Today Tile Triggered Content

Your child might be getting better and better at understanding their own feelings – but realising that other people think and feel different things is hard (and really important). Most of us want our children to be kind to others and to grow up aware of their own emotions and able to empathise with other people’s – after all, this is an important part of making and strengthening relationships. How then can you help your child see things from someone else’s point of view?  

It is amazing how often the thing that will best support our child’s development is really simple – and understanding how people feel is one of those things! All you need to do is use words that talk about thinking and feeling when you’re chatting with your child.  

We might hope that our child will quickly develop friendships but playing with others can be a bit tricky when you’re a toddler. Toddlers often show that they’re developing empathy but still lack self-regulation skills, which means your child might find it hard to stop themselves hitting out if they are upset, frustrated or angry.^[1] 

Your toddler’s early friendships are likely to be based around shared interests and play ideas.^[2] They might make a friend who enjoys running around as much as they do, or always want to play with the toy animals. 

Your toddler is responding to lots of new experiences every day, and as a result they will go through a range of feelings and emotions. It takes time to understand these feelings and respond to them, and even as they can do this, they will often need support (as we all do at times).   

Self-soothing is often used when talking about calming down, maybe when getting ready to rest or sleep, or when sad or angry.  

The team at Durham University's Infancy and Sleep Centre look at babies' sleep patterns from an anthropological point of view. They consider the importance of mammalian biology and evolution to understand how (and where) human babies feed and sleep. Their Basis report raises some interesting concepts about how our biological ‘make up’ expects something quite different from what 21st century life provides. Here’s an extract from that report – we think it’s fascinating!

Human milk and infant formula: what our biology ‘expects’

We know every child has their own individual interests and skills, which means every child’s path to mastering skills is unique. But it can still be difficult to keep calm if their friends seem to have got to grips with a skill that your child hasn’t yet. Sometimes it can help to think about the progress your child has already made, and the skills they have mastered, and remember that one skill builds on another as your child develops.  

Skills like writing and drawing might start to feel really important, as your child gets closer to starting school or simply as they move into a pre-school room at nursery. And many of us have been tempted to try to get our child to master these skills a bit more quickly, perhaps by getting them to trace over pictures or shapes.  

When your child masters writing their first letter or their name, they may feel extremely proud to have made (and left) their mark and this may feel like a really important rite of passage.   

If you’re concerned about your child’s grip or control over a pencil, it’s likely that you have no need to be worried. It can be helpful to remember that motor development does not progress at the same rate, or in the same pattern, for all children. There is broad variation in the ‘typical’ age that children progress through motor milestones – so the way your child is comfortable holding a pencil could look very different to their friends. 

Your child’s unique journey of development has been unfolding since before they were born,^[1] and you will have seen how inter-connected the streams of development are.  

1. Choose a few repetitive books that your child enjoys. 
2. Read the stories with enthusiasm! Apply a melodic tone, changing the pitch when the repetitive phrases are being read. 
3. Pause to allow your child to say the repetitive phrase. 
4. Call attention to the print; point to the written text as you read. 
5. Provide a calm environment and allow plenty of time for the story. 

Talking to their toys is a wonderful stage in your toddler’s development. It starts around now and evolves over many years, and for some, it never stops! Embracing this time in your toddler’s life can help them become comfortable with storytelling, sharing ideas and acting out narratives with their safest and most trusted friends: their toys. Here are some ideas for encouraging this type of play and supporting your toddler’s early language skills.  

1) Take time for imaginative play

Bonding with your baby is important for building a secure attachment, based on closeness and trust. Developing this secure attachment at an early age is how your baby will grow to connect with you and have a strong sense of self throughout childhood.^[1]