Your 15 – 18 month old – toddler development guide
Having spent the past few months learning to walk (and maybe even run and climb) your little one is ready to tackle the next big challenge – talking! In fact, your toddler may even be talking already – you just can’t understand them yet. You might start to notice that your child is using the […]
Your 18 – 21 month old – toddler development guide
Not content with walking around the house your little one is probably starting to climb all over it too. All your low furniture will be just another mountain to tackle and once they start climbing the stairs they’ll never want to stop! If you do have a climber make sure you discourage climbing on cabinets, […]
Your 11 month old – baby development guide
Send out the invitations, your baby will soon be turning 1! It has been a long year and if anyone deserves a party it is you – oh, and your little one of course! So read these tips on surviving a kid’s birthday party, crack out kids’ party cookbook and start planning. How is baby […]
Your 1-month-old – baby development guide
The first weeks with a new baby can be tough. You spend all your waking hours (and a lot of non-waking hours) attending to the needs of your newborn and you don’t get much back. Don’t worry – it will be all worth it when you see that first smile this month sometime! Your heart […]
Your 10 month old – baby development guide
Your little one is looking more and more like a toddler these days … and starting to act like it too. How is baby going? If you thought your life would be tantrum-free until the ‘terrible twos’ then you might have been surprised the first time your baby cried in protest when you took away […]
What are the Wonder Weeks?
Is your baby having a fussy week? Maybe it is a wonder week! Research has shown that babies tend to go through ‘fussy’ phases just before they make big steps forward in their mental development. These fussy periods are predictable in their timing and once babies have come to terms with the new development they […]
Why kids’ play needs to be unstructured and unhurried
I love the words that poet Wallace Stevens wrote about the imagination: “The imagination is the power of the mind over the possibilities of things.” To me, imagining possibilities is at the heart of children’s pretend play. That’s the beauty and significance of unstructured, self-invented play – play that leads to imaginative and creative thinking. […]
The importance of sports for childhood development
Did you know that children and young people should be getting at least one hour of moderate-to-vigorous-intensity physical activity every day? Sports has many benefits to a child’s development. By playing sports, your child will not only become stronger physically, but mentally too. They will develop physical skills, make new friends, have fun, exercise, learn to be a […]
Recognising the early signs of autism
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a lifelong neurological disorder that can impact an individual’s ability to communicate, regulate their behaviour and interact socially. The symptoms typically appear in the first three years of life and can present themselves in a wide variety of combinations from mild to severe. Currently, ASD affects 1 in 58 children […]
Is your baby funny? 9 steps to a sense of humour
The first smile and the gurgles of laughter that baby shares with us are truly magic moments in the early days of parenthood. But when does a baby’s smile and laughter become a true sense of humour? According to Dr Paul Hutchins, from the Child Development Unit at The Children’s Hospital at Westmead, a baby’s […]