with catching skills?
Between about 3 and 7 years, children grow into catching — from trapping a big ball against the chest to neat hand-catches. Signs worth noticing include closing the eyes or turning away as the ball comes, trouble judging where it lands, still trapping balls against the chest long after peers, dropping balls placed in the hands, or catching well behind same-age friends despite practice. These are things to observe and encourage, not diagnose at home. A gap that persists across months, appears with broader clumsiness, or makes a child avoid play is the cue for a gentle developmental screen.
Read the answer AnswerWhat signs suggest my child may need support with change resistance?
In children aged about 3–7, signs that may suggest a need for support with change resistance include strong distress at transitions, an intense need for sameness and routine (same foods, clothes, seat, order of events), difficulty coping when plans change, and slow recovery after a change. These are patterns to observe over time rather than diagnose at home. What matters is whether the distress is frequent, intense across settings, and limits everyday participation — in which case a gentle developmental screen is a kind next step.
Read the answer AnswerWhat signs suggest my child may need support with cognitive communication pre-literacy?
Between roughly 3 and 7 years, signs a child may need support with cognitive communication pre-literacy include trouble following multi-step instructions, little interest in books or rhymes, difficulty retelling a simple story, not recognising their name in print by school-entry age, and limited letter or sound learning. These are signs to observe and gently support, not to diagnose at home — many children bloom on their own timeline, and early playful help works well. A hearing check usually comes first, and support never has to wait for a label.
Read the answer AnswerWhat signs suggest my child may need support with cognitive component?
Between about 3 and 7 years, signs your child may need cognitive support include difficulty following simple instructions, slow grasp of everyday concepts like colours, numbers or time, limited pretend play, and needing much more repetition than peers to learn. Children learn at different paces, so these are signs to observe and discuss — not diagnose at home. A gap that persists across months, affects several areas, or widens from peers is best understood early with a gentle developmental screen.
Read the answer AnswerWhat signs suggest my child may need support with colouring skills?
Between roughly 3 and 7 years, signs your child may need support with colouring include an awkward or very tight pencil grip, pressing far too hard or too lightly, struggling to stay within lines well after peers, tiring or refusing quickly, or avoiding colouring and drawing altogether. Colouring draws on fine-motor control, hand strength, visual perception and attention together, so difficulty can show in any of these. These are signs to observe and gently support, not to diagnose at home — a screen helps when a gap persists across months, several areas are affected, or strong avoidance dents confidence.
Read the answer AnswerWhat signs suggest my child may need support with communication?
Between 12 and 36 months, signs your child may need communication support include few or no words by 18 months, not combining two words by 24 months, limited pointing or gestures, not responding to their name, little eye contact, or losing words once used. Many toddlers bloom at their own pace, so these are signs to observe and check — not to diagnose at home. A hearing check comes first, and early, playful support helps greatly when needed.
Read the answer AnswerSigns Your Child May Need Expressive Communication Support
For a child aged 3–7, signs of difficulty with expressive communication include a small vocabulary, very short or jumbled sentences, speech that is hard to understand, frustration when not understood, and relying on pointing over words. These are signs to observe and check, not diagnose at home. A developmental screen with a hearing check is a sensible first step, and early, play-based speech support helps many children bloom.
Read the answer AnswerWhat signs suggest my child may need support with communication – pragmatics?
Pragmatics is the social use of language. Between 3 and 7 years, signs a child may need support include difficulty taking conversational turns, staying on topic, understanding jokes or hints, reading tone and body language, making or keeping friends, and adjusting talk to different listeners. These are signs to observe gently, not diagnose at home — a developmental and speech-language screen is the sensible next step, and early playful support helps greatly.
Read the answer AnswerSigns your child may need receptive communication support
Between roughly 3 and 7 years, signs your child may need support with receptive communication (understanding language) include not following simple instructions, seeming not to listen even when hearing is fine, struggling to answer simple who/what/where questions, confusion with everyday words like in/on/under, and relying heavily on gestures to understand. These are signs to observe and check — not diagnose at home. A hearing check comes first, and a developmental screen helps understand the pattern early.
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