At what age did your child start to point?

I am just curious about this.

I knew Johnny pointed late. However I didn't think it was terribly late..(19 months). He suddenly started pointing out animals and things he wanted to us...he hadn't done it once before.

My second son started pointing at 8 months. I was blown away by it as the first time he did it I thought it was a fluke. But once he started he was pointing out EVERYTHING.

I know the normal range (from what i remember) is 6 months-15..or is it 18??

A friend of mine is concerned about her son who is 18 months and hasn't pointed yet. He is also speech delayed (no words). They are calling EI this week.

Re: At what age did your child start to point?

I think by 10-12 months they should be able to do it. In typical children. DS did not until he was 20 months. He learned with EI.

Re: At what age did your child start to point?

Pointing has a lot to do with motor planning and muscle tone. We always thought of my dd as very 'strong" since her gross motor abilities were apparent at a young age, but little did we know she had "low tone" in her upper body. We now know she couldn't manipulate toys properly due to this low tone. It made her play with them in different ways then they were meant to be played with.

I would have your friend ask to have her child evaluated by an OT. Sometimes these agencies hold off on OT evals (we had to push to get one, meanwhile my dd is a total sensory seeker).

Re: At what age did your child start to point?

I believe that most babies point by about 12 months. It's considered an important milestone because it's a gestural form of communication to request desired items. It is also used to engage in joint attention to point out something of interest to another person. Most of the children who i have worked with who are diagnosed with autism or PDD are delayed in their ability to point and have to be taught this skill.

Message edited 11/6/2010 9:18:20 PM.

Re: At what age did your child start to point?

Thanks to everyone for the replies and advice

Its tough to really know in some children whether there is a real issue or just a delay.

With my first son, he eventually did everything he was supposed to do , just a few months later that most kids. I would point out things to him all the time hoping he'd follow but he did it on his own time by himself.

I will give the recommendation to her about an OT eval. It can't hurt!

Re: At what age did your child start to point?

Matthew started pointing around 10 months, Christopher didnt point at the age of 12 months which I think is when they should be doing it.

Re: At what age did your child start to point?

Lance, very late, like 2 years old.
Grace is 11 months. She doesn't really point. She'll put her finger on something, I'm just not sure if she's really using it as a form of communication.

18 months is late though, pointing is suppose to come at 10-12 months.

Re: At what age did your child start to point?

This is such a fantastic question because pointing really is a very important milestone in young children. Everyone is dead on in saying between 10-12 months of age is typically when we see this skill begin to emerge. If it doesn't, like Michelle said we begin to question motor planning and sequencing as being the underlying cause and/or whether or not the child has purposeful intentional communication skills. Is he using any other form of gesturing to make his needs known?

Re: At what age did your child start to point?

DS did not start pointing until he was about 2.5 years old, where as my DD started pointing at 8 months.