ASQ Questionnaire on Child Development

There are universal stages that all children go through, such as puberty, learning to crawl, developmental stages, etc... Sometimes kids don't learn to crawl and later on they are missing some developmental traits. They've had to go back, as a school child or an adult, and learn to crawl. These stages are developmentally crucial.

Playing Peek A Boo is a sign of the Object Permanence stage. So you might think playing peek a boo is a silly thing for a kid's development to be gauged on but Object Permanence a universal stage that all kids need AND normally go through.

So it appears that you haven't studied child development and think that years and years of professionals that have studied child development are less "smart" than you. I don't mean to be mean but you really should do some research before blasting something that is absolutely based on fact with years and years of professional research across the world then put together by people who do know the stages of child development. They do know what they're talking about, ALL kids do through these stages and if a child is missing one of these stages they know what to do to teach them and get them to go through it.

If you and/or your doctor is interpreting not playing P. Cake as a red flag, then you are using the questionnaire incorrectly!

These questionnaires are used because many, many, many parents not only miss red flags, they don't always know what is a reasonable expectation at different ages. Too many parents freak out because their toddler isn't eating an adult size meal. Others get very upset because their two year old won't listen to the word "no."

The ASQ Questionnaire is designed to help parents know what is age appropriate. It lets them know some things that they could be doinng with their child. I loved that questionnaire because it encouraged me to try things with my child that I didn't even think about.

My doctor never took low marks as a "red flag." She looked at the things I marked low but also looked at things that were marked high. She said most kids will have some lows and some highs because kids learn different things at different times. She would only be concerned if the same thing were consistently low and nothing I tried would help.

Your post indicates that you might not be using the questionnaire as it's intended.

Something has got you on your soapbox today!
What would you suggest be done differently?

Some sort of evaluation needs to be made in order to determine if someone needs help or not.
Parents often find comfort in being able to know and notice milestones are they are met.
I just loved my "What to Expect the First Year" book.
It was a great help with pre-verbal kids and kept me from being on the phone all the time with my pediatrician.
Often - it's not just one thing like 'Baby doesn't like Peek-a-boo' but a cluster of things that will set off a red flag.
There is plenty of room for individuality.
Some babies never crawl - they go from sitting to standing to running completely skipping the crawling stage.
So what?
There's a wide range for what passes for normal.

"What Parent can't recognize a serious *Red Flag* in a Baby?".
Um - most of them?
At least at first.
Especially if they are first time parents and have zero zip prior experience.
There are parents who would really prefer to ignore some fairly obvious red flags just hoping it will go away or the kid will out grow it.
Sorry but if your kid is throwing his chair across his classroom everyday - there's an issue that needs to be dealt with before he hurts himself or someone else.
There's no room for 'he just likes to' in this case.

People aren't born with parenting instincts that just tell them what to do.
It's an on the job training process that often varies per child.
Just when you've got it perfected - the kids are grown and you have to deal with an empty nest.

I actually found the ASQ to be a good tool. It is just a basic assessment to see where your child falls in different areas of development. It has nothing to do with what a baby likes or dislikes and a baby who doesn't play pattycake isn't automatically labeled a slow learner.

There are A LOT of parents out there who don't recognize when their child is missing major milestones, or don't know to mention something to a doctor. So having this assessment can help to set basic parameters of what the average baby/child around that age is capable of doing/understanding. The speech and language questions can be useful to parents that don't interact much with other children the same ages as theirs and don't have a good sense of how many words a child should know or how clearly they speak.

I completed the ASQ assessment with my son from ages 3 - 5 years. My daughter did every single one from 3 months through 5 years. There were times that they didn't meet all the motor milestones, but it just showed me what we could work on if we wanted to.

I never felt like my kids were being demanded to do anything or looked down upon when they couldn't. I always just viewed it as a great way to assess what they could be capable of doing at that age.

The ASQ (Ages and Stages Questionnaire) does not require all children to have the exact same developmental stages, and doesn't tell parents that something is "wrong" with their child.

It's a helpful tool, and a guide. It's not a diagnostic method.

