Category: Development

Parent Category for Overall development of a child

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Development Parenting and Childcare

Speech and Language Development in Children

Speech and language development are some of the most crucial parts of a child’s overall development. It determines the capability of an infant to communicate with the outside world. It also facilitates your child’s ability to speak and express his feelings, to understand and exchange information in a meaningful way with others.

Crucial developmental period

The most intensive period in a child’s life is considered to be the first three years to develop speech and language skills. It is at this time when the brain is maturing and growing that these skills develop the most. During this period the child’s brain is best in absorbing any language. You must provide him/her with good exposure to sounds, sights and continuous interaction with others speaking.

Parent’s role

Parents play a prominent role in helping their little ones develop the skill of speaking. From the beginning, you can respond to small sounds and gestures that your baby makes. Introduce him to the world around, the creatures, sounds and all that you see and touch.

Engage your child in conversation

Whenever your baby says something, keep adding on to it. Keep talking to your baby whenever you are with him. Asking him questions would prompt the child to speak and you need to listen to the answer patiently. You need to engage him listening to your stories, poems or rhymes. Make your child get familiar with your language. Encourage him to speak and mingle with others.

Age-appropriate milestone

You can identify children with difficulties and their speaking habits at certain points of time.

For this, you must be aware of the time by which your child should start interactions in various forms depending on his/her age.

By the end of 3 months
  • Make cooing sounds
  • Recognizes your face
  • Smiles when you appear
  • Cries differently for different needs
By the end of 6 months
  • Responds to changes in tone of your voice
  • Pays attention to music
  • Makes varieties of sounds and babble
  • Moves their eyes in the direction of sounds
  • Identifies the sounds of toys
By the end of 12 months
  • Tries imitating speech sounds
  • Start saying a few words like Amma, Dada etc.
  • Understands simple instructions like come here
By the end of 18 months
  • Though non verbally, answers simple questions
  • Recognize the names and faces of familiar people and body parts
  • Tries imitating simple words
By the end of 24 months
  • Combining words like more milk, go tata, etc
  • Speak well enough to be understood by at least parents
  • Begins to use pronouns like mine
By the end of 3 years
  • Answers simple questions
  • Speech becomes more accurate but strangers might not be able to understand what they speak completely
  • Uses descriptive words like ‘big’, ‘happy’, ‘small’
  • Uses questions to ask for something such as ‘my ball?’
  • Asks a lot of questions

By 4 years he must be able to describe events as they have happened and can tell a simple story all by himself.

By the age of 2 or 3, if your child doesn’t start speaking, it should be taken seriously.

When to check with the doctor

If a child’s speech or language appears to be delayed, immediate measures have to be taken.

Approach a speech-language pathologist and share your concern about your child’s communication skills. The doctor will evaluate your child based on hearing tests and special spoken tests. Depending on the test reports, doctors will suggest activities to be performed at home to stimulate the development of a child’s speech.

Always keep in mind that your little one is always keenly listening to you and is going to speak by imitating you. Talk to your child whenever you are with them. These techniques can encourage your child’s speech and language development.

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Potty Training

Is My Child Ready to Be Potty-Trained?

There is no magic age at which your child is ready to start learning how to use the potty. But most children attain the skills they need to start potty training by the time they are 18 months old. Girls tend to be prepared a few months earlier than the boys. 

Getting your children trained is helping them to move towards independence and an understanding of what it means to go to the toilet like a grown-up. 

Signs indicating your toddler’s readiness to be potty trained
Physical signs
  • You are changing a few wet diapers
  • Your baby is having regular and well-formed bowel movements at comparatively predictable times
  • You develop the feeling that a baby’s bladder muscles are developed enough to hold urine. This can be understood when a child has a dry period of at least two hours or during naps.
  • Baby doesn’t poop during the night.
  • The baby urinates a fair amount at one time
BEHAVIOURAL signs
  • Baby can sit down quietly in one position for 2 to 5 minutes
  • Gives physical or verbal indication when your baby is having a bowel movement such as grunting, squirming, squatting or tells you by holding his or her genital areas. 
  • Demonstrates the desire for independence
  • Your baby isn’t resistant to learning to use the toilet
Cognitive signs
  • The baby can follow simple instructions and requests such as “do you want to go to the toilet?” or “Get your toy”.
  • Your baby understands the physical signs that mean we have to go to the toilet and can tell you before he feels with or even holds until he has time to get to the potty
  • Has his own words for urine and stool
  • Realizes the importance of putting things where they originally belong.
Preparing your child for potty training

Using a potty will be completely a new process for your child, so get him/her used to it gradually. Talk about hygiene, make your little one understand what a wet nappy means. Make your child understand that a toilet is a place where you go when you have a bowel movement. 

