The Developmental Hierarchy: Understanding Your Child’s Neurological Growth
As parents, we often measure our child’s development by the milestones they reach—rolling over, crawling, walking, talking. But what if we told you there’s a hierarchy of development that goes far beyond just physical milestones? Dr. Tony Ebel’s Developmental Hierarchy explains how the brain and nervous system grow in a layered and organized way, laying the foundation for lifelong learning, behavior, and health.
Understanding this hierarchy helps parents recognize why certain delays, sensory struggles, emotional challenges, or behavioral issues arise—and, more importantly, how to support healthy neurological development for their child.
What is the Developmental Hierarchy?
The Developmental Hierarchy, as taught by Dr. Tony Ebel, is a step-by-step framework for how a child’s brain and nervous system develop. Each stage builds upon the last, creating a solid neurological foundation for higher-level functions like focus, learning, and emotional regulation.
If one stage is skipped or disrupted, it can affect everything above it, leading to challenges like: ✔️ Sensory processing struggles ✔️ Speech and language delays ✔️ Behavioral issues (ADHD, anxiety, emotional dysregulation) ✔️ Poor motor coordination ✔️ Learning difficulties
By understanding this neurological roadmap, we can help children who are struggling at the root level rather than just addressing surface symptoms.
The Levels of the Developmental Hierarchy
Each layer of the hierarchy builds upon the previous one, much like the foundation of a house. If the lower levels are unstable, the higher levels will struggle to develop properly.
1. The Foundational Level – The Nervous System
This is where it all begins. The nervous system is the body’s master control system, responsible for processing sensory information, coordinating movement, and regulating emotions. If a child has birth trauma, stress, or interference in their nervous system, everything built on top of this level may be weak.
✔️ What can go wrong?
Retained primitive reflexes
Chronic stress responses (fight-or-flight dominance)
Poor regulation of movement, digestion, sleep
✔️ How chiropractic helps: Chiropractic care removes interference from the nervous system, allowing it to function properly and regulate the child’s development at the deepest level.
2. Sensory Processing & Motor Development
Once the nervous system is working properly, the brain starts processing sensory input (touch, sound, movement) and translating it into motor output (movement, coordination, posture).
✔️ What can go wrong?
Sensory sensitivities or avoidance
Poor coordination, balance, or muscle tone
Skipping crawling or other key milestones
✔️ How chiropractic helps: By restoring neurological communication, chiropractic care helps children better integrate sensory information and improve coordination, motor control, and balance.
3. Emotional Regulation & Social Development
As sensory and motor systems strengthen, the child begins to develop emotional awareness and social skills. A stable nervous system allows them to regulate emotions and adapt to new situations.
✔️ What can go wrong?
Frequent meltdowns and difficulty self-soothing
Anxiety, emotional outbursts, or difficulty with transitions
Social struggles due to poor emotional regulation
✔️ How chiropractic helps: When the nervous system is regulated and balanced, children can shift out of fight-or-flight mode and into a calm, adaptive state where social and emotional growth can thrive.
4. Cognitive & Academic Function
The final level of development is higher-order learning, including language, reading, writing, and problem-solving. If the lower levels of the hierarchy (sensory, motor, and emotional regulation) are unstable, a child may struggle with attention, learning, and academic success.
✔️ What can go wrong?
ADHD, difficulty focusing, trouble following instructions
Struggles with reading, writing, or comprehension
Trouble with memory, organization, and problem-solving
✔️ How chiropractic helps: By ensuring the entire nervous system is functioning optimally, chiropractic care supports cognitive development by allowing the brain to efficiently process and retain new information.
Why Some Kids Struggle – And How to Help
Many of the challenges kids face today aren’t random—they are often neurological compensations for missing foundational steps in the Developmental Hierarchy. The good news? The brain and nervous system are incredibly adaptable and can rewire and reorganize when given the right support.
✅ Chiropractic care optimizes nervous system function, helping children regulate sensory input, movement, and emotions more effectively. ✅ Movement-based therapies and sensory work can further support development, but they work best when the nervous system is balanced first. ✅ Parental awareness is key—understanding that challenges like ADHD, anxiety, or poor coordination are often neurological in nature allows for solutions beyond medications or therapy alone.
Give Your Child a Strong Foundation for Life
If your child is struggling with focus, emotions, coordination, or learning, their nervous system may need support. Chiropractic care helps organize and balance the nervous system, creating a solid foundation for higher-level development.
Want to learn more about how the Developmental Hierarchy applies to your child? Schedule a consultation today and take the first step in supporting their full potential!
