Try running and climbing
Attempt to walk up stairs with help
Feed herself (albeit sloppily!)
Scribble with crayon or marker
Stack several blocks
Drink from a cup
Unzip zippers
Emotionally, your toddler may:
Mimic emotional expressions
Be dependent upon a security object like a pacifier, stuffed animal, or blanket
Become angry at a cause of frustration
Show frequent temper tantrums
359
Eighteen to Twenty-One Months: Express and Think
Socially, your toddler may:
Begin to express sympathy
Reveal feelings of jealousy
Sometimes cooperate
Enjoy being with other children (but will not yet interact with them)
Imitate other children and adults
Be trusting of adults
Intellectually, your toddler may:
Understand “mine”
Eagerly help with simple household tasks
Engage in imaginative play
Enjoy brief, simple games
Be very curious, but have a short attention span
Name familiar objects and people
360
Twenty-One to Twenty-Four Months: Do and Feel
Physically, your toddler may:
Walk quickly (and maybe even walk backwards)
Become more adept at running and climbing (possibly out of the crib!)
Walk up stairs
Begin having bladder and bowel control
Enjoy trying to dress and undress herself
Show aggression, such as hitting, pushing, or biting Often dawdle Enjoy activities like digging, playing with and in water, and dancing to music
Emotionally, your toddler may:
Openly express love
Be easily hurt by criticism
Fear disapproval or rejection
Have rapid and intense mood shifts
361
Twenty-One to Twenty-Four Months: Express and Think
Socially, your toddler may:
Engage in simple fantasy play
Be increasingly possessive of toys and caregivers
Desire to please caregivers
Enjoy playmates
Intellectually, your toddler may:
Think problems through before taking action
Use growing vocabulary to get attention and needs met
Use own name in reference to self
Speak two- and three-word sentences
362
Twenty-Four to Thirty Months: Do and Feel
Physically, your toddler may:
Walk down stairs
Run smoothly, but still be working on stopping and turning
Throw and kick a ball
Attempt jumping with both feet (though rarely get much air!)
Stand on tiptoes
Eat with utensils and spill less often
Dress herself in simple clothing
Use a paintbrush and build block towers
Wash and dry hands
Possibly show interest and take strides in potty training
Emotionally, your toddler may:
Feel and express pride in accomplishments
Crave immediate gratification
Express fear of the dark
Assert “no” frequently and adamantly
363
Socially, your toddler may:
Waffle between striving for independence and needing caregiver assurance and security
Display difficulty sharing
Grab toys from other children
Be sometimes willing to trade toys
Intellectually, your toddler may:
Be able to name body parts
Work large-piece puzzles
Narrate what she is doing as she does it
Like to take things apart and put them back together (such as screwing lids on jars)
Follow and begin to carry on a simple conversation
364
Thirty to Thirty-Six Months: Do and Feel
Physically, your toddler may:
Like to hide
Enjoy tumbling
Refuse help with tasks
Love to do household chores
Pedal a tricycle
Make more deliberate strokes with crayon or marker (circular shapes, lines, etc.)
Briefly balance on one foot
Emotionally, your toddler may:
Display the occasional temper
Thrive on the security and comfort of routines
Express affection openly and easily
Separate more easily from parents
365
Thirty to Thirty-Six Months: Express and Think
Socially, your toddler may:
Understand “mine” and “yours”
Have a little less difficulty sharing
Prefer doing things by herself and expect praise afterward
Enjoy other children and begin playing with them instead of alongside them
Engage in cooperative play
Begin to take turns
Intellectually, your toddler may:
Become skilled at problem-solving
Understand make-believe play
Recognize and identify most familiar objects and people
Understand most sentences and requests
Grasp physical relationships (“in,” “under,” etc.)
Use “I,” “me,” “you,” and plurals but not always correctly
Be understood by strangers
Distinguish between boys and girls
Join in simple songs and rhymes
Match objects to pictures and sort objects by shape and color
Sources
American Academy of Pediatrics, Caring for Your Baby and Young Child: Birth to Age 5, New York: Bantam 1998.
Arlene Eisenberg, Heidi E. Murkoff, and Sandee E. Hathaway, BSN, What to Expect: The Toddler Years, New York: Workman 1996.
Tracy Hogg and Melinda Blau, Secrets of the Baby Whisperer for Toddlers, New York: Ballantine Books 2003.
Vicki Iovine, The Girlfriends’ Guide to Toddlers, New York: Perigee 1999.
Linda Sonna, PhD, The Everything Toddler Book, Avon, Massachusetts: Adams Media Corporation 2002.
Richard C. Woolfson, Bright Toddler: Understand and Stimulate Your Child’s Development, New York: Barron’s Educational Series 2001.
www.babycenter.com www.nncc.org
(National Network for Childcare)
Special Thanks
A special thanks to Brigid Corboy, a very talented art teacher at Corte Madera School in Portola Valley, California, who organized the production of the imaginative illustrations produced by the following children:
About the Author
Sheila Ellison is the dedicated mother of four children and the stepmother of two. She is the creator and author of the 365 Series of parenting books, including 365 Games Babies Play, 365 Days of Creative Play, 365 Afterschool Activities, 365 Foods Kids Love to Eat, and 365 Ways to Raise Great Kids. She has appeared on Oprah, the Later Today Show, and the CBS Early Show. Her books have been featured in O Magazine, Parenting, Family Circle, Glamour, Complete Woman, Healthy Kids Magazine, New York Daily News, and San Francisco Chronicle, and have been selections of the Children’s Book-of-the-Month Club. Sheila has appeared on hundreds of radio shows across the country. She continues to write and lives in Northern California.
Also Available for Older Kids!
365 Days of Creative Play
For Children Two Years and Up by Sheila Ellison and Judith Gray
365 Days of Creative Play is the essential guide to a wide variety of creative projects for young children.
“Activities that may work magic: projects that you can do with your kids, and even better, activities that they can do all by themselves.”
—Family Circle Magazine
Written by the authors of 365 Afterschool Activities, 365 Days of Creative Play will encourage your child’s imagination, growth, and problem solving skills. 384 pages, ISBN: 1-57071-029-5, $12.95
To order this book or any other of our many publications, please contact your local bookseller, gift store, or call Sourcebooks at (630) 961-3900. Thank you for your interest!