Your Child's Journey

wisdom for the big steps little children take

2 Years 6 Months Boy

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Opposites

Two-and-a-half is the most unpredictable preschool age. He will shift from one extreme to the other without warning. This is not because he purposely wants to confuse you or irritate you or defy you. The reason for this changeability lies in a giant step he is taking in decision making.

He is discovering opposites and alternate choices. He understands yes and no, run and stop, take and give, come and go, etc. But now he cannot sort out the relative merits of these opposites for any particular situation. He is not yet capable of thinking of only one to the exclusion of the other.

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2 Years 5 Months Girl

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Your Toddler’s Brain and Memory

Your two-year old’s brain is three-fourths the size of her adult brain. By five years of age it will be nearly full size. As her brain grows, structures involved in learning, memory, motor control, and other brain functions are being developed.

Right now she has trillions of neural pathways, double the number she will have as an adult. The more often a pathway is used, the stronger the connections are. The development of these pathways is influenced by how your toddler’s brain is used, the variety and richness of the environment she is exposed to, and also genetics. Routine and repetition cause the brain to strengthen the most important connections. Less used pathways are treated by the brain as less important. The pathways that are not used or only used infrequently, will wither away. This is a normal process called pruning.baby si

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2 Years 5 Months Boy

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Your Toddler’s Brain and Memory

Your two-year old’s brain is three-fourths the size of his adult brain. By five years of age it will be nearly full size. As his brain grows, structures involved in learning, memory, motor control, and other brain functions are being developed.

Right now he has trillions of neural pathways, double the number he will have as an adult. The more often a pathway is used, the stronger the connections are. The development of these pathways is influenced by how your toddler’s brain is used, the variety and richness of the environment he is exposed to, and also genetics. Routine and repetition cause the brain to strengthen the most important connections. Less used pathways are treated by the brain as less important. The pathways that are not used or only used infrequently, will wither away. This is a normal process called pruning.

[Read more…]

2 Years 4 Months Girl

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“Again!”

The key word for this age is “Again!” She may want to follow exactly the same routine day in and day out or wear the same clothes every day or eat the same foods. As irritating as this can be to live with, the repetition is providing your little one with a sense of stability and control. She is trying to make sense of her world. Once she figures out how something is supposed to work, she wants to do it over and over to make sure it happens that way every time. When she sees the same result, she is reassured and gains confidence. Rituals provide comfort.

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2 Years 4 Months Boy

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“Again!”

The key word for this age is “Again!” He may want to follow exactly the same routine day in and day out or wear the same clothes every day or eat the same foods. As irritating as this can be to live with, the repetition is providing your little one with a sense of stability and control. He is trying to make sense of his world. Once he figures out how something is supposed to work, he wants to do it over and over to make sure it happens that way every time. When he sees the same result, he is reassured and gains confidence. Rituals provide comfort.

[Read more…]