toddler

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Boy toddler

A toddler is a young child who is of the age of learning to walk.^[1] between infancy and childhood. Toddling usually begins between age 12 and 24 months.^[2] During the toddler stage, the child also learns a great deal about social roles, develops motor skills, and first starts to use language.

Span

Toddlerhood is usually defined as starting between 12 and 24 months of age^[2] and ending at approximately 3 years of age^[3], although definitions vary.

Approximate outline of development periods in child development. Toddlerhood is marked in blue near center.

Walking

To toddle is to walk unsteadily; the term cruising is sometimes used for toddlers who cannot toddle but must hold onto something while walking.

On average, a child begins walking between 9 and 14 months of age. The age at which children start to walk can generally be determined by their gender, race, physical attributes and family genes. Small, light children usually walk earlier than heavy, large children.

Language

Talking is the next milestone of which parents are typically aware. A toddler's first word most often occurs around 12 months, but again this is only an average. The child will then continue to steadily add to his or her vocabulary until around the age of 18 months when language increases rapidly. He or she may learn as many as 7-9 new words a day. Around this time, toddlers generally know about 50 words. At 21 months is when toddlers begin to incorporate two word phrases into their vocabulary, such as "I go", "mama give", and "baby play". Before going to sleep they often engage in a monologue called crib talk in which they practice conversational skills. At this age, children are becoming very proficient at conveying their wants and needs to their parents in a verbal fashion.

Emotions and self

There are several other important milestones that are achieved in this time period that parents tend to not emphasize as much as walking and talking. Gaining the ability to point at whatever it is the child wants you to see shows huge psychological gains in a toddler. This generally happens before a child's first birthday.

This age is sometimes referred to as 'the terrible twos',^[4][5] because of the temper tantrums for which they are famous. This stage can begin as early as nine months old depending on the child and environment. The toddler is discovering that they are a separate being from their parent and are testing their boundaries in learning the way the world around them works. This time between the ages of two and five when they are reaching for independence repeats itself during adolescence.

Self-awareness is another milestone that helps parents understand how a toddler is reacting. Around 18 months of age, a child will begin to recognize himself or herself as a separate physical being with his/her own thoughts and actions. A parent can test if this milestone has been reached by noticing if the toddler recognizes that their reflection in a mirror is in fact themselves. One way to test this is to put lipstick on the child's forehead and show them their own reflection. Upon seeing the out-of-the-ordinary mark, if the child reaches to her own forehead, she has achieved this important milestone. Along with self recognition comes feelings of embarrassment and pride that the child had not previously experienced.

Toilet training

Most children are toilet trained while they are toddlers. In most Western countries, toilet training starts as early as 17 months for some, while others are not ready to begin toilet training until they are three. Children who are at home are generally potty trained earlier than those in day care all day. Two important indicators of toilet training readiness are whether a child understands the concept of using the toilet and whether they have any control over excreting waste. This can be a frustrating time for parents. The parents who are willing to put forward the most time and encouragement are the ones that succeed the quickest. Some toddlers can learn this task in a week, while some take two or three months.

Overview table

The toddler developmental timeline shows what an average toddler can do at what age. Times vary greatly from child to child. It is common for some toddlers to master certain skills (such as walking) well before other skills (like talking). Even close siblings can vary greatly in the time taken to achieve each key milestone.

See also

• Baby walker
• Early childhood education
• Sign language in infants and toddlers

References

v • d • e Human Development: Biological  • Psychological Pre- and perinatal Biological Prenatal development Psychological Pre- and perinatal psychology Infancy Biological Infant Psychological Infant and child psychology Childhood Biological Child development · Child development stages · Toddler Psychological Preadolescence Adolescence Biological Puberty Psychological Youth development Young adulthood Psychological Young adult (psychology) Middle adulthood Biological Middle age Maturity Biological Ageing · Senescence Psychological Old age Legal and general definitions Minor (law) · Infancy · Child · Childhood · Adolescence · Age of majority · Adult Theorists-theories John Bowlby-attachment · Urie Bronfenbrenner-ecological systems · Erik Erikson-psychosocial · Sigmund Freud-psychosexual · Lawrence Kohlberg-moral · Jean Piaget-cognitive · Lev Vygotsky-cultural-historical