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Toddlers: 12 - 24 Months
Realistic Milestones for 18 month-old Toddler
I often visit blogs and various posts to see what milestones children are reaching and what to expect for my 17month old. However, I'm not convinced this is the best way to compare my child... especially since not all children develop the same. Some children can speak a hundred words at my son's age... others can only say a handful. Some can jump up and down while others are still trying to walk without wobbling so much! Some will eat almost everything on their plate while others not so much. I decided to take a look at the CDC government website to learn what The American Academy of Pediatrics actually recommends that children be screened for at the 18month visit... and see what the "AVERAGE" and realistic Developmental milestones are at this age.
Check it out: www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/actearly/pdf/che...
According to the list, the most important things children should do at this age are:
Point to things
Walk
Have a vocabulary of at least "6" words
Notice when mommy and daddy leave the room
Recognize familiar things
Imitate
This makes me feel comfortable since my son can do everything on the list and also has about a 10 word vocabulary at this time.
[Poll]This discussion has been closed.
Re: Realistic Milestones for 18 month-old Toddler
It always makes me feel uncomfortable when I read about toddlers who can speak 40 to 100 words at this age, play the piano, jump up and down, etc... etc... LOL
My son is a small little thing too... about 32 1/2 in and only 23 lbs. He barely speaks 10 words: mama, dada, eye, nose, ball, balloon (which sounds more like bloon LOL), here (for here's the bottle!), hi, mou (for mouth), and yeah (his favorite word right now LOL). But he understands so much more so I don't worry.
EDD 1/31/13, MC May 17. EDD 3/31/13, MC July 26. I miss you so much already my angel loves
I can't help but compare her to others her age, but nothing about her development alarms me. Some kids are ahead of her and some behind her and it depends on the milestone. Until or unless her doctor suggests a problem I'm not going to stress about it.
DD (5 years old) from IUI in 2012
TTC 3rd and final!: IUI #1 in progress!
Every kid is different! Even siblings...
At 17/18 months DD had less than 5 words, but now speaks long sentences, wasn't jumping, hardly ate non pur?e foods. She was a master of puzzles, counting, and knew her colors. She hardly ate and refused milk.
DS speaks 3-4 word sentences "I see you" and has a vocab so big I stopped counting, starting to jump, but hates puzzles, counts to 3 on his own (DD was at 10), and knows maybe 2 colors. DS has picky moments and often refuses dinner but overall eats great, weighs the same as his sister, and loves milk.
Point is they are in very similar environments yet each have their own strengths and weaknesses. Try not to compare....I notice I am much more relaxed with the second kid. I have the "they get there when they get there" attitude unless something really doesn't look/feel right but nothing has yet.
Whenever I read milestone threads on the Bump, I always feel a little anxious that DD is "behind", but everyone who meets her IRL tells me how she seems "so advanced". I'm trying to just let my kid be a kid!
But I'd be lying if I said I didn't look at the different milestone charts from time to time.
Ugh!!! For some reason, I tried to edit my post and it messed up the poll and the original post. I finally got everything fixed.
Please click on the link to learn more about milestones for an 18-month old and place your vote.
I think my 17 mos old is right on target. I'm curious to hear why parents think their children are behind, on target, or especially to hear about those who feel their 17/18 month old are more advanced than others.
Please share your thoughts. Thank you!
Freshie Girl 9.29.12
My son is only 13 months - but I think this is a good thread.
There is pressure from milestones, friends, family etc. to have children do things at certain points. I try to stay relaxed about them and tell myself I have a healthy happy baby who has his own learning path - but sometimes I feel defensive.
My little guy rolled early, crawled really early - was generally just really active. But he's not walking - and constantly I get people being like "Oh he's not walking". I'm not worried about it - he stands - he taken a few steps and I know he'll get there but I feel like I have to defend him which is stupid.
One thing I always tell myself is no matter what in the end they all show up for kindergarten with the same skills -
We've been speaking to my son in Spanish, English and Portuguese so 10 words are good for us... even though they're all in English, but that is the main language spoken in our household. He spent a month in Portugal this summer and I think he has become more receptive to the language. I definitely feel he understands more than he speaks.
Like another parent mentioned, it's not just a delay in one item that we should be concerned about. We should only worry if our child is not developing in a few skills, like walking, pointing, recognizing, showing emotions, etc.
It's good to be aware of our child's development but it's tricky at this age because one day, he may be speaking one or two words while walking unsteadily... and the next week, he's saying two-word sentencing and running around non-stop. It still makes sense to learn the signs and act early. Good Luck to all the parents and toddlers!
My girls can do all of it. They each have a vocabulary of about 20-25 words
On a different site which I also posted the same question, I was so glad to hear from the mommies who actually confirmed with their pediatricians! This definitely seems more like a realistic list than most others posted on the web.
REMEMBER, this is only a list of things to look for... and we should really only be concerned if our child is delayed in a few things... and even then, a toddler could developed very quickly in a short period of time. Sometimes we just have to be patient ; )
I think it's okay to monitor our children's developments, be aware and act early if we think they need help... it never hurts to ask for an evaluation/screening from the doctor if you're concerned.