How your baby is developing: Your two year old is a real walking, talking toddler. They can walk forwards, sideways, backwards and on their tiptoes, run, turn corners, squat, bend at the waist, and stand quickly from a seated position. They can climb onto and off of furniture. Walk up and down stairs with support. Pull toys behind them and carry toys when walking.
If their legs are long enough to reach the pedals, they may be able to ride a tricycle. This does require a level of coordination and strength many two year olds do not have yet, but they are ready and eager to try. Your two year old is probably coordinated enough to toss a ball in a basket and get it in and hop on both feet. Hopping on one foot is probably quite difficult right now and balancing is still developing; these will require on-going practice for quite a while.
Their memory is constantly improving – many two year olds know their basic primary colors and some can count up to five or ten. You are probably having two and three sentence conversations with your toddler as they continue to learn new words and understand how to construct a sentence.
You’ll notice your two year old is getting better at describing their needs and ideas. They are beginning to develop an awareness and sense of self, so they are becoming more comfortable and able to express their ideas, their likes and dislikes.
Two year olds are quite vocal and understand a great deal more than they did a few months ago. They just can’t keep quiet! They will tell you what they are doing even while they know they shouldn’t be doing it. They can’t yet censor their thoughts or feelings – expect to hear comments and observations that will keep you laughing for days.
There is still room to fine-tune their dexterity and two year olds love dials and switches just as much as 18 month olds. Toys with gears, knobs, and buttons will still hold their attention for long periods of time. Favorite games and activities of the past become favorites again, but they will be able to do them better than before.
Fun games and activities to play: Games and activities that promote balance and coordination can be fun.
- Play Simon Says. To encourage balance, hop on one foot during the game and say, "Simon says hop on your foot."
- Go outside and draw a hopscotch board on the sidewalk. Keep the boxes connected so your toddler doesn’t have to step too far apart when playing.
- Sing the alphabet and sing your numbers. Point to magnetic letters and numbers as you say them.
- Make simple finger puppets out of felt. Cut two matching shapes out of felt: a dog, dinosaur, or butterfly. Glue the outside edges together, but leave an opening at the bottom for your finger. Using markers, draw a face or design on the felt, slip the puppet on your finger, and have a puppet show.
- Set up a bowling lane in your backyard with tin cans or plastic bottles and a ball. Show your toddler how to bowl by swinging the ball between their legs to aim before throwing the bowl down the lane.
