Early Developmental Screening

Only 1 in 5 King County children received a developmental screening in the past year.

In King County, 20.3% of children in 5th grade and younger had received a developmental screening in the past year, in 2019 and 2021 combined. Developmental screening is an important tool to assess childhood development as well as for parents and child service providers to understand and celebrate developmental milestones. A developmental screening typically consists of a questionnaire or checklist that has skills and milestones that are commonly observed during a specific age range. Many pediatricians, child care providers, preschools, and other service providers such as home visitors offer developmental screenings at least annually for babies and young children. Regular screenings can ensure that children are connected with services when the developing brain is most capable of change, particularly between birth through age five.   

• Age: Children ages 0 to 5 years old (26.0%) were more likely to be screened than elementary school children (15.5%).  

• Race and ethnicity: Black children were less likely than County average to receive a developmental screening at 15.2%. More specifically, Ethiopian children (10.9%) and Somali children (10.4%) were among the least likely to have been screened. 

• Language spoken at home:  Children in households that spoke Amharic (8,5%), Korean (3.6%), Russian (7.6%), and Somali (9.5%) were all less likely than the County average to have received a screening in the past year.  

• Parent/caregiver’s sexual orientation: Children with a lesbian, gay, bisexual, or queer parent or caregiver (38.0%) were more likely to receive a developmental screening than children with straight parents and caregivers (19.7%).  

While low rates may indicate that screenings are not occurring as regularly as recommended, it could also reflect that parents may not be aware of a developmental screening, particularly if their child is already meeting or exceeding developmental milestones. After working with community, the Best Starts for Kids initiative developed 4 goals around access to developmental screening in King County, which you can read about here.