Today Tile Triggered Content

With your baby's grasp and release abilities improving, there’s greater scope for introducing new games. It may have been a fun stage for your baby as they learned how to release objects (possibly not so much for you!). However, to willingly release an object with purpose is another significant advancement in their ever-growing abilities. 

Lots of games are the order for the day to further encourage this stage of development. The more your baby practises these purposeful motions, the stronger their hands will become.  

Babies are born with primitive reflexes which are response to stimuli that are controlled by the primitive area of the brain, the brainstem. 
 
What starts out as an involuntary movement coming from the brainstem, moves into a controlled response as they become more aware of and in control of their movements. 
These reflexes are demonstrations of your baby’s brain development! 
 
Two reflexes you can see in your babies’ feet are: 
 
Babinski reflex

Your baby is showing more interest in objects; they might look at things for longer now, as they are starting to develop the skills to learn about objects by looking at them as well as by touching them.  

As your toddler’s language develops, they might begin to talk about things that they remember. They might recall recent events or occasions from a little while ago – listening to your toddler’s memory of things can give a wonderful insight into what’s important to them.  

Memory – more of a story than a photo album! 

Do you sometimes wonder why your toddler wants to do the same puzzle or build the exact same tower again and again? You might feel you should be moving your toddler on or helping them find a new challenge. But giving them time to repeat favourite activities is a great support for their learning.  

As American comedian Dave Chappelle says, “No matter how old you are, if a little kid hands you a toy phone... you answer it.”  

Now, you might need to work out it’s a phone first, as your toddler is starting to understand that we can pretend an object is something else! But why is this such an amazing step in your toddler’s development?  

When your toddler pretends their wooden block is a phone, they’re showing that they can manipulate information and that this pretending can be shared. 

Have you noticed that your baby remembers how to do things? This is one aspect of their ever-increasing memory skills. 

Defining memory

Is your baby fascinated with cupboards or drawers? They might be interested in what’s inside or intrigued by being able to open and close the door or drawer. If you haven’t already, it might be a good time to check exactly what your baby can now reach.

Your toddler will learn about the world in different ways and one method they use is ‘inductive reasoning and categorisation’. In plain language, your toddler learns by making connections between the things that they encounter. 

Inductive reasoning and categorisation is an incredibly useful skill 

Have you had development checks with your toddler? Have you wondered why you are asked about them arranging blocks?  

Your toddler might sometimes copy you when you make a row of objects; this could be a row of blocks or something else.