Your toddler these days is more defiant. Nearing the
middle of her second year, she is out to prove her independence
and maturity. She purposefully handles things that she
knows she shouldn't; she takes forever in doing something
knowing that you want her to speed up but she stays
adamant. These and some other behaviors are examples
of defiance from your toddler showing you that she wants
to be the boss sometimes. The examples add up in numbers
as your toddler adds up in months. Other problems parents
face from the 17 month-old child revolve around bedtime
and sleep; many toddlers continue to wake up in the
middle of the night; they do whatever they can to stretch
the bedtime routine or they wake up real early much
to your chagrin.
Things your toddler can do
AT THIS STAGE
• use two words
• drink from a cup
Things your toddler will
probably be able to do AT THIS STAGE
• build a tower of 2 blocks
Things your toddler may possibly
do AT THIS STAGE
• walk up steps
• remove an article of clothing
• 'feed' a doll
Things your toddler may even
be able to do AT THIS STAGE
• build a tower of 4 blocks/cubes
• identify 2 items in a picture by pointing
• combine words
• throw a ball overhand
• speak and be understood half the time
The Extras
Girls' behavior
Girls tend to develop social skills and enjoy the company
of other people far earlier than boys. While no child
conforms to a stereotype, girls generally:
• Are more sociable than boys and form closer
friendships from an earlier age.
• Are more compliant with adult requests than
boys tend to be in early childhood
• Show fewer competitive traits are less socially
aggressive and dominant
• Cope far more easily with physical, emotional
and intellectual stress than boys
Boys' behavior
Boys tend to be slower to develop social skills than
girls but not all boys will show the following traits
to a marked degree. The point of knowing these difficulties
with social development is so that you cane help, encourage
and praise your child's efforts. Broadly speaking boys:
• Tend to be slower to develop social skills
• Are far more socially aggressive than girls
• Have more friendships than girls but they tend
to be superficial and short-lived
• Are more emotionally vulnerable than girls
• Tend to have more behavioral problems especially
in the company of authority figures.
