At birth a child only has visual perception. At 4 weeks the child watches the mother when she speaks to him and will open and close the mouth in response. It will follow a dangling object upto a range of 90 degrees from the midline.

At 8 weeks it learns to focus on objects. By 12 weeks he watches his own hands while lying on the back. Now he can follow a dangling object upto a range of 180 degrees, that is from side to side.

At around 5 to 6 months he will smile while watching himself in a mirror. At around 7 months, he will pat his own image in a mirror. At this age he adjusts his position to see objects which attract him.

At 1 year he learns to follow rapidly moving objects.

At 2 years the child is able to see everthing that an adult can see.

Dr. Subhash Rao Child Specialist Laksh-Deep Hospital