Show the baby what a potty is and leave it at a place where a child can see it. Also, explain what it is used for. If you have an older child, your younger one can see him using it which would be of great help. 

How to start potty training

Fix a place and stick on to that. Preferably keep the potty in the bathroom. Encourage your child to sit on the potty frequently. Take the help of a toy or a book to engage your child and sit on the potty.

If a child is happily using potty continue using it regularly. What if a child is IELTS lightspeed upset with the idea, just put the nappy back on and leave it a few more weeks before trying again. 

Potty training with a disabled child

It is a bit more difficult to learn to use a potty or toilet for children with disabilities or long-term illnesses. This can be challenging for both parents and the baby, but do not avoid potty training for too long. Be more patient and help them conquer the skill of using the potty. 

Be patient and compassionate with your child

Understand that compelling your child is never going to help him/her in succeeding this skill. Rather toddlers can be very stubborn at times and this will ruin the entire complete process. You need to be patient and devote time consistently and continuously for a few days until your child understands the significance of using a potty. 

Helping your child conquer the skill of using a potty when he/she needs them is an achievement. Appreciating your baby when he/she uses the potty correctly will help your child be delighted when they succeed. Help them follow a schedule and this will be a huge milestone for your child’s independence. 

Categories
Activities Education and Curriculum Fun Parenting and Childcare

Make Homework Fun and Engaging for Your Child

We all know homework is uninteresting, but there are some easy ways you can make homework more fun for the student. The time for homework can instigate growls from kids and parents. As a guardian, you know it is essential to make sure that your child is advancing academically; however, you also need to know that it can be taxing and a bit tedious too. After looking at the board for hours and bounded by quizzes and books, and taking note of lectures, there is a chance that kids will throw a fit of temper when you enquire them to complete their tasks.

The good news is that there are a few ways by which you can make homework fun for the children.  Few of which are explained below:

Make a creative and fun space

You may have found in your own professional or academic life, working in a distracting or boring space can make progress difficult. It is no diverse for children, so begin them off on the correct track. Prepare a creative, cosy, space for your child to work. Stay away from hectic areas of the home that may be disturbing, and keep TVs and any needless technology far-off. It is vital your child likes the space and feels at ease, so with her input, add some inspirational imagery, colour, and lots of academic essentials, such as pen pencils, markers, and paper. Just as it is typically suggested to only use your bed for sleep and not for work, your child will relate this space with just schoolwork and learning, instead of playtime.

Play an educational game

This tactic can work in a couple of diverse ways. You can turn the actual homework task into a game. For instance, if your student is working on vocabulary words, you can create a matching game or flashcard. If your child is learning concepts of mathematics, you can use small pieces of toffee to assist with the numbers. Division and subtraction units are so much more fun when they can eat a few of those toffees!

If you are not capable to find a way to turn the task into a sport, try playing a brain puzzle before your student begins studying to warm up, for instance, scrabble, chess, bingo, or connect four.

Track progress for rewards

Making a rewarding method to use as positive support can assist make homework appear less like a task. Set up some objectives with your kid’s contribution and match them with suitable rewards for something to look forward to. For instance, for every task completed on time, a star or a ticket is earned and placed on a chart in the homework space. Once the chart is filled, the child can choose a reward, such as getting ice cream, watching an entertaining movie, purchasing new attire, or acquiring a new game. Only ensure your child clearly understands the big picture of what good grades indicate for his future, so you do not fall into an entrap where your child exclusively studies as a way to earn treats.

Work beside your child

While your child is doing homework if the rest of the family is relaxing and having fun, then it can feel isolating for a child. Rather than leaving your child to work alone, join her and complete some work of your own. This can include checking emails, developing a budget, pay bills, or planning a trip, do it next to your child. It not only assist your kid feel that she is not the only one working hard, but it also offers an opportunity to spend time with your kid and be present for any questions she may have.

