note: there is a lot of very specific content in this post- mostly as a record of what he is doing at this age for our own personal memories, and because I am a total child development geek. I am not at all trying to brag about his development, though I am very proud of my son and all that he is learning. I also believe that most parents think their kid is a genius, so take it for what it is when I assert that Owen is "so smart" :) I don't think parenting is a competition, and hope that you can read the following post in light of that sentiment.
Also, there are opinions about learning techniques in this post. Again, those are my opinions and while they are based on what I learned as a child development/psychology major as well as research I have done since college, I do not propose that every parent do as we do. To each his own, after all. Do your own research and decide what is best for your family.
And with that, enjoy-
The last time I had a comprehensive update on Owen was at 17 months and there were a few more updates at 18 months (click those links to catch up!)
A lot has happened since then! I have lost count, but I'd dare say that his vocabulary has expanded to more than 75 words. He learns a handful of new words each day at this point, it's shocking. Often he'll pick up new words when we are with friends and it's so fun to get to see their excitement over having "taught" him a new word. So far today he's learned "table" and it's only 10am! Yesterday he learned "shower", "jeans", "crackers", and "money". The shocking thing for me as I watch his vocabulary expand is how he consistently attaches the correct meaning to the word. He doesn't just mimic for fun- he's really learning about his environment and using the words in the correct context. It's mind-boggling.
This might be a stretch but I'd attribute that to the fact that we don't drill him on his words, we don't use flash cards, and we don't set out to "teach" him x amount of words each day. I don't like rote learning methods, nor do I think they are effective for real absorption of the material. He's just learning as he plays and explores his world, and that is the most effective type of educational method. It also seems to be working quite well for Owen.
In addition to new words he is starting to learn numbers. This is totally just him parroting us, as he does not understand 3 apples as opposed to one apple. Kids cannot understand that sort of "math" until they are much older- kindergarten or later, in fact. Any sort of "understanding" that we think they have of numbers or counting up to that point is purely memorization and not a true ability to count. (more info in the comments section, as this proved to be far too simple of an explanation :))
Sorry, I digress. What I was saying was that Owen now parrots us and is starting to learn the "song of numbers" (which is a name for what I just described- memorization or parroting of numbers, but not real counting). He doesn't get them in the right order, but he says "two, one, three" all the time. What is remarkable about this is that it shows he is moving from just repeating one word (i.e. more! more! more!) to putting different words together in a "sentence". He also says "I don't know" and puts his hands up with his elbows at his sides. Again, he isn't doing this just because it is fun- he uses this motion and sentence in context for when we ask him where something is or what he wants to do, etc.
Pretty cool, right?! Kids are, in fact, smarter than we give them credit for.
He's also learned a few new baby signs, specifically for the words play, socks, bike, shoes, fish, and potty.
Speaking of the potty, we have been taking a bit of a break from potty training. He was demonstrating some signs of frustration and anxiety when he would make a mess, so we stepped back for a bit. It seemed that he disliked making a mess (during an accident) so much that he refused to go on the potty because he thought it was "bad" to make a mess in the potty. He'd act uncomfortable until we'd put a diaper on him, which makes me think that he was holding it until he had a diaper on. I did not want to force him to go on the potty and therefore promote negative associations with the potty.
I have no idea if stopping with "training" was the right thing to do in this instance.
There are not many resources on early potty learning so I just did what I felt was right. That isn't to say that we haven't continued to talk about it with him. We offer for him to use the potty, we praise him when he tells us that he went potty (albeit, in his diaper) and change him immediately all while telling him that the old diaper was wet or dirty and that pee/poop goes in the potty. This may be completely dorky but we also let him know when we go to the bathroom and sometimes cheer for each other afterwards (Daddy went potty! Yay!) I know, it sounds crazy, but we are trying to reinforce positive feelings surrounding using the potty for what it is intended for. I still think that Owen is capable of learning to use the potty- he tells us when he goes, he knows to hold it for his diaper (and thus we could reteach him to instead "hold it" until he is on the potty). We need to start trying again and see how it goes. I'm okay waiting as long as it is because we are trying to avoid negative associations, but not just because we don't feel like doing the work to teach him. I'll keep you posted, and would love advice or encouragement (as long as the advice isn't "he is too young for that" because, well, he's not too young ;))
Anyway, Owen can put on his own shoes! Wow, I did not see this one coming, but he came walking into the room with his boots on and I know that I didn't put them on him! He does it all the time now, mostly because he really likes to wear his boots around the house.
We've been really trying to keep an eye on his diet lately (I think this is obvious, but when I refer to "diet" I just mean what he is eating, not that we have him on any sort of weight loss regimen). I feel like during the move we weren't keeping track of this and sort of got lazy in the name of convenience, but I feel good about his diet now. I'm also shocked at some of the things he'll eat- green beans, spinach, and olives, namely. I'm more shocked at what he won't eat, specifically boxed mac and cheese (the organic kind, of course, not the Blue Box.) I guess he just prefers my homemade mac and cheese! That's a win, in my book. He has quite the discerning palate. Ha!
