Ages and Stages Questionnaire 4 months

Last week I did an Ages and Stages Questionnaire for CJ to see how he's developing. I thought I would share the questionnaire here for anyone else with a 4 month old who might want to find out how her 4 month old is doing.

For all of the questions your answer should be either YES, SOMETIMES, or NOT YET.

COMMUNICATION Be sure to try each activity with your child.

1. Does your baby chuckle softly?
2. After you have been out of sight, does your baby stop crying when he sees you?
3. Does your baby stop crying when she hears a voice other than yours?
4. Does your baby make high pitched squeals?
5. Does your baby laugh?
6. Does your baby make sounds when looking at toys or people?
Communication Total

GROSS MOTOR Be sure to try each activity with your child.

1. While on his back, does your baby move his head from side to side?
2. After holding her head up while on her tummy, does your baby lay her head back down on the floor, rather than let it drop or fall forward?
3. When he is on his tummy, does your baby hold his head up so that his chin is about 3 inches from the floor for at least 15 seconds?
4. When she is on her tummy, does your baby hold her head straight up, looking around? (She can rest on her arms while doing this.)
5. When you hold him in a sitting position, does your baby hold his head steady?
6. While on her back, does your baby bring her hands together over her chest, touching her fingers?
Gross Motor Total

FINE MOTOR Be sure to try each activity with your child.

1. Does your baby hold his hands open or partly open (rather than in fists, as they were when he was a newborn)?
2. When you put a toy in her hand, does your baby wave it about, at least briefly?
3. Does your baby grab or scratch at his clothes?
4. When you put a toy in her hand, does your baby hold onto it for about 1 minute while looking at it, waving it about, or trying to chew it?
5. Does your baby grab or scratch his fingers on a surface in front of him, either while being held in a sitting position or when he is on his tummy?
6. When you hold her in a sitting position, does your baby reach for a toy on a table close by, even though her hand may not touch it?
FINE MOTOR TOTAL

PROBLEM SOLVING Be sure to try each activity with your child.

1. When you move a toy slowly from side to side in front of his face (about 10 inches away), does your baby follow the toy with his eyes, sometimes turning his head?
2. When you move a small toy up and down slowly in front of her face (about 10 inches away), does your baby follow the toy with her eyes?
3. When you hold him in a sitting position, does your baby look at a toy (about the size of a cup or rattle) that you place on the table or floor in front of him?
4. When you put a toy in her hand, does your baby look at it?
5. When you put a toy in his hand, does your baby put the toy in his mouth?
6. When you dangle a toy above her while she is lying on her back, does your baby wave her arms toward the toy?
PROBLEM SOLVING TOTAL

PERSONAL-SOCIAL Be sure to try each activity with your child.

1. Does your baby watch his hands?
2. When she has her hands together, does your baby play with her fingers?
3. When he sees the breast or bottle, does your baby know he is about to be fed?
4. Does your baby help hold the bottle with both hands at once, or when nursing, does she hold the breast with her free hand?
5. Before you smile or talk to him, does your baby smile when he sees you nearby?
6. When in front of a large mirror, does your baby smile or coo at herself?
PERSONAL-SOCIAL TOTAL

SCORING THE QUESTIONNAIRE

1. Be sure each item has been answered.
2. Score each item on the questionnaire by scoring the appropriate number next to each answer.
YES = 10 SOMETIMES = 5 NOT YET = 0
3. Add up the item scores for each area and record these totals.

If the child's total score is above:
33.3 for COMMUNICATION
40.1 for GROSS MOTOR
27.5 for FINE MOTOR
35.0 for PROBLEM SOLVING
33.0 for PERSONAL-SOCIAL
then your child appears to be doing well at this time. If the child falls below these numbers then you might want to seek professional help.

Here were CJ's scores:
COMMUNICATION: 60 (the highest score possible for my little chatter box)
GROSS MOTOR: 40 (just below the cut off so a possible cause for concern for us due mostly to his dislike of being on his tummy though most likely)
FINE MOTOR: 50
PROBLEM SOLVING: 55
PERSONAL-SOCIAL: 50

So CJ's results for the most part are way above any cause for concern. Not too bad for a baby who has been dealing with low weight issues and lots of cause for panic so far. I am contacting Birth to Three though for an evaluation with that Gross Motor area and to try to find a doctor who can give us a second opinion on his weight issues because I'm afraid my doctor isn't doing enough. He's only tested him for infections and parasites and Diabetes Insipidus and has done an ultra sound on his head. All of these tests have come back normal. I'm concerned about some congestion that he has had for a very long time and if he's digesting his food properly. And I can't get his doctor to do anymore tests on him. So fingers crossed that Birth to Three will help.