These are some of the simple ways that parents can follow to make homework fun for your child.

Categories
Awareness Parenting and Childcare

Child Safety: Identifying the Common Signs of Sexual Abuse

Signs of child sexual abuse could be emotional and/or physical, with physical symptoms being less common. Emotional signs can vary from “too ideal” behaviour to depression, withdrawal, or unexplained anger. It is vital to remember that some children may show no signs at all. There are also red flag behaviours you can recognize if you know what to look for to assist intervene in the grooming process.

Emotional Signs

Emotional and behavioural changes or signs are more common than physical signs and can include:

  • Depression and anxiety
  • Change in eating habits
  • Sleep disturbances, including night terrors or nightmares
  • Unusual fear of certain places or people; unwillingness to be unaccompanied with a certain person
  • Withdrawal; runaway behaviour
  • Changes in mood include aggressiveness towards pets, parents, friends, siblings, and anger
  • Frequent unexplained or health problems such as stomach aches or headaches
  • Alteration in attitude towards academic or school performance; no interest in sports, friends or other activities
  • Poor confidence; avoidance of relations
  • Self-mutilation or change in body discernment, such as thinking of body or self as bad or dirty; suicidal thoughts
  • Unusual behaviours, for instance, thumb-sucking or bedwetting
  • Abnormal knowledge or sexual behaviours of advanced sexual behaviours and language
  • Too “ideal” behaviour or overly compliant behaviour
Physical Signs of Abuse

The physical signs of sexual abuse are not usual. But, when physical signs are present, they might include bumps, bleeding, bruising and redness, or scabs around the mouth, anus, or genital. Sexually transmitted diseases, urinary tract infections, and penile discharge or abnormal vaginal discharge are also warning signs.

Other indirect physical signs comprise:

  • Headaches
  • Wetting or soiling accidents unrelated to toilet training
  • Chronic stomach pain
  • Chronic or relentless pain during stool movements or while passing urine
  • Sexually transmitted diseases
Symptoms that a person may be harming a child

Keeping children safe can be as hard as numerous perpetrators who abuse children sexually are in positions of trust. Keeping a kid away from the perpetrator may indicate major changes in your own life.

Be cautious of an adult who spends time with kids and exhibits the following behaviours:

  • Does not admire boundaries or listen when anyone tells them “no”
  • Engages in touching a child inappropriately
  • Tries to be a kid’s buddy instead of filling an adult role in the child’s life
  • Does not seem to have age-appropriate relation
  • Discusses with children about their relationships or personal problems
  • Spends time alone with children outside of their role in the child’s life or makes up justifications to be alone with the kid
  • Expresses bizarre curiosity in the sexual development of the child, such as sexualizing normal behaviours or commenting on sexual uniqueness
  • Offers gifts to the kid without reason or occasion
  • Spends a lot of time with your kid
Taking action is not easy, but it is vital

It is not always easy to recognize child sexual abuse—and it can be even more demanding to step in if you believe something is not right. If a child informs you that a particular person makes them feel embarrassing, even if they cannot tell you everything, pay attention.

Consult with somebody who can assist you find out if this is something that must be reported, such as a staff member from your local sexual assault service provider.

Categories
Development

What Are the Cognitive Milestones in Early Childhood Development?

In 1936, Jean Piaget, a world-famous psychologist, propounded the Theory of Cognitive Development. According to his theory, a small child creates a mental image of the world. The child’s academic and emotional development is not a sudden or one-time activity. It is an ongoing process that is affected by the level of maturity and the environment. This theory will help us understand the cognitive milestones for children. With these milestones, we can help them grow into smart and confident kids.

Piaget’s theory describes four stages of cognitive development in children, which are:

Sensorimotor stage

This cognitive development milestone occurs between the ages of birth to 2 years. During this stage, your kid will recognize objects and persons. The child will also know that the object or person exists even if not in the room.

Preoperational stage

This cognitive development occurs when your child is between the ages of 2 and 7 years. This milestone is manifested in the form of symbolism. Your child can not only recognize things and people but can also identify them by their name.

