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Young Toddler-Twos are busy acquiring the
important gross motor skills of running, jumping, turning around,
kicking a ball, climbing a stairway, throwing and retrieving all kinds
of smaller or large objects. With the increasingly more advanced
development of gross motor skills, he can get about without adult help.
His world naturally enlarges from a closeness to mother to a larger
world of strange people doing fascinating things: driving a car,
pedaling a bicycle, operating a train, digging a trench, building a
house. Stimulated and challenged by a world in motion", he attempts to
recreate some of his new learning’s with her building blocks, toy cars,
or play people. They are attracted especially to objects that roll: a
ball, a keg, a wagon, a push truck, etc. Toddler-Twos are intent on
practicing their new gross motor skills and enjoying their "bigness."
He is not averse to including parents in his play or imitating them as
they perform their household duties. Two-year-olds are motor skill
driven. They have made some advances in their postural control and body
balance and can now hasten their steps without losing their balance.
Nevertheless, the two-year-old usually monitors his walk and the
placement of his feet so that he will be able to deal with obstacles in
his way by circumventing them.
By the age of three, he will walk without the need for close inspection
of his moving feet. Running and climbing are especially intriguing.
These toddlers can walk up and down stairs and jump down the first
tread without help. They are able to walk up to a ball and kick it.
Young Twos toss balls and other objects haphazardly. They prefer
throwing and trying to catch large balls. Older Twos are more
coordinated and can focus on a target.
Toddler-Twos are somewhat like clowns in a circus; they delight in
rough-and-tumble play. However, fathers need to curb their own
exuberance when they toss their small acrobats into the air. Sometimes
the squealing of their little ones can signify fright more than
delight.
Two-year-olds accompany all their bodily activities with dancing,
screeching, and laughter. They like to talk even if they have nothing
to say. Toddler-Twos show lack of muscular coordination and awareness
when a parent struggles to dress them; for example, they will curl
their fingers when a parent is trying to straighten them out in their
respective glove slots; step on mothers feet as she is trying to button
up the child's coat; and even walk off with the job unfinished when the
impulse takes them.
Playgroup or nursery school children show complete disregard for their
safety when swarming over each other in a sandbox or climbing over a
packing crate. They will set off in small groups on journeys of
exploration, stopping here and there to practice a stepping-up skill,
to open or close a door, or to pick up a shovel and dig for a few
minutes. Play yard settings encourage them to try their hands at a
physical skill; for example, the steps or the rungs of a ladder invite
them to climb; inclines inspire them to use their feet. They will use
their hands and feet to master heights. Holes in a tunnel prompt back
and forth exploration. In a playgroup or nursery school, the
Toddler-Twos problems are real and physical-he has difficulty setting
up a circle of chairs, or bringing a chair close to the dining table.
In a playground, young Toddler-Twos have trouble synthesizing the
motions necessary to mastering a tricycle's pedals and steering
mechanism, or pumping and not falling off a swing. It requires parental
supervision and help to push the swing until the child feels totally
secure with the heights and motions of swinging.
Having left crib and carriage not too long ago, and bursting to make
his way on his own power at home and in the community, he discovers
that he has much to learn in dealing with the dynamic properties of
objects. He clutches an object for support, but unexpectedly it moves
and lets him fall. While he can manage a slide, he is not ready to cope
with the bulk of one of his playmates hurtling down and knocking him
off his feet.
The properties and behaviors of materials around him and the ways he
can control them form a major portion of his daily learning. His
inability to see more than the simplest spatial relationship makes him
vulnerable to accidents and frustrations.
The Toddler-Two is so observant of where things are kept in the home
and meticulous about daily routines that he gives a misleading
appearance of easy participation in the life of his family. In fact,
few opportunities for trial-and-error exist because his uncertain
and/or potentially dangerous tryouts are nipped in the bud.
Tips for the Parents
It is important for parents or other
caregivers of Toddler- Twos to keep in mind that children grow and
develop their motor skills differently, and that their rates of growing
and developmental progress differ at different ages. This period calls
for the sensitive intervention of parents to reinforce a child in his
achievements; to name actions and objects so he can expand his language
ability; to create a safe environment that is manageable and not too
frustrating. Toddler-Twos want to be independent. They want to be
recognized as worthy individuals in the adult world. Although this is a
difficult time for parents, if managed properly, it will result in
competent children who will be able to take leadership in a competitive
world.
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