#DEVELOPMENT
1 PREGNANCY
Your child’s
development starts from conception and is most rapid in the first few years of
life. You can do a lot to support your child’s healthy development in those
early years, when your child acquires the fundamental skills that are so
critical for the rest of his/her life. While in the womb your baby can hear and
begin to feel. Touch your stomach gently, talk and sing to your baby so he/ she
begins to recognise your voice and build love. Your partner/husband can also
touch your stomach and talk gently.
2 BIRTH TO 4 MONTHS
Your baby can see and
hear you. Look at him/her in the eyes while smiling, calling his/her name. Talk
to your baby and sing gently to bond with your child. This can be done during
breastfeeding, bathing, when putting baby to bed or any time when holding the
baby. Your baby is attracted to colourful objects. Show him/her colorful things
to build his/her vision. You may use colourful clothes such as ‘khanga’ to move
in front of child’s eyes. 3
Your baby enjoys playing with his/her hands and legs. Put
him/her on a mat to play freely and help develop his/her muscles. You may
touch/massage your baby gently while singing. 4
5 Your baby cries to communicate his/her needs such as when
he/she is hungry, wet, hot or cold. Learn to recognize your baby’s needs and
respond to them in a timely manner. Don’t worry about spoiling your baby with
too much attention. Your care will help build a strong bond with your baby —
and the confidence he or she will need.
6 4 TO 6 MONTHS
Your baby can now
roll over from back to stomach and back again and reach objects near him/her.
Give him/ her colourful and noisy objects for him/her to reach and grasp. Try a
rattle with a handle, a soft ball or a wooden spoon. Your child likes to put
objects in his/her mouth. Make sure he doesn’t put small or sharp objects in
his mouth and things are clean to avoid choking and illnesses.
7 Your baby can make
bubbling noises such as ‘ba ba ba’, ‘da da da’ or ‘ma ma ma’. Talk to your
child and repeat the sounds with correct words such as ‘baba’ ‘mama’ to help
with learning the language. Describe what you see, hear and smell around the
house and outside. “Look, there is our house. Do you see the chickens?” Use
your voice and face to express emotions.
8 Your baby clearly recognizes you and gets excited and
happy when he/she sees you. Show your baby love by smiling, talking and
cuddling your baby to bond and form a good relationship with him/her. Your baby
begins to learn about his/her daily routine such as sleep, toilet and bath time.
Help your child to follow his/her routine such us sleeping and bath time to
help him/her feel secure and loved.
9 6 TO 12 MONTHS
Your baby feels secure when he/she is with his/her parents.
When leaving your child say goodbye with a hug and kiss and assure him that you
will be back soon. This will build his/her confidence and security. 10 Your
baby begins to sit, stand and crawl, and your child’s ability to explore
increases. Give him/her objects with different shapes, colours, texture and
sounds! For example, an empty plastic water bottle with stones inside to make
noise, a sauce pan and wooden spoon to bang. However, make sure objects and
environment are clean and safe to protect him/her from any danger. Keep him/her
away from hot or boiling water, fire, ropes, cords, medicines and chemicals.
Keep him/her away from areas with deep water such as ponds, wells and buckets.
11 12 TO 24 MONTHS
Your child is learning so much. Provide him/her with items
which he/she can organise such as cups for stacking, items for sorting such as
pairs of socks or shoes, and drawing/colouring items such as pen and paper.
Your child needs play materials, but you don’t have to buy them in a store. You
can make them yourself using locally available materials! You can make a ball from
cloth and rope or banana leaves, or you can make a doll from coconut leaves and
clothes.
12 Your child is learning. Sing to him/her action songs such
as ‘sit and stand up’ ‘jump jump’ to build his/her muscles or ‘head and
shoulder song’ to help him/her understand about his/her body. Take time to play
with your child. Praise your child on actions he/she does. Your child can now
stand, walk alone or with support. Give your child a wooden baby walker or
prepare the environment so your child will not hurt when he/she falls. Praise
your child by clapping and singing. Your child has the ability to listen and
remember new words. Tell him/her short stories to help him/her to think and
keep memory. You may tell your child a traditional short story or read him/her
a short story or picture book. You may also ask your child to tell you a story
or about an event that happened even as at this age your child can only tell
her story with few words. Listen carefully and praise him/her. 13
24 TO 36 MONTHS
Your child can recognize
different things with different colours. Help him/her to make different items
using resources available: a car using cardboard box, a doll using cloth, and
help him/her to differentiate. Name things and compare them; for example, size,
colour, etc. Your child can make a sentence with two to three words. Help
him/her to understand the meaning of these words and pronounce them correctly.
14
15 Your child can do things independently. She/he can eat by
himself and get dressed with little help. Encourage and help him/her as he/she
tries. Your child will also enjoy helping you with small chores at home such as
sweeping, organising food from market or washed clothes. Praise and show
him/her how to do it properly to build his/her confidence to continue learning.
16 While your toddler is eager to be independent, young
children can easily get frustrated and upset. You can teach your toddler to
behave well by providing love, clear rules, and a degree of routine. Make sure
your displays of affection for your child outnumber any consequences or
punishments. Hugs, kisses and play reassure your child of your love. Praise and
attention can motivate your toddler to follow the rules more so than
punishment. Your child continues learning through his/her curiosity and asking
a lot of questions. Respond to your child’s questions l
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