Living and Loving – August 2019

baby & toddler

L&L | AUGUST 2019 | 55

PHOTOGRAPHY

GALLO IMAGES/GETTY IMAGES/ISTOCK

Playing with food

You spent ages preparing a home-

cooked, nutritious meal for your

toddler only for him to rub most of it

into his hair and clothes while feeding

it to the dog and smearing on his

high-chair. Don’t lose patience with

this annoying habit too quickly.

Research published in the

journal Developmental Science found

messy eaters are better and faster

learners than their cleaner counterparts.

The study, which looked at a group of

72 toddlers, found those who played,

smooshed and even threw their food,

learned word associations quicker

than those who didn’t, and were able

to either correctly name or identify

them. The best place for this is a high-

chair, with further research finding

those who sit in high chairs learn

faster than those who sat at a table.

And, said associate professor (and

study leader) Larissa Sameulson, this

early learning is linked to improved

cognitive development later in life.

Attention of a goldfish

Toddlers have a very limited attention

span. One minute you could be walking

in the garden and the next, you almost

trip over your child, who has stopped to

investigate a blade of grass. And while

this is fine when you have time on your

hands, it can be extremely frustrating

if this is happening when you’re on

a time limit. The experts share that

some activities can take much longer

than expected due to your toddler’s

distracted nature. This is not because

he wants to drive you completely dilly,

it’s his way of taking in the world around

him, learning and storing information.

Making a mess

Children, and toddlers in particular,

generally love making a mess, be it

with building blocks, finger painting,

drawing on the walls, or making mud

pies on your nicely cleaned tiled floor.

This sensory and creative play is

good for your toddler’s development

in a number of ways. Research reveals

that embracing this play (within reason)

builds your toddler’s neural connections

that help develop thought, learning

and creativity. Plus, this benefits

language development, cognitive

growth, fine- and gross-motor skills

development, problem-solving and

social interaction. Of course, certain

behaviour is completely unacceptable

(like drawing on the walls). However,

areas of messy play in your home

will help create boundaries and safe

zones for this creativity to occur.

Click on Child, then General

Articles for eight steps to take

when your toddler says no.

LIVING

AND

LOVING

.CO.ZA

blatant defiance is his way of finding

his independence. For the first year

or so of his life, your baby doesn’t see

himself as a separate entity to you

(which is why he cries when you walk

away from him − he thinks you’ve left

him forever). This changes during

his second year, as he slowly starts

to realise he is his own person. By

encouraging him to do certain things

on his own, like choosing and putting

on his own shoes, it may ease other

battles like not being allowed to wear

his swimming costume in the middle

of winter. Give him some chores that

are his alone, like holding the dustpan

or helping to feed the dog. Most of all,

try to be as patient as possible. It’s not

that easy putting both legs into pants

or navigating a fork to his mouth, but

allowing him this independence will

also help him gain confidence, learn

boundaries, and improve his motor skills.

Throwing the mother

of all tantrums

One minute he’s a smiling, happy baby

and the next, he’s writhing on the floor

screaming, howling and completely

out of control. You stand by completely

perplexed at what has just happened.

This behaviour can begin as early as

12 months and continue to the age of

four. He is learning about his world at

a rapid rate, but can’t fully verbalise

his intentions. His tantrum is his way of

trying to make sense of his world and

his surrounds. Understanding and

identifying the root of the tantrum

can help both of you deal with it. The

most common causes are: frustration,

asserting independence, feeling

overwhelmed, feeling a lack of control,

too few or too many limits, hunger,

tiredness, overstimulation or boredom. LL

Y

ou may feel your toddler

is designed to test you.

Your loving, gentle baby

has, almost overnight,

become a whining, fractious being

whose sole vocabulary seems to

consist of the word “No”, usually

loudly and vehemently said with his

finger lodged firmly up his nose. This

is one of those good news/bad news

scenarios, as most of these annoying

toddler habits and tendencies

are his way of learning about his

world and himself – they’re actually

important milestone moments.

Pushing

boundaries

As quick as you set a rule, your

toddler is bound to push against it,

and you seem to spend all your time

trying to reason with him. Unfortunately,

pushing boundaries is a vital part of

his development. Boundaries are

important as they help set limits,

which in turn makes him feel

safe and secure.

No means no

You excitedly wanted him to talk,

showing him picture books and allowing

him to explore his world as you point

out names and words – and it seems

that has all gone out the window with

his favourite word of the day: “No”. This