As a parent, you are naturally concerned about your child’s proper growth and development. You hope that they will reach different milestones which will indicate a normal growth trajectory. When they are young, you pay close attention to their speech patterns, and their ability to walk. You monitor if they are able to read, how they interact with other babies, and more. There are several milestones that are unique to this age group that will indicate regular development. During this time, your children will be developing crucial physical, social, emotional, and cognitive skills. They will be learning to make sense of their world. Read below to learn about milestones to watch for and tips to help your toddler get there.

Encourage Reading and Talking

By the age of two, your child should be speaking in short sentences, asking questions, and explaining things. To help them reach this milestone, talk to them and read to them often. Talking to them, either by having conversations with them or doing something simple like narrating what is happening throughout your day with them. This will help them learn new words and make important neural connections between words, objects, and concepts. You should encourage your child to talk as they will be able to learn words and pronunciations with continual practice. Reading aloud is similarly important. This will introduce them to new vocabulary that they may not hear day-to-day. There will likely be pictures associated with new words. Ask your child to read aloud where possible.

Make Sure They Are Active

When your child is a toddler, they are developing important motor and movement skills. This could include throwing a ball, washing their hands, and using sippy cups on their own. They can walk, run, and jump in place. It will be important to keep your toddler active in order to successfully reach these milestones and further their physical development. Play catch with your child or playfully chase them around the yard. Encourage higher-level thinking physical activities like stacking play bricks in order of size or color. Have them help you with simple tasks in the yard such as picking up sticks or putting soil into a plant.

Set Up Playdates

Toddlers are developing important social skills at this time in their life. They will be learning how to play with and interact with other children. This is a formative skill that will shape how they build relationships with others in the future. Make sure they have adequate social time between school and friends. Ask them about who they spend time with at school to gauge their emotional responses to the process of friendship-building. Schedule play dates between your child and other children that they seem to naturally get along with. Ensuring that your child gets regular social interactions will help them reach milestones associated with social and emotional development.

Do Cognition-Focused Activities

A child’s cognitive skills increase exponentially when they are a toddler. To boost this area of development, play games that are focused on improving cognition. For example, you could have your child play simple matching games, or have them identify different animal sounds. You could also teach them the alphabet with flashcards or another active learning strategy. Using bright colors will help your child be engaged with whatever activity you choose.

Bronx Child Care

With high-quality child care services, your toddler will be able to reach milestones with playtime, social interactions, and opportunities for cognitive development. If you are a parent looking for child care in the Bronx, visit https://corp.wonderschool.com to learn about Wonderschool. Wonderschool is a company that provides in-home child care and other caregiving service options. We believe that with good quality child care, every child will be able to reach important milestones and become healthy, happy, properly developed children.