Parenting Tips: Avoiding Developmental Comparisons2016-10-15

Children like any other beings are different. Some learn faster than others. Some can easily run, jump and develop motor skills quickly while others speak ahead of the rest. However, this doesn't mean that one is better than the other.

Some parents tend to compare their children with others and eventually get frustrated when their child' development is slower than their friend's. However, they forget that children grow and develop differently from the others.

Milestones development has very little to do with a child's future potential so parents are encouraged not to worry if their children are late bloomers or seem to be at the outer limits of normal says Darshak Sanghavi, a pediatrician and associate professor at University of Massachusetts Medical School. “We can't determine a child's destiny on what month they started walking.”

Comparing children's abilities should not be practiced since everyone has different aptitudes. Every parent needs to understand that child development occurs at different rates and ways.

Parents should remind themselves that while they can certainly help their children learn new things, they can't force them to reach milestones before they're ready. Thus, it is recommended that parents enjoy their child's current skills and tricks, which can help them to ground themselves in the present and prevent from fretting in the future.