Talk To Your Child's Doctor

If the best part of your well child visit is watching your child show off new developmental skills, the second best part is having the opportunity to talk about your child with an expert one-on-one!

You can check out an armload of books from the library, log on to a child care website or spend hours trading stories with other parents; however, not one of these valuable resources matches the individualized support and professional expertise available to you at each well child visit.

Take advantage of this golden opportunity and be prepared. Check out this list of age-appropriate topics to discuss with your physician at each visit.

1 Month

• How to interpret different cries
• Pacifiers 
• Sleep strategies and solutions 
• Temperament

2 Months

• Child Care
• Returning to work 
• Ways to interact and play with your baby

4 Months

• Talking to your baby
• Teething 
• Bedtime routine 
• Age-appropriate toys 
• Reading to your baby 
• How and when to start solids

6 Months

• Talking to your baby
• Daily routine 
• Self-comfort 
• Transitional object (stuffed animal) 
• Getting the house prepared for a child on the move

9 Months

• Talking to your baby
• Safe exploration 
• Simple rules like "do not touch" 
• Transitional object 
• Bedtime routine

1 Year

• Behavior
• Language development
• Safe play 
• Consistent rules 
• Hitting, biting 
• Self-quieting

15 Months

• Curiosity
• Power struggles 
• Negative behavior

18 Months

• Appropriate language
• Power struggles 
• Praising positive behavior 
• Night waking, night fears, nightmares

2 Years

• Praising positive behavior
• Appropriate language 
• Parallel play 
• Limits and structure
• Toilet training

3 Years

• Praising positive behavior
• Preschool readiness 
• Reading 
• Physical activity 
• Fears 
• Genital exploration/masturbation 
• Strategies for challenging eating habits

4 Years

• Praising positive behavior
• School readiness 
• Family chores 
• Appropriate amount of exercise

5 Years

• Encouraging exercise
• TV limits
• Good bedtime routine 
• Personal care and hygiene 
• Hand washing

6 Years

• Team sports
• Family chores 
• Teaching child right and wrong 
• Self-control Impulse control 
• Managing anger 
• Child's friends 
• School performance 
• Discipline

8 Years

• Healthy habits
• Education about pubertal changes 
• Peer relationships
• Encouraging school success

10 Years

• Healthy sleep habits
• Hobbies 
• Homework spot 
• Acceptance of diversity 
• Opportunities for success 
• Education about pubertal changes 
• Tobacco, alcohol, drug education

11-14 Years

• TV and computer limits
• Time management 
• Family time 
• Team sports 
• Sexuality issues, sex identification, abstinence, protected sex, sexually-transmitted diseases (STDs) 
• Substance abuse, alcohol, tobacco

15-17 Years

• Stress 
• Feelings 
• Challenges 
• School/work 
• Life plans 
• Safe driving 
• New skills like lifesaving, peer mentoring 
• Sexuality issues, STDs, abstinence 
• Substance abuse, alcohol, tobacco