What are activities of daily living (ADLs) for children?

• A. Self-care activities such as feeding, toileting, bathing, dressing, grooming, and household maintenance.
• B. Only shopping and driving.
• C. Language development and socialization.
• D. School coursework and test-taking.

Answer: (A)

ADLs are the basic self-care tasks a child performs daily to take care of themselves and participate in everyday life. This includes feeding themselves, toileting, bathing or washing, dressing, grooming, and managing simple household routines. Therapists focus on these activities to promote independence in daily life at home and in the community. The other options describe skills that aren’t daily self-care tasks: shopping and driving are higher-level activities (often called instrumental ADLs), language development and socialization pertain to communication and social skills, and school coursework and tests are educational activities. Understanding this helps guide what clinicians assess and target in pediatric physical therapy to support functional independence.