General development in young children
By your child's third year his rate of growth and development will have slowed down.
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He will have almost complete control over his body, and many movements will have become automatic - he'll no longer have to concentrate or make an effort to do things requiring fine physical manoeuvring or co-ordination. He will have the co-ordination to build a tower of blocks, he will try to get dressed and undressed and may even manage to undo buttons.
Physical development milestones in young children
At two years
Your child will be able to go up and down stairs alone, but he'll put two feet on each step before moving on to the next. He'll kick a ball successfully without falling over.
At two and a half years
He'll be able to walk on tiptoe, jump in the air and on and off objects. However, he won't be able to stand on one foot yet.
At three years
He'll walk upstairs with a foot on each step but will have to put both feet on the same stair coming down; he'll jump off the bottom step. He'll be able to stand for a few seconds on one foot but he won't be able to skip yet.
Manipulation development milestones in young children
At two years
He'll put on his own gloves, socks and shoes successfully. He'll manage to rotate his elbow accurately so that he can turn a door handle or unscrew a lid. He'll begin to draw pictures with pencils and crayons.
At two and a half years
He'll be able to take off his trousers and underpants by himself. He'll be able to thread big beads on to a string and will be able to fasten large, easily placed buttons.
At three years
He'll be able to dress and undress himself completely as long as all the fastenings are within reach; he'll manage a Velcro fastening on his shoes and even the buckle on his sandals. He'll be able to hold a pencil well enough to draw and colour quite accurately now and he may also master the difficult skill of using scissors.
New Babycare
Copyright © 2009 Dorling Kindersley
Text copyright © 2009 Miriam Stoppard
Posted 03.11.2010
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