Developing understanding

The world is a big and complicated place, and between 2 and 3 children are trying to understand the ‘rules’ and how it all makes sense. Because they are only in a position to see a little bit of how it works they fill in the rest with their imagination, so their understanding of the world around them is a mixture of ‘real’ and imagined. They will be greatly helped by simple explanations of things, often in response to their questions why.

Be careful about your adult talk around your toddler. Their understanding of words is beyond their understanding of the world and overhearing adult conversations about relationships, themselves or people they know can be easily misunderstood and can be very worrying for them. It is important to introduce the world to them in bits that they can cope with.

• A 2 year old does not know that her mind is separate from those of other people. She thinks that her parents know what she is thinking. At 3 years of age she will have more of an understanding of herself as a separate person.
• 2 year olds have difficulty with reality and may blame the path if they fall over, or believe a vase fell because it wanted to.
• Your child does not understand the difference between things that are alive and can think, and things that are not, eg she may think of the sun and the moon and the wind in the same way that she thinks about people and pets.
• 2 year olds don’t yet understand that all of their body belongs to them, so may be frightened of losing part of themselves when they see broken bodies, eg on TV. 
• A 2 year old has little understanding of what is real and what is not real, eg on TV programs.
• Before 2 or 3, children think in "black and white" eg they think of themselves as good or bad, not as a child who is sometimes good in some ways and sometimes bad in others.
• 3 year olds have difficulty in seeing a situation from others’ point of view - this is not selfishness, it is because they still think that everyone thinks and feels the same as they do.
• Your child will enjoy some make believe play and be able to play out little stories eg bath the doll, then feed it and put it to bed.
• Three year olds can usually do some scribbling, lots of lines, dots and circles, but not yet a picture.

Physical skills

Your child is much more confident now with his physical abilities but he doesn’t have a very good idea about "when to stop". Some toddlers are shy and careful but it is common for them at this age to test the limits. They love to run [often in the opposite direction from you!], swing and climb and ride on toys they can push with their feet (they cannot manage pedals yet), but they can easily get it wrong and bumps and minor falls are common. Don’t let them run too far or climb too high without bringing them back. They need to know that you know the limits of what is safe even if they don’t! They cannot keep themselves safe even if they can say what they can, or cannot do.

You can help them develop their skill by providing chances for them to play on safe equipment, in sandpits and parks. As they can’t be left to play unsupervised but have lots of energy it can be very demanding and tiring helping your 2-3yr old develop his physical skills.

Between 2 to 3 years:

• Children will learn how to climb up stairs, and down them, learn to kick a ball (but not usually in the ‘right’ direction), start to be able to jump off a step.
• They can start being able to get undressed and can often start to be able to get some clothes back on.

Hi guys, Ive been busy this past months with my job and my family.Though I have nanny who attend my child need and took care while Im in my job but still have to monitor once in awhile what happen to them.Especially my little boy is very hyper active kid. some say this stage is terrible especially for boys kids.

Toddlers between two and three really want to find out about themselves and what they want and don’t want. Because they are beginning to talk in sentences, and sometimes say things in a big and definite voice, we can be tricked into thinking that our toddlers are more grown up than they really are. The most important thing to remember about your children at this age is that they are still babies. ("The Terrible Two’s" is a well known phrase that is often used because of their ability to sometimes do a good imitation of a grown up bully.)

They can wait a little while but not for long. They can hold their strong feelings inside a little bit, but their feelings can easily burst out in a rush of excitement, fear and frustration. Losing control of such big feelings can be very frightening for them and they need lots of physical contact and reassurance that they are lovable.

Your two year old is learning about relationships. They are sometimes able to imagine how other people feel, but most of the time their own feelings of jealousy and loving passion for the people in their family are so strong that they don’t have room for imagining other people’s feelings. They are starting to try and keep their feelings inside and can feel very bad if they think they have done a wrong thing.

They can often play together for short periods but easily get upset and cross with each other.

• A 2 year old is still learning to see himself as a separate person and therefore often wants to say "No". He knows what he wants and may appear quite bossy and become cross when he cannot do something or is stopped from doing something, because he hasn’t really learned to manage feelings yet. As a result temper tantrums are quite common in this age group.
• A 2-3 year old may play with other children for a short while but he cannot share. He acts in response to what he wants and may grab and push.
  
• A 2-3 year old finds it hard to wait or make a choice.
• A 2-3 year old cannot yet understand reason or control his impulses - he may know what you want him to do but he can’t yet make himself do it if he wants to do something else.
• Your child loves to copy what adults do and the way you look, eg making houses out of boxes and rugs, dressing up, digging in the garden.