Many parents are young, or new to parenting with little-to-no experience with babies or children, and many have been given inaccurate information when it comes to child development. Many children don't get the early intervention that would be beneficial simply because their parents don't recognize red flags that could (COULD COULD!!!!) help boost the child's development and growth. Or some parents worry needlessly about their child's development, and the ASQ helps them realize that their baby is on the right track to healthy growth, both physically and mentally.

For your information, Peek-a-boo is a really helpful tool. Peek-a-boo helps children with gross motor development (learning to put their hands over their eyes, which is something quite amazing), and it helps children to learn what is called object permanence. Very young babies don't recognize that because something is out of sight, it still exists. If they can't see their mommy because she's in the bathroom for a second, a very young baby won't understand that mommy is just in another room and will come right back. Peek-a-boo helps children to understand that just because their eyes are covered or closed, the other person is still there. It's an important step in growth, and reassuring to the child. Plus, it's enjoyable. A child who can't or won't play peek-a-boo may (MAY!! MAY!!!) have problems with motor control, for example. The child might not be able to control his or her arms and hands. That would be something for the parent to mention to the doctor.

The ASQ isn't like the SAT, where there is an absolutely correct answer on a math question. It's a gentle guide, a reassuring measuring method, a helpful way for parents to recognize that perhaps there is something that a pediatrician should be aware of. An ASQ test makes no demands, and doesn't measure "brain power". It is a guide to growth.

You sound very very angry. That won't do your child any good. Have an open mind, and don't be afraid to speak to a doctor if you think your child needs a little extra help.

You sound very angry. Why? What REALLY has you upset about this questionnaire?

Did you read it, see some things in it that you see in your child, and think that it couldn't possibly be right because you know that your child is perfectly fine? So you're yelling about the questionnaire because you don't like what it says about "your child"?

You have some really good explanations below. Yes, Edison and Einstein were labeled as slow learners, but that doesn't mean we don't try to help a child who has issues.

You aren't doing your baby ANY favors by having this attitude...

A screening questionnaire is just a starting point, not a diagnosis. It uses common markers with scientific and developmental merits. It is extremely common for parents to not see red flags in their own baby. Many interventions begin when an outside person mentions something doesn't seem quite right.

It is also extremely common for parents or grandparents to push back against the idea that their loved one may not be neurotypical.

Like Gamma mentioned, there are standard developmental milestones at all ages. 'Individual merits' are irrelevant. Do you really want a care provider to overlook the fact that your child is behind in language skills simply because they have strong gross motor skills? The goal is to identify children who are in need of early intervention.

New parents often times don't know what is normal for a child. (You yourself didn't understand the significance of Peek a Boo.) I remember filling out the 6 month questionnaire for my son. And as I was answering the communication questions, I was thinking to myself 'Wow, my son doesn't do any of those things.' I didn't have other kids, so I had nothing to gauge his behavior against. He was walking independently at 8 months, but that doesn't negate the fact that he needed some extra support when it came to language.

Really, our educational system is based on standards, not individual merits. My son has really strong math skills but struggles a bit when it comes to reading. Guess what? There are state standards for both subjects. His teacher measures his progress against those standards in both subject areas, not just the subject he's really good at.

Oh, I miss doing those questionnaires! A couple of weeks before each appointment I would read through the questionnaire and rate anything I felt comfortable rating. Then I would go back and look at the questions I skipped and try to create opportunities to rate those over the course of the next couple of weeks.

I remember one question about stacking blocks. I hadn't ever thought of that, so one day when my son was in a good mood I took out the blocks and tried a few things with him. I just rated what I observed.

My son always scored a bit low on verbal skills and I mentioned that to my doctor once. She said that was common in boys. She also said that he was doing well with some other area (probably gross motor skills) and that it was very common for kids to be good at one thing and lagging a bit with another. She said, no worries right now. He'll catch up. He did.

I loved it! I loved trying things with my son to see what he could do. I loved getting feedback from the doctor about how my son was doing. I loved the fact that if there were any concerns, we would be able to address them.

What's not to love about a tool that helps parents see how their kids are doing?

Let that sink in?

Not sure what the intent of your post is.

What are you talking about?