| Development: |
|
Says 3 to 6 words. Can identify one or more body parts. Walks well, stoops, and climbs stairs. Feeds self with fingers and drinks from a cup. Indicates wants by pulling, pointing or grunting. Understands simple commands.
Through play, children learn appropriate social behaviors. The toddler should experience playing with siblings and peers as well as by themselves. Encourage language development by reading books, singing, songs and interacting with others.
|
| |
|
|
| Nutrition: |
|
Feed at family mealtimes and give 2-4 nutritious snacks a day. Offer nutritious foods and let them decide how much to eat. Encourage the toddler to feed themselves. Toddlers will eat a lot at one meal and very little at the next. Make servings small. A good rule of thumb is to measures one tablespoon of food for each year of age or one quarter of an adult serving. Toddlers will develop ‘food jags’ where they will only eat certain foods. Offer a variety of foods, including new ones, and after several tries the toddler may begin to accept them more readily. Continue to avoid foods which can result in choking such as peanuts, popcorn, hard candy, tough meats, hot-dogs and large pieces of fruits or vegetables.
|
| |
|
|
| Oral Health: |
|
Continue to brush your toddler’s teeth twice a day with a fluoridated toothpaste. The manual dexterity to clean their own teeth is not present until the age of 4 or 5 years.
|
| |
|
|
| Sleep: |
|
By 18 months of age they are able to fall asleep more readily and will sleep through the night. They are able to talk to and amuse themselves while falling asleep and waking up. Change from 2 naps a day to 1 longer nap in the middle of the day.
|
| |
|
|
| Toilet Training: |
|
Toilet training is possible only when the child is developmentally ready. Training should be delayed until the toddler is dry for periods of about two hours, knows the difference between wet and dry, can pull their own pants up and down, wants to learn, and can let you know when they are about to have a bowel movement.
|
| |
|
|
| Behavior: |
|
Hitting, biting and kicking are common at this age but the toddler should still be disciplined for the behavior. Hitting, biting or kicking the child back will not stop these behaviors.
Negativism, or the use of ‘no,’ is a method for the toddler to learn acceptable behaviors. Avoid situations where the child can use negative responses. Demonstrate acceptable behaviors by giving more attention to desirable behaviors instead of concentrating on the undesirable behaviors.
Toddlers at this age are beginning to assert their independence. Praise the toddler for good behavior. Anticipate and avoid unnecessary conflicts. Although you should have fixed limits on acceptable behaviors, sometimes it is wise to give in on some of the small things that don’t really matter. Too may rules are confusing. Limit the number of rules and enforce them consistently and promptly. Spend most of your time rewarding good behavior. Limit disciplining at this age by using structure, routine, distraction, gently restraint of the toddler, removing the object or toddler from the situation, and ‘time out’.
‘Time out’ to a child under the age of 2 mainly establishes who is in charge and later provides a chance for the child to think about the misbehavior. Playpens or cribs usually work well as time out places for younger children who do not understand staying in a chair or some other specified location. The parent may need to stay with the child because isolation at this age can be disturbing. A good rule of thumb for the length of a time out session is 1 minute for every year of age.
|
| |
|
|
| Injury Prevention: |
|
Remember that the toddler is very active and needs protection from their new environment. Confine outside play to areas within fences and gates.
Reexamine the hot water temperature to ensure that it is below 120 degrees. Provide constant supervision whenever the toddler is around water, buckets, toilets, bathtubs or pools. Young siblings should not be left alone to supervise a toddler. Continue to empty buckets, pools and tubs immediately after use. Keep bathroom doors closed.
Obtain a bottle of Ipecac to have on hand should your child ingest a harmful substance. Obtain instruction from the poison control center or other health professional before using giving Ipecac.
|
| |
|
|
| Safety Tips: |
|
- Get down on the floor and check for hazards at their level.
- Use plastic plugs for outlets and safety latches on cabinets and drawers.
- Keep poisonous substances out of baby’s reach or behind locked doors.
- Use gates on top and bottom of unprotected stairways.
- Keep small and sharp objects out of reach to keep them out of their mouths.
- Do not give infants latex balloons or plastic bags to play with.
- Empty tubs and pools immediately after use. Remember that toilets and buckets of liquid are also potential hazards.
- Turn handles of pans on the stove inward. Avoid placing hot liquids where they can be tipped over or on surfaces with tablecloths that can be pulled off.
- Use smoke alarms and never leave the child alone in the house.
- Lower crib mattress to lowest level and keep curtains and curtain cords out of reach.
- Never leave a child alone with a pet and instruct them to use caution when approaching an eating or unknown dog.
- Keep toddlers away from moving machinery, driveways and streets.
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
| Illness: |
|
What to call for:
- Fever (above 101)
- Unusual fussiness or tiredness
- Rashes
- Poor Eating
- Vomiting
- Diarrhea
|
| |
|
|
| Immunizations: |
|
The vaccine for measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) will be given at this visit.
|
| |
|
|
| Next visit at 18 months: Vaccines for diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis (DTaP) and haemophilus influenzae type B (HIB). |
| |
| Please call your insurance company before your next visit to find out if they cover vaccines. If they do not, it will be much less expensive for you to have the vaccines done at the Health Department. We can give you more information about this if you call us at 492-1999. |
