Between the ages of 12 and 36 months, your baby will enter the next stage of development known as toddlerhood. What does that mean? Well, although it looks as if she is just "getting into everything," she is exploring and learning with every little step. In the coming months, he'll be more than busy adjusting to a new sense of mobility and discovering new games. Provide a stimulating environment to help your toddler learn the foundations of language, problem-solving and relating to others.
Toys
Toys widen the eyes of a child and bring joy to the heart. Brightly contrasting colors will attract her eyes and help her learn to distinguish colors. Stackable blocks, rings and shape sorters help sharpen eye-hand coordination. Electronic toys that light up and make noise, such as toy laptops, telephones and musical instruments, draw his attention to cause-and-effect and different sounds. As the months pass, she will develop an interest in walking around not only forward, but backward and to the side. Push/pull mobile toys like wagons will give her a little added support and also motivate her activity. Once he becomes more stable in his coordination, you can get him ready for wheels with a tricycle or battery-powered car.
Books
Books are extremely important in the life of a child, and the earlier you introduce them, the better. Although it is good to start reading to her as soon as she becomes aware, you can encourage independent reading by using board books. They are ultra-durable, especially if your little one is still learning not to rip or taste the paper. If he is beyond that point, then you can move on to the pop-up type and eventually regular books. There are plenty of classic stories by Dr. Seuss, including "Hop on Pop," "The Cat in the Hat" and "Green Eggs and Ham." Other titles she may enjoy include "Where's Spot?" by Eric Hill, "Hug" by Jez Alborough and "Kitten's First Full Moon" by Kevin Henkes.
Computer Interactive Games
Computer interactive games are a fun way for your toddler to develop basic computer skills and reinforce cause and effect. He will love the various colors and manipulating the keys. Care should be taken to provide adequate lighting, and computer time should be limited. There are plenty of online sites providing free interactive games for babies and toddlers. Fisher-Price has a nice collection of age-appropriate educational games. In the toddler section, there is the "Count the Score" learning game, in which she can begin learning to count to five, based on cause and effect principles. All that is required is for her to push any button to activate the game. The game eventually moves up to higher levels of counting. Another great game on that same site is the "ABC Zoo" learning game, in which he can learn the ABCs while associating them with common zoo animals.
Music
Music and dance help develop balance, fine motor skills, an awareness of different sounds and a sense of timing. Most people recommend classical, but jazz, bluegrass and zydeco are other energetic options. Artists in genres ranging from classical to zydeco who may strike your child's interest include Ludwig van Beethoven, Johann Sebastian Bach and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (classical), Ferdinand "Jelly Roll" Morton (ragtime, jazz), Dianne Reeves (modern jazz), John Delafose (zydeco) and Ricky Skaggs (bluegrass).
