Early Atlas

Skill

Expresses a Range of Emotions

Infant or toddler shows a widening range of emotions through faces, sounds, gestures, and words.

Ages 2–36 months

emotional-understanding emotions expression infant-toddler

Why it matters

Expressing comfort, joy, fear, anger, surprise, and pride — first through cries and faces, later through words — lets a child communicate inner states and be understood. Emotional expression is the gateway to emotional regulation.

Builds toward this milestone

  • learns to express a range of emotions. — Head Start ELOF

Explore milestones →

What mastery looks like

  • Expresses several distinct emotions through facial expressions, sounds, gestures, or movement.
  • Begins to use words or signs to name some feelings.

How to observe it

  • Can you read a variety of emotions from the child's expressions and gestures?
  • Does the child use any words or signs to tell you how they feel?

Accessibility

  • Name the emotion you see ("you look surprised") to pair feelings with language.
  • Offer feeling pictures or signs for children with limited spoken language.

Activities

Evidence

Early Atlas