Child Development at 12 Months: Skills, Activities

Content

Time runs unnoticed. Most recently, your little one was born, you carried a small lump on your hands. Now you can’t recognize him: the baby has radically changed outwardly, he knows and understands a lot. The development of a child at 12 months is even more aimed at the knowledge of the world. This period is transitional, therefore, to some extent difficult for the crumbs and parents.

What's new in the physical development of a one-year-old child

At 12 months, the baby has a weight of 9.5 - 10.5 kg (± 1 kg) and a height of 74 - 76 kg (± 3 cm). The increase in mass and growth does not differ significantly from the previous month.

What's new in twelve months your little one

Goes for a pen or alone. But it can continue to actively crawl on all fours.
A child of 12 months can take two small items with one pen, and two or three with a handful.
Confidently gives the subject to an adult and lets it go. Able to grab a button on your clothes with bent thumb and forefinger.
Can squat or sit down without support.
Able to build a tower of several cubes and put rings on a stick.
Continues to master gestures, except those that have already been learned (see child in 10 and 11 months), it can still: send a kiss (if you teach him), kiss mom, blow hot.
At 12 months, the child makes attempts to eat with a spoon on his own, provided that you show him this and allow him to do it yourself.

We read in detail: what a child can do in 1 year

What's new in psychological development

By the year the child understands more than 20 words and knows the names of objects that he sees around every day. The pronunciation of words is still vaguely reminiscent of the due, syllables may be interchanged, not all letters are pronounced. Toddlers put several meanings in one word;
A child at 12 months old begins to reach out to other children, but so far does not know how to communicate without conflict;
Now the baby understands well how and with whom in the family you can behave. He feels the softness of his mother and allows himself to be naughty or even manipulate her. He knows that this will not work with dad;
With a child by the age of 12 months, it is becoming increasingly difficult to play, he can establish some of his own rules that are not acceptable for you in games and persist in what you can’t do: throw sand, pull a cat by the tail;
In children from about this age, long-term memory begins to appear. Kids can remember what happened yesterday or a few days ago. There are people who are already adults, able to remember themselves in a year;
When a child listens to music, he tries to sing along, and while standing - to dance;
Fulfills simple requests (see the child at 11 months);
Approximately, starting from the 9th month, but most often in one year, children may have a difficult transitional moment, when they become as if they are not like themselves and radically change - this is the crisis of the first year. How does it manifest:
- Disobedience, stubbornness;
- A sharp increase in independence (refusal of assistance);
- Touchiness and tearfulness;
- Contradictory behavior (the child may get annoyed when something fails and wait for help from you, but immediately refuse it).

Any mother has questions: why did the child begin to behave this way? What is it: harm or did I spoil it? Do not worry too much and react violently to changes. Here are the reasons that change the behavior of the baby:

The child gradually forms a will, which increasingly begins to clash with the will of an adult, which causes protests from the child;
The worldview of a child from 12 months is completely changing: he is aware of the first signs that he is a separate person, that his parents are adults, who are allowed more than him;
With the acquisition of an increasing number of skills, the child grows self-confidence, and he is increasingly showing independence. At the same time, the crumb cannot yet adequately assess its capabilities, distribute power, anticipate the situation. Therefore, the child, as it were, overestimates himself and, because of this, suffers failures, which, of course, infuriate him. The child cannot accept the thought: “that he cannot do what he wants, because mom knows how to do it”;
Bans are perceived by the child as an obstacle for adults to know the world.

Test for the development of children in 12 months

The child should already be able to crawl, stand with support and take a few steps if you hold him by the handles;
At 12 months should use 1 - 2 gestures: wave with a pen, nod "yes" or "no";
Must say at least one meaningful word: mom, dad;
Must be able to fulfill simple requests: give, take;
In addition, skills acquired in previous months must be present (see child at 10 and 11 months);
By the end of the first year, the child should have at least one tooth or a swollen gum - evidence that the tooth is growing.

