WINTERFEST: Developmental Milestones vs Developmental Needs: What’s the Difference and Why it Matters for the Precrawling Infant

ON DEMAND WEBINAR

Presented by Michelle Emanuel OTR/L, IBCLC, NBCR, CST, CIMI, RYT200

0.5 Contact Hours

Description:

This talk explores the distinction between developmental milestones and developmental needs in the care and understanding of infants from birth to precrawling stage. While milestones, such as lifting the head, rolling, communication, as well as fine and gross motor skills, serve as helpful indicators of typical development, they often receive more attention than the underlying developmental needs that support and enable them.

While developmental milestones follow a common trajectory, all infants develop at their own pace, and focusing solely on achieving milestones can create unnecessary pressure or lead to overlooking what truly fosters healthy development. Instead, Michelle will highlight the importance of attending to the infant’s core needs: physical safety, emotional connection and coregulation, responsive caregiving, adequate sleep, sensory experiences, and opportunities for free movement for babies and families.

Understanding these needs shifts the caregiver’s role from one of ‘achievement tracking’ to one of nurturing and supporting the conditions that naturally lead to neurodevelopmental maturation and growth. The talk also addresses how environments rich in floor time, caregiver interaction, and attuned responses help build foundational systems, such as motor coordination, sensory integration, and emotional regulation, skills that precede and support visible milestones.

By reframing the conversation from ‘Is baby meeting this milestone?’ to “Is baby getting their developmental needs met?’, caregivers and professionals can foster more confident, responsive care. This approach ultimately honors the unique trajectory of each infant and builds a more holistic comprehensive foundation for optimal outcomes.

Objectives:

• Learner will describe the difference between developmental milestones and developmental needs of the precrawling infant
• Learner will verbalize 2 strategies to optimize developmental needs being met
• Learner will identify 3 key indicators of good developmental markers and top 3 developmental red flags in the precrawling infant

Presenter bio:

Michelle Emanuel is an occupational therapist with nearly 30 years of specialized experience focused on therapeutic assessment and treatment of newborns and precrawling infants, particularly in the areas of oral feeding competency, neurodevelopment, posture, and parent-infant interaction. She is the owner of TummyTime! Method, where she provides clinical care for infants and offers professional education and training for multidisciplinary teams. Her extensive clinical background includes work in Level III NICUs at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center and The University Hospital, as well as experience in outpatient clinics, the International Adoption Clinic, and pediatric inpatient rehabilitation. Michelle is an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant, Certified CranioSacral Therapist, and National Board Certified Reflexologist, and she has advanced training in the Hammersmith Infant Neurological Examination, General Movements Assessment, and the Test of Infant Motor Performance. She is also a skilled curriculum developer, having created the TummyTime! Method, BabyMyo, and BabyReflexology programs. In addition to her clinical work, Michelle is an internationally known speaker and educator, training professionals across disciplines in infant development and therapeutic intervention.

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