Making sure you keep a good eye on the ideal milestones your kid should be hitting is always a good idea. This is just so you know if your kid is on track in terms of development with things like language, as well as physical development. There are loads of things ten year olds should be able to do whilst considering these developments.
Just because your kid is a little bit older at ten years old, they may not tick every single one of these milestones and that’s okay. Of course, if you had a newborn or a toddler and they weren’t hitting the milestones then we would suggest some intervention.
But, 10 year old development is still important so let’s take a look at some milestones for 10 year olds.
Cognitive and Language Milestones for 10 Year Olds
For a great deal of children, this developmental phase is where they learn and grow rapidly. The ten year old phase or tween phase is where you may start to find that your kid is all of a sudden a lot more grown up than they were before. You may find that they become more independent, they work harder, have a bigger social life and they’re a lot more aware of different people’s perspectives.
Firstly at the golden age of 10, you may find your kid sounding a lot more grown up when they speak. This is because they’re on the verge of becoming a teenager and so their language skills and their ability to form their own opinion is starting to come through. So, you may find that your 10 year old is a lot more chatty than they used to be as they want their voice to be heard.
Another thing you may notice is that your 10-year-old is starting to advance towards reading longer books as well as books that are more complex. In fact, you may notice them really enjoying reading these longer and more difficult things which is a good thing to keep your eye out for.
They may also start using some of the words they’ve learned in these texts in more conversational language. In terms of language in an academic context, you may also become increasingly aware that your kid may be able to write a persuasive essay or speech to put forward their opinion and fight for it with confidence.
The whole idea of learning certainly gets a good run in the fifth grade because they’re getting ready for middle school. Your kid’s maths skills will certainly develop as they’re learning about more complex things like fractions, division, and harder geometry ideas. Your ten year old should be able to use different formulas to calculate the volume and area of lots of different shapes. They may even start to get their head around algebra a little bit.
Your kid’s research skills may also improve a lot as they focus on this skill in lessons like history. They may be able to know how to use different books or websites for their projects and presentations. If your 10 year old is eager to learn then you may also find that they’ll like people appreciating their work and assembling their research together rather than just looking for the facts.
Cognitive and Language Checklist
- Learning how to use good judgment.
- Showing interest in things like social media, culture, and sports.
- Increased attention span.
- More independence.
- They may face some challenges in school.
Physical Development of a 10 Year Old
Another thing you may want to keep your eyes peeled for is the physical development of your 10 year old girl or boy. Lots of kids may have even started puberty by now but others may take a little longer and that’s okay – not all kids develop at the same rate as each other. Your kid may start to act a little bit more mature.
If your kid hasn’t reached puberty then they will start a major growth spurt or will have already started one. If your 10 year old is a girl then you may find that they grow and develop a great deal faster than boys. So, they may be towering over boys the same age as them, some may be starting their period and others may have started to develop breasts.
10 year old boys on the other hand may only be starting to show these signs of puberty but lots will have to wait until they’re around 13. Your kid may be feeling uncomfortable because they’re not growing fast enough or feel like they’re growing too fast. If you haven’t spoken about things like puberty to them then 10 is quite a good age to discuss it – just before all it happens.
You’ll also find that your kid is a lot more obsessed with grooming and looking after their appearance and their clothes, as well as having acceptance from other people. There are lots of hormones flying around and so it’s quite common for them to start to show romantic interest in other people as well as discovering their own sexuality.
Lots of kids at this age may also be quite active physically and will enjoy sports so they may participate a lot more in school teams and teams outside school too. This does put them at quite a big risk of physical injuries so it’s important to keep an eye out for these. Mostly, these injuries happen because of the repetitive strain that their body goes through.
Another important thing at this age is sleep and you’ll want to make sure that your ten year old gets enough of this. This is mainly because of the amount of stress their body and emotions are going through which can be exhausting.
Physical Checklist
- Showing signs of puberty like oily skin, hair growth, and increased sweating.
- Increase in small muscle coordination.
- Improved speed, balance, and agility.
Emotional and Social Milestones for 10 Year Olds
Changing into adulthood and those teenage years can be tough on everyone and so there are a few emotional changes that may happen. Your child may feel confused and excited about what’s going on but may also feel a tad embarrassed as well and that’s okay.
You may also find that they have a lot of questions that they may need answering and so you’ll want to feel ready to answer them – they’re just curious and usually mean no harm!
You’ll also find that your kid should have more complex feelings at the age of ten and so they’ll also have a bit more control over their emotions. They should be able to deal better with negotiating situations and fighting conflict in their friend group than they could before. It’s okay too if they have frequent squabbles or arguments with their siblings – they’re growing and so this is completely natural.
Their social skills should also improve a great deal so they may become quite attached to their friends – being in a clique, outside, or both. They may also struggle a lot with peer pressure because of the people around them so you may notice that their fashion changes, music taste, and so on.
One thing you may see your kid struggling with at this age is stress which is never easy to watch your kid go through. It is tough to deal with all the different changes in their life and so this is why your kid may be struggling with it all. They may be trying to constantly keep up with friends, the newest fashion, and all the changes their body is going through with. You may even find that your kid fully doesn’t want to go to school.
Emotional and Social Checklist
- Acts a lot older than they are.
- Questioning authority.
- Enjoying secrets with their friends.
- Don’t like working on their own and will tend to work with friends.
- Becoming accepting of parent beliefs.
When to Get Help
Naturally, you may be slightly concerned about a few things in your ten year old and that’s all good. But, if you do have some concerns about how your kid may not be hitting certain milestones then it’s always a good idea to check with your doctor whether it’s normal or not – they know best.
It’s also really important to remember that your kid is different from every other kid and so if your kid isn’t hitting every milestone at this age then it’s okay. They’re beginning to get a lot more mature too. If you think they’re losing skills they used to have then it’s certainly worth checking it out with a doctor or a professional.
Milestones for 10 Year Olds
By looking at this list, you’ll realize that there aren’t tons of milestones in comparison to other ages like toddlers and babies. As your not so little one is maturing at an alarming rate, they have fewer milestones but will also be a lot more helpful. As well as this, you’ll want to contact a doctor if you notice something that’s unusual and isn’t like your kid at all. Other than that, make sure your kid is on the right track.