The ability to walk is a combination of many different aspects; from muscle
tone, coordination, the ability to stand independently, and in general, the
need/want to walk. All of these have to develop before the child can walk. These
physiological necessities grow at independently of one another, including the
brain. The rest of the essay is a list of the basic breakthroughs a caregiver
can expect to see for 12 to 24 months. The first thing Abedon brings up is about
language. At the first year the child generally knows one or two words, but the
important part is they understand dozens more. For example, if you ask a child
for their teddy bear they will be able to give it to you, even though they do
not say the words. As the year goes on the child starts making “protowords”,
words that link sound and meaning. The textbook states that even though this is
a pretty significant parents really do not take too much consideration to these
“word” (p. 408.) Abedon then goes on to talk about the naming explosion.
Typically this occurs between 18 through 21 months of age. In this period the
child goes from knowing a few words to identifying practically everything. In
some cases the child may learn 50 words a week. At 24 months the child usually
speak short sentences, speak politely, and know up 350 words. The babies first
words are generally items of everyday use and necessity. Some scientists seem to
believe that the emergence of the naming explosion is because of the child’s new
ability of categorize objects.
Although Abedon really does not talk about the physical aspects of
development she does talk about the dangers of this period: “not only will your
child be capable of more sophisticated and dangerous feats, he’ll also be much
more likely to pursue them (p210).” This period is also a transition from babies
imitating others to learning and expecting things from them. They also have the
ability to react to other’s emotions, “most can understand a wide variety of
facial expressions and gestures.” Another example of this is the one mother
acting sad just to get a hug from her son. As they continue growing they become
more explorative, relating cause to effect and generally becoming “little
scientists.” Finally the author sets a limit on what would be in the range of
normal development. By the second birthday the child should not show any of the
following symptoms (if they are present a pediatrician should be seen):
Physical- Cannot walk unassisted, push a wheeled toy, or kick a ball. Cognitive-
Does not follow simple instructions or imitate simple behaviors, and cannot
stack at least 4 blocks. Linguistic- Does not speak 2 word sentences, speaks
fewer than 50 words. Social- Unresponsive to stimulation to people/playthings.
Does not play games like peekabo or pat-a-cake. Generally speaking these two
articles are very basic in their techniques and explanations. They emphasize
intense interaction to enforce the baby’s development, but caution
overstimulating the baby. Also, and probably the most important thing that is to
be learned from these articles, children develop differently and at their own
pace. Just because one baby is walking and the other is crawling does not mean
the one crawling is abnormal, it’s just taking its time. Note: These articles
are not the best to write on, but they are the only two that had some sort of
information that were on the same subject.
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