Concrete operational stage

Children between the ages of 7 and 11 go through this stage. Logic and operational thought become a part of a child’s cognitive development process. Concepts like weight, size, numbers, stature, shapes, colours, etc. develop now. Children also learn about how quantities can remain the same even if they change in appearance.

Formal operational stage

Cognitive development of a child after the age of 11 stretches between teenage and adulthood. At this level of cognitive development, the child also understands abstract concepts that cannot be seen with the eyes. The child can also hypothesize and test the hypothesis in a logical manner.

Ways to Encourage Cognitive Development

Promoting cognitive development in your toddler will help your child in his/her academic life. There are some beautiful ways in which you can encourage cognitive development in your child depending on the age.

Newborn to 6 months old:
  • Talk to the child
  • Show picture books
  • Point out things in nature
  • Change playing activities
  • Keep toys just short of reach but within their sight.
1 to 3 years old:
  • Play hide-and-seek
  • Show colours, shapes, objects
  • Teach sounds of animals and things
  • Play with the ball
  • Give step-by-step instructions in simple sentences
  • Indulge in role-play games
  • Encourage your child to take the lead in games
  • Sing and dance together.
4 to 7 years old:
  • Teach them easy chores
  • Encourage your kid to tell stories and/or read aloud
  • Increase the counting of numbers (more than 100)
  • Teach currency
  • Encourage your child to ask questions and answer them properly
  • Provide colouring books, drawing materials, and other artwork materials
  • Take your child to the zoo, park, nature trails, amusement parks, etc.

Developing your child’s cognition is not a difficult task. Kids are naturally curious and have a profound thirst for knowledge. The more time you spend with your toddler the easier it will be to recognize your kid’s cognitive milestones.

Categories
Development Technology

Media Effects on Children’s Social and Moral Development

We live in an environment surrounded by television, mobile devices, and other digital gadgets. Since the time of our tiny one’s birth, they are exposed to the world of media. It not only impacts their beliefs, values, and behaviour but also shapes their social interactions. The psychological impact of media violence on toddlers is profound and can cause irreparable changes in behaviour.

A research study published by the US National Library of Medicine has shown that exposure to violence on television, video games, mobile videos, etc. increases the possibility of violent behaviour in children. The subjects of this study range between the age of 5 and 13 but this holds for toddlers and pre-schoolers too.

How does digital violence influence toddlers?

Young kids are impressionable and cannot differentiate between fiction and reality. The violence depicted in cartoon films or TV shows will give the impression that this is correct behaviour. Digital violence affects toddlers in some of the ways listed below:

  • Aggressive behaviour
  • Unprovoked anger
  • Frequent temper tantrums
  • Rebellion
  • Nightmares and/or phobias
  • Loss of appetite
  • Poor sleep patterns
  • Other psychological disorders.

How can you reduce digital violence at home?

The first step towards helping our kids grow in a less violent environment is to restrict the exposure to digital violence. Here’s how you can implement some simple but effective measures at home:

Be media literate

Educate yourself about the type of TV programs/videos that usually show violence. Kids often see games and mobile apps that show battle scenes in a combative environment. Restrict your child from playing such games or watching these types of videos.

Watch together

Sit with your little one during TV or video time. Watch the entertainment together so you know what is going on. Most stories have the basic theme that shows the triumph of good over evil. These stories usually have a villain whose behaviour is negative. Explain to your little toddler that such behaviour is bad and hence the villain loses in the end. Emphasise on other qualities depicted in the video like cooperation, multi-tasking, friendship, loyalty, kindness, etc.

Child-safe logins

If you are permitting your toddler to watch Netflix or Amazon Prime videos, make sure that you use the Kid’s login and not your usual one. This login will automatically permit the child to only watch toddler-safe movies and shows. This way, Parental guidance will not be required most of the time.

Change your viewing time

You may be very fond of action thrillers but it is not appropriate to watch them while your toddler is awake and in the same room. With a small child in the house, you will have to adjust your timings so that the child is not inadvertently exposed to digital violence by just being in the same room. Also, your baby will start enjoying violent content too, that is something you must avoid at any cost. You could binge-watch all you want when your child is asleep.

Most importantly, as a parent, believe that you have the right to restrict digital violence and its influence on your toddlers.