Your little one has officially entered the magical kingdom of toddlerhood. Life opens up for them like never before.
They now have an insatiable curiosity to explore and learn more about the world around them.
Another year from now, they’ll have even more milestones under their belt. You’ll find that your child is going through some major growth spurts.
They are now on track to speaking their first real sentences and walking on their own two feet.
Here’s what awaits your little one for their first year as a toddler and beyond.
Physical Development
A wealth of physical milestones await your child now that they’re between 1 to 2 years old.
While their growth rate slows down even more, this doesn’t mean they’re not still achieving their progress.
From now on, their height increases approximately 5 to 8 centimetres each year and gain between 9 to 12 kilograms per month.
Your toddler should now be around 3 times their weight when they were a newborn.
While we can’t list down every milestone from 1 to 2 years old, here are the most important ones that you can look forward to as a parent.
Walking
Walking is the most important gross motor skill your child will ever develop in their lives.
They will unlock this achievement within the next few months of their first year of toddlerhood.
By the time they turn 18 months old, your little one would already be running around like a mini tornado.
But for now, they may still be getting their sea legs.
Within the first few months, they may still be at their cruising phase.
A few months after that, they’ll be able to walk on their own, stumbling every now and again.
Around 14 months, they will enter what is known as the ‘wobbly walker’ phase. This is their first independent steps.
By 16 months, they will able to walk confidently without falling too many times.
Even so, though they have yet to master walking, your toddler is now able to at least stand in one place.
Their lower and upper bodies are strong enough to support them. but you should still be vigilant to catch them if they fall.
Fine Motor Skills
Your toddler’s use of their hands will significantly improve within the next few months.
By 1 year, they should already master eating with their hands, even messily.
Now that they’re between 1 to 2 years old, if they have not already started to feed themselves using utensils, they will soon.
However, they will still struggle with getting food into their mouths, so be ready with a bib and lots of napkins.
It’s important to let them practice without food since they will do this instinctively when they copy you.
Between 12 to 15 months, your toddler is continuing to refine their pincer grasp, which is one of the most fine motor skills they will develop in their toddlerhood.
The pincer grasp is involved in so many of the everyday movements they will use when they’re older and up until adulthood.
This doesn’t just include picking up coins or buttoning up clothes.
It’s used for everything from holding a pencil to holding a spoon to turning door knobs to plugging in electronic appliances.
A good indicator that their pincer grasp is improving is that they can now hold a crayon or marker now.
They now probably enjoy scribbling with crayons and markers for scribbling although they will use whole-arm movements. This phase lays the groundwork for writing and language learning later in life.
Other fine motor skills that they will develop before 24 months includes: drinking from a cup, stacking more than two blocks, turning the pages of a book, holding utensils, putting objects in and out of containers, turning knobs and many more.
It’s important to put child-safety locks on your cabinets and drawers now that they may be able to open them without supervision.
Other Milestones
The following milestones deserve an honourable mention but this list is by no means exhaustive.
Around 22-24 months, they should be able to start jumping with both feet off the ground.
They can kick a ball forward and throw a ball too.
They’ll also be able to squat and stand back up without help.
They’re still not able to climb stairs with their feet so they will mostly crawl up instead of walk up.
Your baby is still teething at this point, so they will still bite down on objects to relieve the discomfort.
By 24 months, your toddler will look like a shark, with around 16 to 20 new baby teeth.
You can already start on their dental hygiene routine at this point.
Take them to the their first dentists appointment before their first birthday.
Before 22 months, your child may already start showing a preference for one hand over the other when doing activities. This is called hand dominance and will not fully develop until the next few years when they finally learn how to write.
Cognitive Development
Your baby is growing up to be a tiny genius, even when you’re not around, they are slowly figuring out how things work.
When they throw a toy, they know that it falls to the ground.
At this stage, toddlers are learning how to process information, remember things, and explore their world.
It’s important to give them plenty of mental stimulation to give their hungry brains something to learn.
Here are some other exciting cognitive milestones your toddler will reach within their first 12 to 24 months.
Problem-Solving
Between 12 to 15 months, your baby’s problem-solving skills will reach new heights. By imitating adults, they are able to understand how things work.
Their object permanence is fully developed at this point.
They will look for or ask about a missing or misplaced toy.
Their sense of cause-and-effect allows them to understand how to use objects (push a button and a toy train lights up).
The foundation of their problem-solving is ‘trial and error’. For instance, they’ll learn to figures out how to get a toy from under a table or how to fit shapes into a sorter.
This also increases their curiosity. You’ll often catch your little one opening drawers, unzipping bags, and touching everything.