If the result is negative for at least one of the test items, then you should definitely visit a pediatrician.

Video: Monthly baby development. 1 year / 12 months

Mode: sleep and power

Parents of many year-old children are faced with a regime change. We have to do this because now it becomes difficult for the child to be laid in the afternoon at the same time, so you have to move the daytime sleep. This is how “owls” manifest themselves, which wake up in the morning at 9-10 hours, and in the afternoon fall at 14-15 hours. Thus, it turns out that such children begin to sleep during the day once for 2-3 hours, from about 2 p.m. to 5 p.m., and their night sleep begins only at 10 p.m. or even later.

In this regard, it is necessary to accustom the baby to a different diet. If the child has switched to one long daytime sleep, then he will not be able to feed him five times. Such babies eat 4 times, for example: breakfast at 9.00, at 13.00 - lunch, at 17.00 - afternoon tea and dinner at 21.00.

If your baby’s regimen has not undergone changes, then everything remains the same. (see the child at 11 months.)

We also read: 1 day baby day regimen

How to help your child grow

Continue to periodically carry the baby in your arms. (see. "holding" the child in 10 months.);
The development of a child in a year is still aimed at improving speech and fine motor skills, so continue classes that develop these functions. (see the child at 10 and 11 months.);
The most important skill that your baby is now acquiring is walking. No matter how you want the child to start walking, it is important that he is ready for this. If the baby has mastered crawling and moves with ease, then you can push him to start walking, but you do not need to wean him from crawling. For this:
- Place your baby’s favorite toys at an accessible height. As soon as you notice that the child has stood up and is reaching for the item, move it a little further away from him so that the baby takes a few steps towards the target. Do not rush the baby, the musculoskeletal system is gradually getting used to new loads. Increase the distance gradually;
- When the child learns to do several steps on his own from support to support, create him several such goals in the form of toys. Let the baby pass from one support to another: from a chair to a bed, from a crib to an armchair;
- Very often, the baby is prevented from taking the first step by a feeling of insecurity and fear of losing balance. Give him a toy for balance, step back a couple of steps and ask him to bring you an item. This is enough for many children to dare to walk on their own;
- When you go for a walk with your child, pay his attention to other children who are already walking. Another example is contagious;
- Do not abuse walkers, they may form incorrect posture (Pros and Cons of Walkers) It is better to use wheelchairs or reins. Support your baby by the forearms or hands, but not by the armpits. When the baby can take several steps on their own, you can insure from behind, supporting for the hood. Now try to use the stroller less;
- Falls are an important component in the learning process of walking. Do not rush to him immediately after the fall, let the baby try to stand up himself. Help if the child really can not get up or hit and cried;
- If you have where to walk on the grass, on the sand or just on the ground, it will be useful to let the child walk barefoot. On the hard floor, you need to learn how to walk the baby only in special children's shoes. The reason is that when walking in the foot certain muscle groups are strained, which occurs only when moving on natural surfaces (earth, sand, pebbles). When a child walks on a hard floor, the foot is relaxed or not completely stressed, which leads to various disturbances in the gait and ankle. It should be noted that the first shoes should be not just slippers or smart sandals, but orthopedic correct shoes. It is desirable that they be laced and with a high back - for stable fixation of the ankle and with a 5 mm heel - for the prevention of flat feet. Of course, you don’t need to keep the child constantly in boots, but when the baby learns to walk, dress.

We also read: 10 ways to teach your child to walk

Games

Play story games with children: everything that you saw on a walk can be beaten at home with the help of toys, for example: you watched a truck unload the body. At home, you can repeat this with a baby car and cubes. Or arrange fairy-tale performances for your child using the finger-type children's theater or nesting dolls in the form of fairy-tale characters.

It's time to restructure the relationship with the child. Organize your games and activities with him in such a way that they take place together, but at the same time, you allowed the baby to do what he can independently. There must be genuine trust between you and the child, only in this case the baby can learn from you and develop fully.

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