He's really starting to show a lot of personality. I realized this a few weeks ago, and couldn't quite put my finger on what it was that made me feel like he was so "different" from months prior. I think he's starting to become creative, his imagination is developing, and he is also learning how to strategize (against me at bedtime, specifically). He's moving beyond simple thoughts to more complex ways of thinking, it seems. He pretend plays with his stuffed animals (which he has actually done for months), "calls" his friends on his play phones, and "reads" his books to us. I often wish we could understand what he is saying when he is jabbering away with his books, as I am sure he is telling a great story!
His memory is amazing, as well. He remembered having an orange slice at church 5 weeks ago. He knows who lives in what house on our street, and where he hides his toys. One morning when we got him out of bed he went straight to his pacifier that he had hid out of sight the night before. I guess I should start telling him where I put things so he can remind me later when I can't find them!
In the spirit of keeping this short (am I too far-gone?) here are some other developments from the last couple of months:
- eats with spoon and fork. He did this long, long ago but I didn't realize that it was that abnormal for his age? (He started at 11.5 months). So here it is, recorded officially.
- identifies 8-10 body parts
- responds to two-part instructions (i.e. get your bunny book and bring it to mama)
- puts lids on appropriate containers; he hands me his spoon and puts the lid on his bowl when he is done eating
- walks backward- again, he did this months ago but I never recorded it :)
- loves to help around the house; he "vacuums", picks up his toys, cleans up spills, "helps" me cook
- he is attached to a lovey! He has a best friend named Bunna, a sweet little teddy bear that has been previously owned by both his father and mother. He sleeps with Bunna every night.
- can stack a 7 block tower (!)
- correctly uses common objects (phone, remote control, etc)
- throws a ball overhand; kicks a ball
- scribbles- on paper only, thank goodness
- brushes teeth and hair, and washes and dries hands with a little help
- identifies pictures (animals, people, or objects... especially photos of his Aunt "Bissy")
- walks up stairs
- opens and closes doors
Well, I think that's enough for now. Consider yourself completely updated on Owen's development.
2 comments:
Love this post! You are so right about kids learning through exploring. Our children (meaning yours, mine, and anyone else who realizes this invaluable info!) will learn hundreds more things than we would ever set out to "teach" them, and will grasp and understand appropriate context so much more quickly!
I am curious about your counting comment, though. While at a younge age my girls certainly just repeated numbers 1-whatever in order (like words to a song - good analogy), they are absolutely picking up on and appropriately discerning what group (of whatever) has more or fewer, count accurately even when adding, taking away or rearranging things, etc. Not arguing, I know you are well-versed in development as well, just wondering about the kindergarten age comment. Certainly things like "your baby can read" programs are just regurgitation, but I know I was reading (phonetically, not these new-fangled "sight words" or anything) well before the age we say that kids "are able" to these days. Perhaps we - even with the knowledge we have about how smart toddlers really can be - still aren't giving enough credit?
Anway, love the Owen update. I can hardly believe we have never even met one another's kiddos! :)
Jen-
Thanks :) I could have expanded about numbers but the post was super long already :) I'm sure that your girls are able to understand more/less- and yes, some children have learned things long before they are "supposed" to.
Re: kindergarten age and counting. Looking back at the example I used, (3 apples compared to one apple), it was far too simple of an example for what I was trying to say. What I meant was that children can look at groups of 1 vs. 3 apples and see that there is more stuff in the group of 3. OR they can count 1,2,3 yet they don't understand that 3 is more than 1 (here's the kicker) even when they know the group with 3 has "more" in it.
I'm assuming you know much of this, but for the sake of offering complete information, here is a list of "math skills" and at what age they are typically mastered:
one-to-one principle (each number has it's own "tag" or name: age 2 -4
stable order principle (numbers occur in fixed order, even if the wrong order, like 1,3,4,5,7): age 2-4
cardinal principle (number in the set is the same as last number counted): age 2-4
abstraction principle (anything can be counted): age 2-4
order irrelevance principle (you can start counting with any item, not always the same item in the group): age 2-4
Most children operate according to those 5 principles most of the time by age 3, though there is a wide range, AND they may not get the numbers in the right order, though they will have the same "number list" each time (stable order principle)
But counting AND comparing accurately every time isn't mastered until age 4-6 (usually, but of course there are exceptions). It isn't until after they understand the number line, or the relationship between numbers, that they can truly count. This starts around age 2 1/2-3, but isn't usually mastered until kindergarten. The important thing to note is that counting skills develop separately from comparing skills, and that the two aren't merged into a true understanding of numbers and their relationships until age 5 or so. So a child may be able to compare sets, but not apply the principles of counting, or vice versa. They may know that 5 comes after 4, but not that 5 is more than 4.
I made the distinction because when I say "Owen can count to three", I don't really mean that he is counting to three in the way that we understand it. He is simply using the first two counting principles and repeating what he has heard. "Counting to ten" and REALLY counting (i.e. comparing and understanding those number relationships) isn't something that toddlers can master, though we can try to teach it to them.
Post a Comment