Memory
Between 16 to 18 months, their memory improves to the point where they now can remember and recognise familiar objects and names. This goes hand in hand with their object permanence.
They can even identify certain body parts when asked: when you ask them ‘where’s your nose’, they’ll point to their nose.
Your toddler will also start to remember places and time. They will understand when you say ‘grandma’s house’ or ‘tomorrow’.
By 24 months, they’ll start recognising pictures in books.
When you ask them to show something on a page, they will probably be able to point to it accurately.
Your toddler will also recognise daily routines better than when they were babies. They’ll remember that brushing teeth happens before bed and that shoes mean going outside.
Pretend Play
One of the hallmarks of positive cognitive development is the ability to play pretend. Through toys and other objects, your baby is able to craft simple descriptions of situations.
They can move dolls in human-like ways and also speak to themselves as if narrating a story even if none of it makes sense to an adult.
This pretend play isn’t just for their creativity, it also prepares them for daily activities.
As mentioned, your toddler will put a spoon in a bowl and then pretend to eat invisible food.
Your toddler’s sense of functional relationships will also improve. For instance, they know that utensils and tableware belong together and that toothpaste and toothbrushes are used together.
First Words
Your toddler is slowly graduating from baby talk or baby jargon to more intelligible words and phrases.
Aside from being able to say ‘Mama’ or ‘Dada’, they can also say simple words like ‘cookie’ or ‘toy’ or ‘milk’ albeit with incorrect pronunciation.
They can also form short sentences like ‘Daddy, give toy’ or ‘Mummy, want milk’.
Your little one’s speech is 25 to 50 percent intelligible during this stage.
Your little one can now also understand concepts of self like ‘me’ or ‘I’.
When you call their name they’ll know that its directed at them. When they look in the mirror, they recognise themselves.
This marks an important achievement in self-awareness.
Emotional Development
This stage is marked by growing independence, big emotions, and early social skills.
They are satisfied with declaring everything ‘mine’ and to imitate the play and actions of other children rather than join in.
Here’s what else is going on with your toddler’s emotional and social development between 1 to 2 years old.
Independence and Autonomy
Between 12 to 15 months, your baby’s personality and self-identity is starting to emerge.
As mentioned, they are now self-aware and can now understand concepts like ‘me’ and ‘mine’.
One-year-olds believe that everything and everyone exists for their benefit.
This egocentricity, or self-centeredness, gives way to a greater respect for others, eventually.
They also show their autonomy by showing preferences to certain favourite toys, certain foods, and certain people.
They will also show increased independence. Your toddler will want to do things alone, like feeding or dressing.
Between 19 to 24 months, they will begin to test limits. You’ll find that they’ll say ‘no’ frequently and may resist following certain rules.
Strong Attachment
Despite their growing independence, they still have a strong attachment to their parents.
It’s hard to get any me-time at this point on, you may even have to use the bathroom with the door open.
They will still enjoy playing social games with their parents like ‘peek-a-boo and ‘pat-a-cake’.
By 24 months old, they may throw more tantrums.
They may blow up when their parents do not understand their needs and requests.
They’ll continue to show strong emotions but do not have much self-control.
When they are mad or frustrated, they may throw, hit or scream.
Your toddler will continue to exhibit separation anxiety and stranger fear until they’re 3 years old at least. For now, they’ll still prefer familiar people and situations.
However, the time they take to warm up to new faces and places will be shorter than usual.
Depending on their own parents’ relationship with others, some start to show empathy sooner than others.
They may comfort another crying toddler or baby, or even an adult. They may do so by offering a hug or toy.
Even when they enjoy playing near other toddlers, they prefer not to interact. This is called parallel play.
Between 19 to 24 months they will understand the idea of sharing but they may not necessarily like it.
They may take toys from others without permission.
It’s important to teach them at this point how to engage in turn-taking.
Because they learn mainly through imitation, they may try to help out with chores in their own way like pretending to cook food, wash plates or sweep the floor.
However, it’s important to not leave them unsupervised. They may get into some mischief if you leave them alone for too long.
The Kingdom of Toddlerhood
Your little one is now no longer so little, they are learning to walk, talk and even assert themselves in the world as their own person.
This is just the beginning of their journey towards childhood. There are more milestones in their future than you can imagine.
You will soon have a very outspoken and confident toddler on your hands.
And not to mention the energy levels. As they explore the world through play, they’ll be much more active in their day to day lives.
So you better work on your stamina, mum; because once they learn to run, you’ll be out of breath before you even catch up to them!
You’ve got this, mummies!
Disclaimer: The information provided in this article is for informational purposes only and should not be considered as medical advice from Mamahood. For any health-related concerns, it is advisable to consult with a qualified healthcare professional or medical practitioner.
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