It's removal day – well, for your toddler anyway!

Uh oh, what was there has now gone? That’s right, your toddler is beginning to find more strength and they are pushing larger items and toys around the room. Let’s take a moment to think about all the skills your toddler shows off when they get busy with their own removals! 

Pushing toys can help your toddler develop in a number of ways; firstly, it helps them with their walking skills 

Pushing a toy or large object is useful for helping your toddler stay upright and balanced. They can use their object to prevent them from falling and this can help them refine their style of walking. 

Pushing objects along the floor builds muscle strength 

Lots of large muscles in the shoulders, arms, legs and core get a good workout when pushing items around.  

Their finger muscles are put to the test as they try and keep a grip on the toy or object they are maneuvering around.  

Not only that, but if your toddler pushes a box that can have things put in and taken out, they develop the above skills, along with their squatting and balance. 

Your toddler learns about balance and coordination

Pushing something means your toddler explores how to coordinate their leg movements in time with how fast the object is moving. It may speed up if they are on a shiny surface, so their legs move more quickly than if they were moving along a carpet or bumpy outdoor surface.  

Along the journey, they might experience a challenge that makes maintaining balance tricky. They may wobble a little or fall to the ground. This is fine though as experiencing little bumps and falls helps your toddler understand how to correct their balance. 

Pushing encourages your toddler to think and make decisions 

When toys and objects are pushed, your toddler starts by deciding that something needs to be moved. They may not always have a plan about where to move an object or toy – it could involve them sliding it slightly out of the way of where they want to play, or something being moved into a completely different room! 

While they are moving things, your toddler relies on visual skills and spatial awareness 

Pushing objects relies on your toddler being able to see where they are going. They might need to turn a corner or try to avoid something in their way. Although it's unlikely that they will be able to handle challenges like these from ‘the off’ (or even at go number five), toddlers learn through repetition, so every time they run into a wall or stop suddenly, they build connections and learn about direction and positioning. 

And we mustn’t forget that pushing items and objects can help develop imagination 

For now, you might comment on the actions of your busy toddler as they move things around your home. In time, they will connect the words they have heard and begin to form their own ideas and motives for moving toys around. They might pretend an empty box is for recycling, so collect specific things, or they could be shopping and push their trolley around – their only limit will be their imagination! 

So, when you see your toddler on a mission to move things around think about all the areas of development they are working on while doing so.